photo by: Baker Athletics

The Baker softball team is destined for its first-ever trip to the NAIA World Series after defeating College of Idaho 5-3 in the NAIA Softball Opening Round on Wednesday, May 17, 2023, in Baldwin City.

The Baker softball team is headed for its first NAIA World Series after defeating top-seeded College of Idaho in the final game of the NAIA Softball Opening Round on Wednesday.

Heading into Wednesday’s doubleheader against the Yotes, the No. 2-seeded Wildcats were riding high. Despite being bounced from their conference tourney in the second round by Mount Mercy, they had won four of their last five, including a 3-0 shutout against Indiana Southeast on Monday and a 5-1 win over the Yotes in the opening game of their three-game series on Tuesday.

In Wednesday’s first game, the Yotes beat Baker 4-2 to tie the series, but the Wildcats escaped Game 3 with a 5-3 win to punch their ticket to the World Series.

Now, the Wildcats have a 47-10 record (21-5 HAAC), and head coach Dana Goss is optimistic about her team’s competitiveness. In the runup to the conference tournament, Baker played 12 straight games within 15 days.

“I think what it showed was that our girls believe that too,” Goss said. “They came out ready to go, and that rest period we were able to get from the conference tournament before the national tournament was huge for us.”

In the decisive game against the Yotes, Baker was in a two-run hole early on but came alive in the fifth inning, rushing past Idaho to seize a two-run lead. It was senior Emma Ancira who tied the ballgame by scoring on her two-run base hit in the top of the fifth.

Then, in the top of the sixth, the Wildcats got some insurance on a solo bomb by junior Morgan Loggins. And the Wildcats officially made their World Series dreams a reality in the seventh, when junior Parker Straight snagged a two-out hit to center field right up against the warning track.

“The final out was a little dramatic,” Goss said. “They had runners on, and we knew what was on the line. It was literally going to be a battle until it was completely secured — whatever it was on the last pitch.”

Baker’s starting pitcher, freshman Kira Baker, allowed Idaho’s three runs in the bottom of the third but stayed clean through the final four frames to pick up the win. The Eudora native and Heart of America Athletic Conference Newcomer of the Year allowed just six hits on four walks and seven strikeouts.

Kira leads the Wildcats’ pitching staff with a 0.59 ERA and 303 total strikeouts through a team-high 165.1 innings pitched. Goss considers her the best pitcher in the country.

With its big victory on the national stage, Baker has emerged as one of just 10 teams to earn the trip to Columbus, Georgia, for the NAIA World Series. The Wildcats are seeded ninth and will face No. 8 seed and conference foe Central Methodist in the opening round at noon on Thursday.

“We’ve played the schedule to prepare us for this moment,” Goss said. “They have experience playing really good teams and in high emotionally intense settings. Right now, we’re taking a couple of days to let them rest up, get treatments in and those things. But when the first pitch is thrown, it’s still the game of softball and we’ve got to be ready to go.”