By Rachel Caton
FORT WORTH, Texas – The No. 18 Bears completed the sweep of TCU with a 12-1 eight-inning run-rule victory on Sunday afternoon at Lupton Stadium.
The Bears (30-12, 12-5) put up three runs in the third, three in the fourth and three in the fifth to put the game out of reach of the Horned Frogs (23-19, 6-9) with a 9-1 lead in the fifth inning. They added one in the seventh and two in the eighth to push their lead to 11 to complete the run-rule victory.
The Bears were led at the plate by Cole Haring, who was 3-for-3 with a team-high three RBIs on the day. Nick Loftin, Richard Cunningham and Chase Wehsener each had two hits on the day.
Baylor starter Jacob Ashkinos was outstanding in his first Big 12 start, tossing 4.0 innings, allowing just one unearned run on four hits with no walks and two strikeouts. The Baylor bullpen shut down the Horned Frogs down the stretch, as Logan Freeman threw two scoreless innings, followed by one apiece for Ryan Leckich and Luke Boyd.
Offensively, the Bears jumped on Horned Frog starter Brandon Williamson early, chasing him after 3.1 innings of work as he allowed six runs (three earned) on four hits with three walks and four strikeouts. The Bears followed by putting up three more runs on reliever Jared Janczak in 1.2 innings of work and three more on reliever Marcelo Perez in the final three frames.
The Bears also took advantage of defensive miscues by the Horned Frogs, scoring two on passed balls, one on a throwing error and one on a wild pitch.
Ashkinos earned the win to improve to 2-2 on the year in the predetermined staff day. TCU starter Brandon Williamson took the loss to fall to 3-3 on the year.
The Bears return home to host Lamar at 6:35 p.m. CT on Tuesday, April 30, before hosting Kansas State for their final Big 12 home series, May 3-5.