AUSTIN — Ace Teagan Kavan threw a three-hitter and Katie Stewart crushed two of the Longhorns’ four home runs, including a first-inning, two-run shot, to lead No. 2 seed Texas to a 7-0 win over Baylor to capture the Austin Regional.
Texas (45-10) advances to next weekend’s super regional, when it will host the winner of the College Station Regional. Texas A&M fell into the losers’ bracket and has to beat Arizona State twice Sunday to advance.
The Longhorns gave up just one run in their three regional games and outscored three different opponents 25-1. Texas is now 23-3 in regional games under head coach Mike White.
Texas bludgeoned opposing pitchers and improved to 3-0 against Baylor this season, outscoring the Bears 28-2.
Kayden Henry also had a solo home run in the fifth when she and Stewart went yard on back-to-back shots, and Reese Atwood added a solo shot later in the inning. Stewart’s single season record-extending 27th homer crashed halfway up the mammoth video board in center field.
Kavan (24-4) gave up an infield single to the first batter of the game on a bang-bang play and then retired the next 16 batters for Baylor, which hit just .279 on the year as the Big 12’s weakest offense. Pinch-hitter Kaci West had a double in the sixth for Baylor’s second hit of the game, and Amber Toven beat out an infield single in the seventh.
The junior right-hander struck out five and allowed just three balls hit out of the infield through five innings.
The Longhorns had several chances to blow out Baylor but twice left the bases loaded in the second and fifth innings. The Bears, who were picked eighth in the Big 12 preseason poll, finished the season at 30-28.