BYU Softball Wins First Big 12 Series On Walk-Off Grand Slam
Mar 29, 2024, 10:49 PM | Updated: Apr 1, 2024, 1:28 pm
PROVO, Utah – BYU softball earned their first-ever Big 12 series victory in memorable fashion.
The Cougars defeated Houston on Friday night in extra innings on a walk-off grand slam. BYU won the series 2-1.
Down 15-13 in the bottom of the 9th inning with one out, preseason All-Big 12 selection Huntyr Ava crushed the pitch into left-center for a walk-off grand slam.
QUEEN T WITH A WALK OFF GRAND SLAMM🤯🔥🔥
Watch on ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/RIVCwSvVzU
— BYU Softball (@byusoftball) March 30, 2024
The win improves BYU’s record to 20-13 overall on the season and 4-8 in their inaugural campaign in the Big 12.
BYU softball faced an early 8-0 deficit heading into the bottom of the 1st inning.
BYU Softball defeats Houston for first Big 12 series win
They chipped away at the deficit, thanks to a home run from Violet Zavodnik in the bottom of the first.
In the bottom of the fourth, BYU’s bats came alive with a seven-run inning that featured a pair of home runs from Hailey Morrow and Keila Kamoku, putting the Cougars in blue in front.
Houston responded with four unanswered runs to take a 13-12 lead in the final at-bats in the bottom of the seventh.
BYU pitcher Ailana Agbayani hit a solo home run with two outs to send the game into extra innings. Agbayani won the game on the mound, improving her record this season to 2-0.
But the star of the night was Ava. Ava finished 5-of-6 with five RBIs to give BYU their first Big 12 series win. Ava has six home runs this season with a batting average of .383.
BYU steps out of league play for a weeknight home game against Utah Tech on Tuesday at Gail Miller Field. Then they go back on the road for a three-game series against UCF in Orlando next weekend.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
