Texas Tech University Athletics
No. 25 Texas Tech Hosts Kansas in Midweek Doubleheader
April 12, 2011 | Softball
April 12, 2011
Game Notes | Promotions | Gameday Central | 
Preview
LUBBOCK, Texas - Texas Tech hosts its final midweek series of the year Wednesday as the 25th-ranked Red Raiders face Kansas in a 3 p.m. doubleheader at Rocky Johnson Field.
SERIES INFORMATION
Date - April 13
First Pitch - 3 p.m./30 min. following
Location - Lubbock, Texas
Venue - Rocky Johnson Field
Live Video/Audio - RaiderVision All-Access
Live Stats - Gametracker
Live Blog - Gameday Central
Series Record - KU leads 24-13
In Lubbock - KU leads 10-6
Last Season - Tech swept KU 3-0
• Tech defeated KU, 4-2 and 4-1 (April 25-26 in Lawrence)
• Tech defeated KU, 5-3 (May 15 at Big 12 Championship)
TTU Head Coach - Shanon Hays
KU Head Coach - Megan Smith
LIVE STREAMING
Texas Tech will stream every home game free of charge this season at RaiderVision All-Access on the school's official website, www.texastech.com. Matt Driskill and Harley Chambliss will call the action from Rocky Johnson Field during every Big 12 Conference game as the online broadcast can be heard through the video stream.
GAMEDAY CENTRAL
Texas Tech fans unable to make the trip to Rocky Johnson Field can keep up with the action through the Gameday Central page at texastech.com. The page will contain live scoring, an in-game blog, and stats and box scores from every game along with postgame video from coach Shanon Hays.
NATIONAL RANKINGS
Texas Tech (36-6; 1-5) - Receiving Votes/No. 25
Kansas (27-14; 0-10) - None
(ESPN.com/USA Softball - NFCA/USA Today)
ON DECK
The Red Raiders hit the road again this weekend, traveling to Stillwater, Okla. for a two-game series at No. 19 Oklahoma State that begins at 2 p.m. Saturday at Cowgirl Stadium.
THE SERIES
Despite winning the last four games, Tech trails Kansas in the all-time series, 13-24, as the Jayhawks won 12-straight games over the Red Raiders from 2004 to 2009. Tech swept all three meetings last year, including a series sweep in Lawrence and a Big 12 Championship game in Oklahoma City.
TOUGH STRETCH TO CLOSE SEASON
Following the Kansas series, the Red Raiders close the regular season with eight-straight games against ranked opponents, six of which that will come on the road. Tech's lone remaining home series is April 22-23 against No. 3 Texas.
BOOSTING ITS RESUME
Tech's start to Big 12 play might not hurt the Red Raiders in the long run as three of its four opponents so far - Missouri, Oklahoma, and Baylor - are ranked in the top 10 of the RPI rankings. Tech is 2-4 against teams ranked among the top 15 of the RPI.
A LOOK AT KANSAS...
After getting off to a good start in non-conference, Kansas has struggled in Big 12 play, going winless over its first 10 games as the Jayhawks are currently 27-14 overall. Four of the Kansas' 10 conference losses have come by one run, including both games in last weekend's sweep at the hands of Oklahoma State. The Jayhawks are last in the conference in hitting with a .290 average, while its pitching staff ranks ninth with a 3.36 earned-run average.
FIRST INNING SUCCESS
The Red Raiders are 27-1 when scoring in the first inning this season and 29-2 when scoring before their opponents. Tech is 8-4 this year when its opponent scores in the first inning.
JAMES TIES SINGLE-GAME RBI MARK
Sandy James almost single-handily defeated Iowa State in the series finale last Sunday as the sophomore tied the Tech single-game record with eight RBIs in the game. James broke a 2-2 tie in the second with her second grand slam of the season before coming back to the plate later to deliver a two-run double and a two-run single to continue Tech's offensive output.
OFFENSE COMES TO LIFE AT IOWA STATE
The Red Raiders broke the school mark for most runs in Big 12 play in both games against Iowa State, highlighted by a 16-5 victory in the series finale. It marked Tech's most runs in league play since scoring 13 at Oklahoma State on May 5, 2007. Tech finished with 31 runs in the series, its most in a conference series all-time.
HEY MIKEY, MIKEY
Texas Tech fans had become accustomed to seeing Mikey Kenney in the leadoff spot for most of the season, but since moving to third in the order prior to the Oklahoma series, Kenney has hit .421 at the plate (8-for-19). The sophomore has recorded three multiple-hit games during the six-game stretch while also adding two home runs, five RBIs, and 11 runs scored. She snapped the Tech single-game record with five runs scored in the series finale at Iowa State.
