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Landon Stripling, Drew Woodcox hit two HRs, Texas Tech baseball routs Texas Southern
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- Landon Stripling, Drew Woodcox hit two HRs, Texas Tech baseball routs Texas Southern
After a successful opening weekend in Arlington , the Texas Tech baseball team returned home and continued its prosperity inside the friendly confines of Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park.
Unlike most times, where they smack the ball out of the park, the Red Raiders showed patience early and put the pressure on the opposition's pitching staff. This led to Texas Tech scoring six runs in the first, while chasing Texas Southern's starter in 2/3 of an inning, on the way to finding their stroke and securing the 32-5 victory over the Tigers.
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Texas Tech's run total set a school record and was the most by any Division I team this season.
During the crooked first inning, the Red Raiders (4-2) tallied one hit but provided starter Kyle Robinson enough scoring cushion to allow him to pitch aggressive against the Tigers (2-4) the rest of the contest. It also helped that he got several great defensive plays, including a web gem from third baseman Cade McGee .
Freshman Landon Stripling, who earned his second start of the year at first base — replacing Gavin Kash, who was out of the lineup — ended with a seven-RBI day highlighted by a three-run home run in the fourth and a two-run homer in the fifth. It was a five-hit, career day for the Lawrenceville, Georgia, native, who was a top-100 national recruit in the Perfect Game rankings and a top-10 prospect in the state of Georgia.
Damian Bravo, who's been the Red Raiders best hitter, secured three RBIs in the triumph. Drew Woodcox, who hit two home runs, and Kevin Bazzell each plated five runs for Texas Tech, which drew 14 walks against Texas Southern. TTU had six games in which it drew double-digit walks, including a season-high 14 against Gonzaga on Feb. 20, 2023. Tech also netted 18 free passes against Merrimack on March 5, 2022.
Bounce-back game
TTU starter Kyle Robinson (1-1) improved after a 3 2/3 inning start against Tennessee last week.
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The right-handed hurler ended his day with eight strikeouts, tying a career best he turned in against Oklahoma State back on May 27, 2023. He yielded one earned run and issued three walks in an 84-pitch performance.
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Big inning changes the game
Texas Southern felt like it was playing with house money after scoring a run on Kyle Robinson in the top half of the first. But, Tigers starter Carlos Marquez was unable to find the strike zone early on and the Red Raider lineup took advantage of the situation.
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Texas Tech showed patience, not allowing Marquez to gain any help by swinging at balls high and wide. The result saw the Red Raiders take the lead 5-1 — needing one hit while turning over the lineup — before Marquez was pulled after issuing five walks and tossing 49 pitches, 20 for strikes.
Texas Tech finished with six runs in the bottom half, providing a 6-1 scoring cushion for Robinson.
Sizzling sluggers
The Red Raiders hit .294 as a team during their five-game, opening weekend at Globe Life Field, home of the MLB's Texas Rangers.
On Friday, Tech kept the offense going but in a different way.
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In the first inning, the Red Raiders scored without recording hit. TTU scored via three bases-loaded walks, a hit by pitch for another and an error on the second baseman led to two other runners touching home plate.
Texas Tech put up another six-run inning, in the third, with Austin Green and Kevin Bazzell netting the first RBIs off hits after tallying back-to-back doubles.
Staying consistent
Tracer Lopez (leadoff), Kevin Bazzell (third), Cade McGee (fifth), and Damian Bravo (seventh) have cemented their spots in the lineup in the first five games. The quartet continued their routine on Friday to begin the three-game series with the Tigers. Owen Washburn had batted sixth in the previous five games before he was moved up to cleanup with Gavin Kash out of the lineup.
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What's next
Texas Tech and Texas Southern are scheduled to continue their three-game series with a 2 p.m. Saturday contest. The set is slated to conclude with a 1 p.m. Sunday getaway tilt. All games are set to be streamed on ESPN+.
The Red Raiders are in the midst of a six-game homestand, the longest of the season, which is slated to continue with a three-game series against Gardner-Webb set for contests on March 1 (6:30 p.m.), March 2 (2 p.m.) and March 3 (2 p.m.) with the contests to be online streamed on ESPN+.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Landon Stripling, Drew Woodcox hit two HRs, Texas Tech baseball routs Texas Southern in Lubbock
