Wendel Delivers Walk-Off Winner for Baylor Baseball - kcentv.com - KCEN HD - Waco, Temple, and Killeen

WACO, Texas – Duncan Wendel came through in the clutch for Baylor with a single to center in the ninth that gave the Bears (7-6) a 5-4 walk-off win over Louisiana Tech on Wednesday evening at Baylor Ballpark.  The victory gave BU its first three-game winning streak of the season and extended its winning streak to seven against the Bulldogs (3-10).

Entering the ninth trailing 4-3, Lawton Langford drew a leadoff walk off LA Tech reliever Caleb Dudley, who had stymied the Bears for 5.1 scoreless innings in relief.  After failing to get down a sacrifice bunt, Cal Towey laced a single just off Tyler Ervine's glove at first base to move Langford to third.  Then with Wendel at the plate, a wild pitch scored Langford and moved Towey to second.  Wendel followed three pitches later with his first walk-off hit in any level of baseball on a fastball down the middle to give Baylor its second walk-off win in the last eight days and third comeback win of the season.

Doug Ashby (1-0) was the beneficiary of Wendel's hit as he picked up his first career win in an outstanding relief effort.  The junior pitched a career-high 2.2 innings, allowed just one base runner on a walk and struck out a career-best three hitters.

Prior to falling behind, Baylor jumped out to a 3-0 lead.  The first run came in the first inning on an RBI single by Adam Toth that scored Towey after a two-out walk.  The other two runs were a part of another two-out rally in the second.  Following a Logan Brown bunt single and Langford hit-by-pitch, Towey singled up the middle to score Brown and extend his career-high RBI streak to nine games.  Wendel backed it up with another RBI single up the middle.

The Bulldogs rallied in the next three innings to grab the lead, scoring two in the third and a run each in the fourth and fifth.  Sam Alvis hit a one-out solo home run in the third and a throwing error by BU starter Sterling Wynn scored the second run.  The fourth-inning run came on a Kody Neel groundout after a double and single.  In the fifth, a double by Taylor Terrasas scored an unearned run after Colby Johnson reached on an error.

From there, however, Kolt Browder and Ashby held LA Tech scoreless over the final four frames.  Browder tossed three innings, allowing the unearned run on a hit and walk with one strikeout.  He came in to relieve Wynn, who took a no-decision after surrendering three runs (two earned) on five hits and one walk in 3.1 frames.

"Both Ashby and Browder were pretty sharp today," BU Head Coach Steve Smith said.  "It is obvious Sterling has a good arm. He has nice stuff. He gave up the home run, the double and had a fielding error, but he is learning on the job. You have still got to be encouraged with the stuff that he has got. We are just trying to get it done with what we have. Everybody is going to get their chance; they just have to be ready. Tonight, Browder got his chance, and Ashby got another chance and both were up to it. We are not short of bodies, we have just been short of performers and these last two days we have got some decent performances."

Dudley (0-3) was tagged with the loss, giving up the two runs on four hits and two walks with four strikeouts in 5.1 innings.  Bulldogs starter Omar Ugarte had a no-decision as he gave up three runs on four hits and four walks with one strikeout in 2.2 innings.

Baylor's three, four and five hitters each went 2-for-4 with at least one RBI.  Towey scored twice and drove in one.  Wendel drove in two and had a steal.  Toth drove in one and stole two bases.  Wes Mercurio and Brown had BU's other two hits.

The Bears continue a six-game home stand this weekend with a three-game series versus Illinois.  Games are set for 6:30 p.m. CT on Friday and 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. in a Saturday doubleheader.