Tech Splits Doubleheader, Takes Series from Baylor

Tech Splits Doubleheader, Takes Series from Baylor

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It was a tale of two games Saturday as Texas Tech (29-13, 8-7) split the Saturday doubleheader with the Baylor Bears (14-26, 6-12), missing the sweep opportunity in the final game, but taking the series to move into a tie for fourth place in the Big 12 standings.

In a frustrating twist of sports fate, the Texas Longhorns (27-15, 8-7) were swept at home by Oklahoma, knocking them out of the catbird seat in the Big 12 Conference down into a tie for fourth with the Red Raiders. If Tech had secured the sweep, they would have landed in a tie for second with Kansas State.

Game 1: Molina Shoves and Bats Get Hot in Series Opener

GAME 2

Trendan Parish got the start for Tech in the front end of the doubleheader forced by impending Sunday weather. Parish struck out five on the day and allowed only one run on three hits through the first five innings, at one point retiring seven in a row and 11 of 12 in order.

He got plenty of run support as Tech turned in their most productive first inning of the season. Nolen Hester got it started with a double to lead off the game. He was followed by walks from Ty Coleman and Kevin Bazzell and RBI base knocks from Austin Green (single), Dylan Maxcey (double), and Dillon Carter (double) making it a five-run first.

In the inning that followed, Tracer Lopez led things off with a triple down the left field line, he was knocked home two outs later by a Gage Harrelson single.

Parish also had support from his defense behind him, Lopez in particular was exceptional all weekend. In the fifth inning, Parish fanned the first batter for his fifth strikeout of the day. Lopez then flashes the leather for two consecutive stars in the book. He went full extension to glove a screaming line drive for the second out. Then, a tough hand-side grounder was snagged on the backhand by Lopez, he fired the long throw from the hole with a nice pick by Gavin Kash at first base for the last out of the frame.

In the sixth, the Bears put together a string of double, single, two-run double that ended the day for Parish. He gave way to Ryan Free (5-3) who scuffled through a walk, two more hits, and three more RBIs to make it a five-run frame for the Bears as they knotted it up.

Tech responded in the bottom of the sixth plating four runs to make it 10-6. It was Rockwall-Heath products everywhere as fifth-year pitcher out of Heath Anderson Needham took over for the Bears. His best friend, and Heath product, Nolen Hester worked a leadoff walk and came around to score. Another Heath grad in Bazzell booked his second hit of the day, a go-ahead single that scored Hester. That hit ran starting Needham from the game, bringing in Hambleton Oliver.

Maxcey pounded a one-out double to plate his third and fourth RBIs of the day, his second of three extra-base hits. In the seventh, Free settled in and retired the side in order after a leadoff single, he’d end up with his fifth win of the season.

In the bottom of the seventh, Hester loosed his second big fly of the season, sending a home run to the scoreboard in right-center field to push Tech’s lead to 11-6.

After the doubleheader, Head Coach Tim Tadlock was complimentary of Hester’s “old school approach” as the leadoff hitter.

“It’s been a lot of fun watching him hit leadoff, it really has. It’s kind of an old-school approach. He takes a lot of pitches when it’s the right time to take pitches,” explained Tadlock. “Seems like he also has a feel for when to go up there and be aggressive. You know, 30 years ago if you hit leadoff you took a strike and you earned pitches for those guys behind you and you kind of set the tone.

We’ve had some leadoff hitters that were really good at what they do, but I don’t know that we’ve had one that goes up there with the plan he has. That’s been fun to watch.”

In the eighth, it was two-out magic that gave Tech some breathing room. Green got it going with a single through the left side then Maxcey turned in his third extra-base hit and second dinger of his collegiate career, he finished the game with three extra-base hits and six RBIs. Carter followed with a double down the left field line and Lopez brought him home with a double of his own into right field.

“He’s competing,” said Tadlock of Maxcey. “Dylan from day one has wanted to be the catcher and he’s competed, he’s thrown the ball really well, he’s caught the ball really well, he’s prepared really well, and he’s playing really good right now…I think that says a lot about him. It’s fun to watch guys compete, really proud of the way Maxcey’s shown up.”

Brandon Beckel took it the rest of the way. He struck out the side in the eighth but in the ninth, put a man aboard with a leadoff walk. After a strikeout, back-to-back-to-back singles plated three runs to cut Tech’s lead from eight runs to five. Finally, a great connection between Green and Kash ended the Baylor rally, securing the series win for Tech.

GAME 3

The final game of the Big 12 series, and the back end of the Saturday doubleheader, had a different look from the start. The lineup remained the same, with the exception of the change from Maxcey to Hudson White at catcher, but the bats started cold and struggled all day.

Jacob Rogers got the start for the Red Raiders. He pitched around two walks in the first inning, striking out two and holding the Bears at bay. He again pitched around two baserunners in the second, who’d reached on a single and error, two more strikeouts again held the Bears from crossing the plate. But in the third, a one-out walk and back-to-back doubles ended the day for Rogers. He gave way to Ethan Coombes, who struck out the last two of the inning to stop the threat after Baylor took a 2-0 lead.

Offensively the Red Raiders had seven retired in a row, but Carter pounded his third double of the afternoon in the third inning with one out. Hester contributed a single and Carter scored on an error, giving Baylor a 2-1 lead.

Kyle Robinson (0-1) took over in the fourth, he lasted 4 2/3 innings surrendering three runs on seven hits, and Robinson would ultimately suffer his first loss of the season. In the bottom of the frame, back-to-back two-out doubles by Green and White knotted the game back up at 2-2.

The Bears led off the sixth inning with a double and single. A beautiful double play ball would eliminate two baserunners but score the go-ahead run. In one of the oddities of baseball scoring, no RBI was awarded due to the double play.

Tech tied it back up in the seventh, Hester reached on an error with two outs and Coleman would plate him from first base with an RBI double against new pitcher Grant Golomb, who would earn the win.

In the eighth, the Bears would plate three runs on four consecutive two-out hits to take a three-run lead into the final innings. Robinson surrendered the first two hits and gave way to Brendan Girton, he allowed the other two hits to the first two batters he faced.

Kash reached on a one-out walk in the bottom of the eighth, he was plated by a wild pitch to cut the Baylor lead to two. Tech would go on to load the bases again with two outs on a White single and back-to-back walks by Carter and Lopez. But a flyout after a pitching change would leave the bases juiced and despite a two-out single in the ninth, the Red Raiders would be unable to mount the rally needed to secure their first Big 12 series sweep of the season.

At the end of the day, Bazzell had pushed his nation-leading doubles total to 22, he also surpassed Harrelson as the new Red Raider leader in multi-hit games at 23 on the season.

Tadlock commented on what’s coming from here for the Red Raiders.

“Just show up, keep working every day, and keep getting better. Teams that play good at the end continue to improve through the year, and that really comes down to individuals deciding ‘hey, I’m going to keep trying to work at it, keep getting better,'” said Tadlock.

Texas Tech will start a four-game Wildcat road trip Tuesday in Abilene against Abilene Christian (25-14). From there, they’ll head to Manhattan Kansas for their penultimate road series in Big 12 play against Kansas State.

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