No. 14 Texas Tech baseball drops series at K-State

Provided by Texas Tech Athletics

MANHATTAN, Kan. (NEWS RELEASE) – No. 14 Texas Tech dropped its Sunday series rubber match to Kansas State 10-8 at Tointon Family Stadium. While the Red Raiders led 8-7 deep into the game, a three-run Wildcats bottom of the eighth inning decided the game.

The game had four lead changes, with three of them coming after the fifth inning. The Red Raiders took their last lead, 8-6, in the top of the seventh as Austin Green belted a three-run home run to put Tech in front. It came against Wildcat pitcher Tyson Neighbors who entered the game with a 0.86 ERA in 19 appearances.

Zane Petty got the nod on Sunday for his first start in Big 12 competition; he was also Texas Tech’s Tuesday starter versus Abilene Christian in a game that wasn’t completed. The freshman gave the Red Raiders three innings until turning it over to the bullpen, who had a busy day coming.

The Red Raiders used seven bullpen arms on a rough day for the group. Five of the first seven pitchers to see work on Sunday out of the bullpen issued a free pass to the first batter faced, respectively, racking up six walks and two hit-by-pitches as a group over five innings. Six of the Wildcats’ 10 runs that crossed home plate found their way on the base paths on a walk or hit-by-pitch, five of the 10 by the bullpen.

The Red Raiders burst out to a 5-2 lead behind a four-run top of the fourth. A pair of Red Raider freshmen provided a pair of RBI hits to aid the outburst that put Tech in front by three. Dylan Maxcey provided an RBI double and the second hit was a two-run blast by Tracer Lopez, hitting his second home run in as many days.

Petty surrendered a leadoff single in the bottom of the fourth, signaling the end to his outing. Ethan Coombes walked the first batter he faced in relief of Petty and both leadoff baserunners scored later in the frame to pull KSU within one, 5-4, after the home half of the fourth inning.

K-State took the lead in the sixth, 6-5, scoring two runs without having to connect for a hit in an inning four different Red Raider pitchers were used as five different Wildcats got on board via a walk or hit-by-pitch.

Despite a tumultuous sixth inning, the Red Raider hitters lifted the team back into the lead in the seventh, completed by Green’s home run. Lopez led off the inning with a single while Zac Vooletich found his way on base as well with a single setting up Green’s three RBIs.

Brendan Girton, the seventh pitcher of eight on the mound in total on Sunday, entered in the top of the eighth with an 8-7 lead. The Wildcats cut the 8-6 lead Green provided in the top half of the seventh to one in the home half scoring on a wild pitch thrown by Josh Sanders after KSU logged a pair of hits. Girton surrendered three earned runs off of two walks and two hits and recorded two outs before Brendan Lysik was called upon for the final out.

Up Next

Texas Tech will next be in action back at home on Friday to start a three-game out-of-conference series versus Sam Houston. It will be the final nonconference weekend of the regular season for the Red Raiders.