The last time the women's softball team beat a nationally ranked opponent was back on March 6, 2003 against the 25th ranked team in the nation at the time, Baylor. That game featured one of the more important pitching performances in program history, as starting pitcher Stacey Evans pitched a no-hitter into the sixth inning, and pitched a two-hit shutout to preserve the upset.
This past weekend, a little over nine years later, the Bulls got another shot at defeating a nationally ranked team - Baylor - and took full advantage.
On Saturday, Buffalo (7-12) defeated 15th ranked Baylor (21-6), 1-0 in a game head coach Jennifer Teague called "the greatest win in program history." This game was eerily similar to that 2003 contest. After nine years of coming up short against ranked opponents, the win was very important to head coach Jennifer Teague.
"This was the best win I've ever had in my four years at Buffalo," Teague said. "If you're looking at ranked teams, this win is definitely right up there with one of the best ones in school history."
The win snapped Baylor's seven-game winning streak as Buffalo handed the Bears their first scoreless effort since Feb. 25 against Texas State (17-11).
Like that game nine years ago, a Buffalo starting pitcher left Baylor befuddled. Senior pitcher Holly Johnson threw a complete game shutout, only allowing two Baylor hits in the contest. Johnson picked up her second win of the season.
Johnson traded scoreless innings in a pitcher's duel with Baylor's Liz Paul, with the strikeouts piling up until the fourth inning. From there, Baylor went into the bullpen, and it couldn't hold off the Buffalo bats for long.
In the top of the sixth, sophomore outfielder Holly Luciano connected on a one-out single and was eventually driven in on a double to left field by junior first baseman Alyssa Ward, providing the only run of the game.
The Bulls knew what to expect from Baylor, having lost to the Bears the day before. Buffalo dropped that contest 3-0 in what was a very winnable game, according to Teague.
"The scouting reports said that throwing low in the zone would be most effective against Baylor," Teague said. "I think Holly Johnson did a great job at throwing the ball low in the zone but we also had a lot of walks. The umpire didn't do a great job calling the low zone and we didn't do a great job in throwing to the umpire's zone."
The Bulls would get a second chance to defeat Baylor the next day and relied mainly on learning from their previous mistakes.
"We knew we had to make critical adjustments for the second game against Baylor and it definitely showed," Teague said.
The Bulls also took on a lesser-known opponent on the weekend, playing Liberty (6-12) in the middle of the two Baylor contests.
Buffalo's offensive game was in full effect in their second game of the weekend against Liberty (6-12). The Bulls jumped out of the gates early and mounted a 5-0 advantage in the first inning. The squad never looked back and went on to defeat the Flames, 6-3.
"We hit really really well against Liberty, and that definitely helped our confidence going forward," Teague said.
The Bulls rode their momentum into Saturday's matchup against Baylor with a positive demeanor and an optimistic attitude.
"The entire coaching staff noticed a different focus to the team before the second game against Baylor," Teague said. "They weren't intimidated after they knew after the first time they played Baylor, that Baylor was definitely beatable."
The Bulls received major contributions from a variety of players throughout weekend's play.
Ward came up clutch for Buffalo with that game-winning RBI against Baylor while sophomore infielder Sammi Gallardo hit an incredible .400 for the weekend. Gallardo has been an offensive force as she looks to keep her six-game hitting streak alive.
Despite winning two of three games and defeating a nationally ranked team in the process, coach Teague believes that her team still has some things to be worked on look forward.
"We still need to tighten up our defense a little bit as we had a couple of errors that cost us late," Teague said. "We're going to continue to work the pitchers and challenge them. But we definitely have a little momentum going into our home opener next week in which we're extremely excited."
The Bulls look to continue their winning ways in their home opener against Canisius (4-17) on March 28 followed by their first foray into the Mid-American Conference season with a double-header against Eastern Michigan (9-14) on March 30.
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Photo: Courtesy of UB Athletics
