Pioneers present Coach Bass with 1,000th career victory

It came a few months later than everyone thought it would, but not even a worldwide pandemic could prevent Brad Bass from picking up his 1,000^th career victory.

With a 14-6 win over Jarvis Christian College, the Wayland Baptist baseball team on Saturday afternoon presented their beloved head coach with his historic 1,000^th career victory.

"Anytime I put any thought on (what this means), it's just been kind of overwhelming and really, really humbling," Bass said. "There were a lot of people paying attention to this, and it's meant so much to so many people. It was hard for me emotionally."

In his 35^th season overall and 26^th at Wayland, Bass is now 1,001-822-4, with 743 of those victories coming with the Pioneers. He ranks ninth among active NAIA coaches and 23^rd all-time.

The milestone triumph over the Bulldogs was followed by a 7-2 win that completed the four-game sweep for Wayland (6-2). The Pioneers won easily on Friday, 20-1 and 16-8.

An on-field ceremony honoring Bass was held at the conclusion of the series. Bass was joined on the field by his family – including his wife Sally and two sons, Calvin and Will who both played for him at WBU – and was presented a framed Pioneers jersey. Former WBU Athletics Director Dr. Greg Feris also was on hand for the occasion, and several of Bass's former players returned to campus.

"I enjoyed it," Bass said of the short ceremony honoring him in which he admitted to getting choked up.

The coach said he enjoyed all of the congratulatory messages and phone calls from former players over the past several days, including from former pitcher Rodolfo Olavarria (2006-07) who called just prior Bass leaving his office before Saturday's games.

"Getting to talk to those guys was great. That's been really cool. All those guys who left with degrees and how they used those. They turned out to be good dads and good husbands. It's cool hearing those stories and getting occasional pictures when their children get baptized. That's especially cool."

The 1,000^th win was delayed a few months after last season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as was Bass' induction into the WBU Athletics Hall of Honor. That will take place this coming fall.

Saturday's wins were much harder-fought for Wayland than Friday's as Jarvis (1-4) put up a fight in both contests after being blown out the day before.

In Game 1, the Bulldogs plated four runs in the first inning and were up 6-1 after 2½. But Wayland came to live in the bottom of the third, scoring four runs before adding four more in the fifth and five in the sixth.

The Pioneers ended with a dozen hits, with Carlos Collazo going 4-for-4 with four runs scored and Marco Rivera adding a pair of hits with three RBIs and three runs. Both homered, helping offset four blasts by Jarvis which took advantage of a strong northerly wind.

Deric Trevino and Jacob Damian combined to strike out 15 batters, with Trevino fanning 10 over the first 4 2/3 innings and Damian sitting down five in the final 2 1/3. Damian didn't allow any runs and just one hit.

The 15 Ks came on the heels of 13- and 11-strikeout games by Pioneer pitching on Friday.

In the 7-2 series finale, Wayland was in control after scoring a pair of runs in the first and two more in the third. A three-run home run by Luis Vargas – his fourth of the series and eighth of the season – in the bottom of the sixth gave the Pioneers some breathing room.

Vargas ended with four RBIs as the first three WBU batters – Gregory Ozuna, Collazo, who homered again, and Vargas – accounted for two runs apiece, all but one of the team's total.

Kyle Eifert and Chase Jones added six strikeouts to Wayland's weekend collection, giving Pioneer arms 45 for the series. Eifert sat down six and allowed just one run on three hits in six innings.

The Pioneers are due to return to the field next weekend in another four-game series against Peru State (Neb.), with doubleheaders at 2 p.m. Friday and noon Saturday. However, predicted cold weather could throw a kink into the schedule.