2010 NCAA Regional Baseball Tournament: Fort Worth Regiona

The No. 3 seed Wildcats took a 10-4 lead into the ninth inning at Lupton Stadium, but had to withstand a furious five-run rally by the No. 2 Bears to win by one. Baylor had the tying and winning runs on base when Zona’s Bryce Bandilla got BU’s Raynor Campbell to fly out to end the game.

Arizona took an 8-4 lead in the top of the sixth that it extended to 9-4 and 10-4 with lone runs in the seventh and ninth innings. The Wildcats’ five-run sixth – the key to the contest – was built on the back of three Baylor errors.

Arizona starter Kurt Heyer improved to 7-4 as he turned in six-plus innings of work. He struck out five and walked four while scattering six hits. He gave up four runs, but only two of them earned in what was a very sloppy ballgame.

Arizona reliever Vincent Littleman pitched well in the seventh and the eighth, but he couldn’t get an out against the two batters he faced in the ninth. Bandilla fared little better, giving up the two runners he inherited from Littleman plus three runs of his own. However, Bandilla put out the fire just in time, denying the Bears a miracle comeback. With BU down 10-7, Bear centerfielder Brooks Pinkard drove in two runs with a single to put Baylor within a run. That’s when Bandilla was able to get the game’s final out

Baylor reliever Shawn Tolleson suffered the tough-luck loss despite allowing only one earned run in 3.2 innings of work. The reason why Tolleson lost is that he gave up six runs for the day – five unearned runs will do that to a scoreline.

The Wildcats advance to the winner’s bracket. They will meet the TCU Horned Frogs Saturday at 8 p.m. Eastern.

Arizona vs Baylor - NCAA Regional Baseball Recap