WACO, Texas – Pitcher Mikayla Brown and Northwestern State avoided early trouble Friday, but No. 10 Baylor took advantage of base runners in the middle innings of an 8-0 Lady Demons loss to open the season.
Baylor scored three runs in the third inning before a five-run fourth inning led to a run-rule win in five innings.
Bears pitcher Gia Rodoni (1-0) threw a five-inning no-hitter with one walk and one defensive error behind her.
Rodoni struck out 11 of the 17 batters she faced, including nine straight to start the game. The junior has thrown three consecutive no-hitters in Getterman Stadium, blanking Kent State and James Madison in the NCAA Tournament in her last two home games.
"We've got to control our emotions better than we did tonight," said NSU coach Donald Pickett. "The girls were anxious and really excited about the first game.
"We weren't thinking about playing the game and keeping our focus. We were really undisciplined tonight, and it cost us offensively and defensively. Everybody was trying to do way too much, but hopefully we can learn from it and come out better (Saturday)."
Brown and the NSU defense worked around a single and two walks in the first two innings, including a double play to end the second ending from leftfielder Julie Rawls (caught a fly ball) to third baseman Sidney Harris.
But Baylor struck in the third inning with a Shelby Friudenberg two-RBI single with the bases loaded. A bloop single by Carlee Wallace provided the inning's third run.
The Bears did their fourth-inning damage all with two outs, including a Goose McGlaun two-RBI single, a Friudenberg RBI-double and a Maddison Kettler RBI-single.
Brown (0-1) allowed eight runs (six earned) on 11 hits in 3 2-3 innings.
Offensively, NSU put one runner in scoring position when Hayley Barbazon (reached on error) advanced to second base on a Cayla Jones ground out in the fourth inning.
But Rodoni ended the threat with a strikeout.
Jones (second base) and fellow true freshman E.C. Delafield (right field) were fresh faces along with sophomore third baseman Sidney Harris making their first career starts. NSU started four other sophomores in the field on opening day. Adele Vincent and Barbazon made their debuts at shortstop and first base, respectively. Rawls switched to left field to open the season, and Hawthorne took her customary spot behind the plate.
Sophomore Mariah Denson picked up the final out in her first NSU appearance.
The series continues with a Saturday doubleheader at 2 p.m.
