Here's a look at some of the top stories from over the weekend in Texas Tech sports.
Texas Tech softball makes national statement in Arizona
This weekend, the Texas Tech softball team likely put the finishing touches on the regular-season Big 12 title by taking two of three games from second-place Arizona in Tucson. What's more, by winning a road series against the No. 12 team in the nation, Tech made a huge national statement as the Red Raiders try to earn the right to host a regional in the NCAA Tournament.
After dropping game one on Thursday, 2-1, Tech rebounded in a huge way on Friday night. In a 10-1 five-inning victory, the Red Raiders jumped out to a 4-0 lead after their first at-bat and never looked back. Mihyia Davis led off the game with a homer, and Alana Johnson had a two-run single in the inning.
In the circle, as you would expect, ace NiJaree Canady was spectacular. Tossing four complete innings, she gave up just one unearned run while striking out three.
Sunday's rubber match also went to the Red Raiders. In the 5-2 win, Canady was again dominant, giving up only two runs and five hits while striking out three in a complete game.
At the plate, Tech jumped out to a 2-0 lead after 2.5 innings thanks to two RBIs from Bailey Lindemuth. Then, with the game knotted at 2-2 in the sixth, Lauren Allred launched a two-run homer to break the tie before Demi Elder cranked a solo shot out of the park.
Tech is now 16-2 in Big 12 play while Arizona sits at 14-7. Given that there are only six conference games left in the regular season, it seems almost guaranteed that the Red Raiders will win the league. That is a remarkable turnaround for this program after years of being an afterthought in the softball world.
Texas Tech baseball salvages one game at Arizona State
Unfortunately, the Texas Tech baseball team's trip to Arizona this weekend didn't go as well. The struggling Red Raiders dropped another conference series, this time to Arizona State, two games to one.
After losing 10-4 in Thursday's opener, Friday saw the weather play a factor in game two. With the game knotted at 7-7 in the bottom of the seventh and the bases loaded for the Sun Devils, play was halted for the night due to rain.
When action resumed Saturday afternoon, the home team plated two more runs on bases-loaded walks to take the lead. Tech would scratch out one run in the ninth, but it wasn't enough as the Red Raiders dropped the series thanks to a 9-8 defeat.
Later Saturday, Tim Tadlock's team responded with a 12-8 win to salvage a game. The star of the victory was starting pitcher Zane Petty, who had arguably the best start of the season for his team. Tossing eight complete innings, he gave up only three runs while striking out five hitters.
At the plate, Tech got four RBI from Logan Hughes while Davis Rivers smashed a pair of homers. Tech now returns to Texas for a home-and-home mid-week series with Abilene Christian on Monday and Tuesday.
Another Texas Tech baseball alum called up to Big Leagues
Speaking of Texas Tech baseball, last week, another alum of the program got his first call-up to the Major Leagues. Pitcher Patrick Monteverde was brought up by the Miami Marlins to work out of the bullpen.
A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he was at Tech for only one season, 2021. That year, he went 7-4 with a 3.75 ERA as a starter. The Marlins then selected him in the eighth round of that year's MLB Draft.
Since then, he's worked 77 games in the minors, mostly as a starter. However, after some struggles at the Triple-A level, he moved to the bullpen this season, where he has thrived. That led to his opportunity with the Marlins.
Monteverde's first big league stint was short, though. He appeared in one game, tossing 3.2 innings, giving up four runs on nine hits while striking out four before being sent back to the minors on Sunday. Still, it had to be a thrill for the former Red Raider to get a taste of the show. Here's hoping he gets another opportunity soon.
Texas Tech women's tennis takes Big 12 Tournament crown
The Texas Tech women's tennis team continued its dominant season this weekend in Waco by taking home the Big 12 Tournament title. This came after Tech finished the regular season in a three-way tie for first place with Central Florida and Oklahoma State.
In the finals, Tech took down UCF 4-2. That was due in large part to the work of Yekaterina Dmitrichenko.
The junior from Kazakhstan was triumphant in both her singles match and he doubles match on Sunday. In fact, after going 5-0 in the tournament, she was named the event's Most Outstanding Player.
This is only the second time that the program has captured the Big 12 Tournament title. The other came in 2017. Now, the Red Raiders wait to learn where they will play in the NCAA Tournament. That news will come on April 28.