The Texas Tech softball team just faced off against the Tennessee Lady Volunteers in an absolutely fascinating matchup that went into extra innings and caused a lot of stress. And unfortunately for Texas Tech softball fans, the Red Raiders did not come out on top.
Tennessee ended up beating Texas Tech 2-1 in the ninth inning. The Red Raiders just simply couldn’t get enough run production against Tennessee’’s pitching staff and the Lady Volunteers had some timely home runs hit against Texas Tech.Â
It stinks.Â
I’ve got a few questions for the Red Raiders after losing to the Lady Volunteers.
Will the Red Raiders be able to find their bats before facing the UCLA Bruins?
Texas Tech couldn’t string together hits against the Tennessee Lady Volunteers, which is something that I’m a bit worried about. I’m not totally shocked given how good Tennessee’s pitching staff is, but I’m very worried that in nine innings, Texas Tech had just five hits and one run scored.Â
That needs to change in a hurry as the Red Raiders return to action for an elimination game on Sunday at 6 p.m.
And there’s definitely going to be a need for Texas Tech to show up at the plate in a much more impressive way when the Red Raiders face the Bruins on Sunday. Especially given how UCLA is hitting and how good the Bruins are at hitting home runs.Â
If you don’t believe me, just ask the Arkansas Razorbacks who were run-ruled and eliminated as they lost 11-0 in just five innings.
Does Texas Tech have a pitching answer for the UCLA Bruins?
Both Kaitlyn Terry and NiJaree Canady looked really sharp against the Tennessee Lady Volunteers. There’s a lot to be proud of there. In Saturday’s nine-inning matchup with Tennessee, the Red Raiders were able to hold the Lady Vols to just five hits and two runs (both of which were earned). Terry went 4.1 innings with 63 pitches thrown and was able to strike out four batters. Canady showed up, threw 3.2 innings with 67 pitches thrown and struck out three batters.Â
But it’s worth noting that Tennessee's offense isn’t anything remotely like what the Bruins can provide while at the plate. And that could be a problem for Texas Tech. Especially when looking at how both Canady and Terry gave up home runs to Tennessee. UCLA is a team that is known for hitting home runs. They lead the country with 206. By comparison, Texas Tech has hit 137 and is the third best in the nation.
Can Texas Tech prove its resiliency as the Red Raiders face elimination once again?
When the Red Raiders were in the Gainesville Super Regional, I was admittedly very worried about how Texas Tech would respond to getting absolutely crushed by the Florida Gators in Game 2. Losing 10-2 is far from ideal. And then Texas Tech responded by going score-for-score with Florida in front of their fans and ultimately outpaced the Gators, winning 16-7 in five innings.
Texas Tech needs to prove its resiliency once more. There’s no margin for error. If the Red Raiders are going to even remotely have a shot at competing for a national title, they’ve got to beat UCLA and then go beat Alabama twice.
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