Counting down the top 10 Texas Tech sports moments of 2019

No. 8: Eliminating Arkansas in Omaha

Under Tim Tadlock, the Texas Tech baseball program has figured out how to get to the College World series with regularity.  But once they get to Omaha, they’ve found wins tough to come by.

That was the case in 2018 when Arkansas eliminated the Red Raiders, but a year later Tech returned the favor.  On June 17th, the Red Raiders rallied from a 3-0 deficit for a 5-4 win to eliminate Arkansas.

The key play came in the bottom of the 8th inning when Cody Masters tripled home Cam Warren with a line drive that came a foot from clearing the left-center wall a half-inning after Arkansas tied the game at 4-4. The 5-4 lead was enough for the Red Raider bullpen which closed the door thanks to Taylor Floyd, who registered all three outs after entering the game with the tying run on second base.

Caleb Kilian got the start and battled through seven innings to keep Tech in the game allowing three runs on six hits while striking out nine.  John McMillon picked up the win despite retiring just one hitter and beaning the second hitter he faced to open the ninth.

The win prevented Tech from being swept out of Omaha for the second time ever after opening with a 5-3 loss to Michigan.  And by rallying to overtake the Hogs, the Red Raiders gave us our No. 8 moment of the year.