By: Branson Nash
The Texas Tech offense explodes 38 runs in five games, all while only giving up three to their opponents, as the Red Raiders go 5-0 on a weekend for just the second time this year at the Jeannine McHaney Classic.
After a 1-4 weekend in the Judi Garman Classic in Fullerton, California, Texas Tech softball coach Adrian Gregory assured that “expectations for our program have not changed.” The Red Raiders had a chance to prove that this weekend in the Jeannine McHaney Classic, an annual tournament Texas Tech hosts to honor the legacy of the former women’s athletic director. Delaware State, Marist, and Fairleigh Dickinson made the long trip down from the Northeast to the South Plains to compete against the Red Raiders this weekend.
The Red Raiders started their weekend with a bang, and they never really looked back. For game one of the Friday doubleheader, Tech beat one-win Delaware State by a score of 13-2 in run-rule fashion. The offense exploded for 11 hits, 3 of which were off the bat of third baseman Breanna Russell. Morgan Hornback had the big knock of the game for the Red Raiders, when she blasted a pinch-hit grand slam over the left-field wall in the 3rd inning, an inning in which Tech came across to score nine runs. Erin Edmoundson picked up her 7th win of the season, tossing 3 shutout innings, and Kamryn Caldwell picked up her first career save by closing out the last two innings.
The thirty minutes between game one and game two of the doubleheader Friday was not enough time to cool down the Texas Tech bats. That evening, the offense came across home plate 17 different times, the most for the Red Raiders this season, as they knocked off the Knights of Fairleigh Dickinson 17-0 in five innings. Eight Red Raiders recorded a hit, including three, Tori Whillock, Heaven Burton, and Shelby Henderson, who recorded a multihit game. This time, it was Gigi Wall and Morgan Hornback who shined for the Red Raiders in the circle, combining for five innings of two-hit softball. Tech finished the game scoring more runs (17) than the number of outs they hit into (12).
The four teams woke up Saturday morning with an obstacle from Mother Nature, the wind blowing straight in. For the Red Raiders, that was not the biggest obstacle they ran into on the day. In-game one of the Saturday doubleheader, Marist College rode freshman Meghan Haff for 8.1 innings before the Red Raiders won the extra-inning thriller 2-1 in nine innings. Yvonne Whaley’s third hit of the game proved to be the difference-maker, as the shortstop drove a 3-1 ball to the left-field wall to plate Heaven Burton to walk-it-off for the Red Raiders. Tech threw out their fifth pitcher of the weekend, senior Missy Zoch, who arguably had her best performance of the year throwing seven innings without allowing an earned run. Marist’s lone run came in the top of the 7th with 2 outs, the runner who scored reaching base via the error earlier in the inning.
After a perfect six up, six down in extra innings in game one, Erin Edmoundson truly achieved perfection against Fairleigh Dickinson Saturday night to record the 3rd perfect game in program history. The junior faced the minimum 15 batters in five innings of work, while also recording seven strikeouts as the Red Raiders topped the Knights 8-0. Edmoundson credited her teammates for helping her complete the amazing feat. Center fielder Karli Hamilton made the play of the night when she stole extra bases from Alayna Savaglio when she made a diving play in right-center field to preserve the perfect game for Edmoundson. At the plate, the offense was led by the freshmen, specifically Chloe Cobb and Payton Jackson, who were responsible for a combined six runs in Tech’s seven-run 4th inning.
Sunday morning the floodgates for the Red Raider offense stayed wide-open, as the floodgates from the clouds above did the same. On a rainy day at Rocky Johnson Field, Tech knocked off the Hornets of Delaware State in just five innings for the second time this weekend by a score of 8-0. Zoe Jones showed the power in her bat when she picked up her 2nd and 3rd home run of the weekend, and 6th and 7th on the season, to help lead the Red Raiders offensively. Chloe Cobb continued to take advantage of her opportunities by going 2-2 at the plate, and catcher Kelcy Leach, who Coach Gregory credited with calling an amazing weekend behind the plate, added two singles, as well. In the circle, Gigi Wall continued from where Edmoundson left off by retiring all ten batters she faced before making way to Morgan Hornback who finished the last 1.2 innings of the game.
From the stretch when Erin Edmoundson came in as a reliever in the 8th inning of Tech’s win against Marist College, all the way to when Morgan Hornback gave up a single in the 5th inning two games later, the Texas Tech pitching staff went a perfect 35 up, 35 down. Coach Gregory gave just as much credit to catcher Kelcy Leach as she did the pitchers saying “again Kelcy called a perfect game.”
The tournament marked the first time the Red Raiders have been home for a weekend all season. Gregory understood the importance of having a stretch where the team stayed in Lubbock, “for them to be able to stay in their own beds for six nights in a row is a major, major thing.”
However, the now 16-9 Red Raiders will quickly go back to the air, with little complaints from the players, as the team will be traveling to Honolulu, Hawai’i for the Rainbow Wahine Classic. Texas Tech will take on the hosts Hawai’i starting Wednesday night, before facing Drake and nationally-ranked Minnesota twice each.
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