Red Raider softball cruises to day one sweep

Provided by Texas Tech Athletics

LUBBOCK, Texas – Powered by strong performances both in the circle and at the plate, the Red Raiders swept day one of the Texas Tech Invitational Friday at Rocky Johnson Field.

Texas Tech (17-7) opened the invitational with a decisive 13-0 win over Buffalo (5-14) before downing Manhattan (2-9) in the night cap, 10-0.

The Red Raiders tallied 28 total hits, 14 in game one and 14 in game two, while the duo of Sage Hoover (9-0) and Kendall Fritz (5-1) allowed just one each game.

“I think it was the first time all-year that we have put two complete together,” head coach Craig Snider said. “From the circle to the defense, and then obviously the offense played really well. When you have 28 hits on the day, you are going to score a lot of runs. I was really proud of the ball club today.”

Game One: Texas Tech 13, Buffalo 0

The Red Raider were firing on all cylinders in the opening frame as Sage Hoover struck out the side to send a red-hot Tech offense to the plate. Makinzy Herzog led off the frame with a double down the right-field line to fire up the squad. Peyton Blythe followed with a triple to right center, plating the first of five runs in the frame.

Freshman Kailey Wyckoff followed behind Blythe with a single to tally a second run. After a ground out put Wyckoff in scoring position, back-to-back singles from Arriana Villa and Alanna Barraza plated another pair. Carson Armijo then capped off the frame with an RBI ground out to give Tech the early 5-0 lead.

After another three-up, three-down inning for Hoover, Wyckoff added another run with a single up the middle to score Blythe, who reached on a walk.

A one-out double in the top of third was the first and only hit surrendered by Hoover, but she would leave the runner stranded after fanning the final batter. Tech’s offense continued its tear, hanging six runs in the bottom of the third.

Again, back-to-back singles from Villa and Barraza kick started the frame. Singles from Armijo, Demi Elder and Wyckoff alongside a Bulls’ fielding error handed Tech a convincing 12-0 lead heading into the fourth.

Tech would add one more in bottom of the fourth before Hoover would retire the side once more to earn her ninth win of the season. The righty earned her second shutout of the season after fanning 10 batters.

Game Two: Texas Tech 10, Manhattan 0

The offense picked up right where it left off in the night cap, plating five runs off six hits in the bottom of the opening frame.

A pair of singles from Herzog and Gabby Rawls set Wyckoff for a base-clearing triple, her fourth three-bagger of the season. With two outs, Armijo, Kennedy Crites and Abbie Orrick recorded two singles and a double, respectively, to cap off the five-run affair.

Villa tacked on another in the top of the second with a solo shot over the left-field wall, her fifth long ball of the season.

Kendall Fritz relinquished her first and only hit of the afternoon in the third but sat down the final batter to keep the game humming along.

The Red Raiders put the run-rule in effect in the bottom of the third after plating a trio of runs. Doubles from Herzog and Elder coupled with a single from Rawls plated the first two runs. Two batters later, a Barraza single gave Tech a 9-0 lead.

Kennedy Crites led off the Tech’s final at-bat with a double to left center and came around to score off a triple from Chassety Raines, to set up the 10-0 final.

Fritz earned the win after retiring the side in the fifth. She finished the afternoon with --- strikeouts after allowing just two base runners throughout her 5.0 innings of work.

Next Up

The Red Raiders return to action in day two of the Texas Tech Invitational tomorrow, where the squad will face Manhattan at 3 p.m. and New Mexico at 5:30 p.m.

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