Red Raiders hope to feed off momentum
Win in CWS opener was a first, sets up chance at title series
OMAHA, Neb. — Last Sunday was much different than the two that came in years past. Different than the 3-2 loss to TCU in 2014. Different than the 5-3 loss to those same Horned Frogs in 2016.
This time, in another College World Series opener, Texas Tech didn’t wilt. The Red Raiders overcame an early deficit, overwhelmed the celebrated arm of national player of the year Brady Singer and defeated top-seeded Florida 6-3 to avoid an 0-1 start in the CWS for the first time.
“We just kept playing and kept playing the game the right way,” said freshman right fielder Gabe Holt, who had two hits and three RBIs. “And we strung together a couple of good at-bats. And our bullpen was phenomenal and kept us in the game.”
Pitching comes through
Coach Tim Tadlock couldn’t have gotten much more out of the three arms he deployed against the Gators. Dylan Dusek, Ryan Shetter, and Ty Harpenau limited Florida to five hits and a .067 batting average with runners on base. The Gators (47-19) were 0-for-7 with men in scoring position.
“Usually when that happens, they usually hit it at somebody or somebody’s executed a pitch,” Tadlock said. “So I would say one of those two things. We’ve probably had some good fortune in there. They have some really good hitters, but at the same time I would say our guys made some pitches when they needed to.”
Texas Tech (45-18) is just two wins away from the program’s first trip to the CWS finals. Standing in the way is an Arkansas team thathad an eight-run sixth inning in an 11-5 rout of Texas. The two teams meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday at TD Ameritrade Park.
Sophomore Caleb Kilian (9-2, 3.04 ERA) likely will start for the Red Raiders despite coming off a disastrous outing (4 IP, 6 ER) against Duke in the Lubbock super regional, but junior Davis Martin (7-5, 4.50) remains a possibility. Lefthander Kacey Murphy (8-5, 3.12) will get the nod for the Razorbacks.
The teams aren’t exactly strangers. Arkansas defeated Texas Tech 5-1 at on April 24. A second game between the two former Southwest Conference members was canceled because of weather.
And the two share some notable similarities. The Razorbacks rank fourth in the nation in home runs (95) and seventh in slugging percentage (0.488); the Red Raiders are eighth (82) and second (.510), respectively.
“Both teams are offensive,” Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn said. “We kind of are the same type of team when you really break it down. A lot of times, when you see two teams like this going at it, you project a highscoring game, but sometimes you just get the opposite.
“But it’s one game, anything can happen. They know us, and we know them a little bit. So it’s going to be a good game.”
Razorbacks formidable
For Texas Tech, beating Arkansas likely means stopping a pair of outstanding freshman in Heston Kjerstad and Casey Martin. Both are batting .346 and slugging over .570, and they combined for five hits and four RBIs against Texas.
“It’s special,” Razorbacks senior designated hitter Luke Bonfield said. “That’s all you can say. The way they go about themselves is just special. They don’t act like freshmen once they get on the field. They’re very respectful off the field to the upperclassmen, which you don’t really see a lot with guys that are that good as freshmen, they’re never scared. It’s something I’ve never seen here. And it’s pretty cool.”
The Red Raiders don’t lack for talent, either. Among Holt, Josh Jung, Grant Little and all the rest, Tech stacks up just fine. But after what happened earlier this year when the teams first met, the Red Raiders have plenty of respect for their opponent.
Said Tadlock: “We’ve got our work cut out for us.”