Texas Tech University Athletics
Red Raiders Host No. 5 Texas Wednesday Night
April 10, 2012 | Softball
April 10, 2012
Tech Notes | Gameday Central | Gameday Services | 
Game Preview
LUBBOCK, Texas - Texas Tech looks to salvage its series with in-state rival Texas Wednesday evening when the Red Raiders host the 5th-ranked Longhorns in a 6 p.m. first pitch at Rocky Johnson Field.
| GAME INFORMATION | |
| Date | Wednesday, April 11, 2012 |
| Location (Facility) | Lubbock, Texas (Rocky Johnson Field) |
| First Pitch | 6 p.m. | Gametracker | Watch Live |
| Radio | KTXT 88.1 FM |
| Live Blog | Gameday Central |
TECH POSTS THIRD-STRAIGHT 30-WIN SEASON
With 16 regular season games remaining, Tech also has already reached the 30-win mark for the third-straight year, marking the first time since 1997-99 that the program has done so. The Red Raiders currently stand 31-9 overall and 4-4 in Big 12 play entering the Texas game Wednesday night. After opening the year 1-4 at the Arizona State Kajikawa Classic, Tech has won 30 of 34 games since that point, with wins in three of seven contests against ranked opponents. Tech's season-high 13 game winning streak ended last weekend at No. 5 Oklahoma.
INSIDE THE TEXAS SERIES
The Red Raiders will be looking to snap a nine-game losing streak to the Longhorns Wednesday night as Texas has already guaranteed itself the season series following two wins March 6-7 in Austin. The Longhorns, who were ranked No. 6 in the country at the time, routed Tech, 8-0, over six innings in the opener before hanging on for a 2-1 victory in the second game. Tech is just 1-12 all-time when playing Texas in Lubbock after the Longhorns swept the two-game series at Rocky Johnson Field last year.
ON DECK
The Red Raiders return to the road once again this weekend, traveling to Columbia, Mo. to battle the 9th-ranked Tigers in a three-game series that begins at 6 p.m. Friday from University Field. The series marks the second-straight weekend where Tech has traveled to a top-10 opponent.
LOOKING BACK
Tech took one of three games last weekend from 5th-ranked Oklahoma as the Red Raider claimed the middle game with a 5-4 victory. The Red Raiders dropped the opener, 3-1, and the Saturday rubber match, 4-1, falling to 31-9 on the year and 4-4 in Big 12 play. Tech's victory on Friday evening marked its first over a top-five team since defeating then No. 5 Texas A&M, 6-2, on April 27, 2007 in College Station.
RED RAIDERS BEGIN TOUGH STRETCH WITH THE LONGHORNS
Wednesday night's game against the Longhorns marks the first of 10 total contests for the Red Raiders over a 12-day period, with every game against a current ranked team. Following the Texas game, Tech travels to face No. 9 Missouri in a three-game set before returning home for six games next. The Red Raiders will face No. 17 Texas A&M in a April 17 doubleheader and then close the series with a single game the following day. Tech will then take just one day off before opening a three-game set against No. 23 Baylor, beginning April 20 at Rocky Johnson Field.
TECH PUTS 12-GAME HOME WINNING STREAK ON THE LINE
The Red Raiders will put their season-long 12-game winning streak on the line Wednesday with its one-game series with Texas. According to an informal poll conducted by Boise State, Tech's run is the fifth-longest active streak in the country, trailing Louisiana-Lafayette (36 games), Boise State (23), Missouri (21 games), and Western Michigan (13 games). The Longhorns were the last team to defeat Tech at Rocky Johnson Field as Texas swept the Red Raiders over two games on April 22-23 last year.
RED RAIDERS MOVE UP TO NO. 28 IN RPI RANKINGS
Texas Tech moved up to No. 28 this week in the RPI rankings (ratings percentage index) that are widely used to determine postseason selections and seeding. The Red Raiders had been slotted at No. 29 in each of the first two polls of the season. Tech ranks fifth in the new poll among Big 12 schools, trailing Texas (No. 4), Oklahoma (No. 8), Missouri (No. 14), and Texas A&M (No. 17). Tech wrapped the 2011 season ranked 30th in the poll, earning a NCAA Regional selection for the second-straight year in the process.
TECH APPROACHING HOME RUN RECORD FROM A YEAR AGO
With 16 games still remaining in the regular season, the Red Raiders have a chance to snap last year's single-season home run record after a successful March left Tech just six shy of its total from 2011. Tech, which hit 33 home runs during the month of March alone, has hit 52 now on the year, seven more than its total through 40 games a year ago. The 52 home runs already mark the second-most in program history as Tech had not hit more than 40 balls out of the park prior to the 2011 season. During Tech's 13-game winning streak that ended last weekend at Oklahoma, the Red Raiders totaled 27 home runs during a stretch that begun with the New Mexico doubleheader on March 12.
CUSTER RECORDS MOST WINS FOR A TECH PITCHER SINCE RENFRO
Despite only being in her first collegiate season, Cara Custer has already achieved as much success as any other Tech pitcher in the last decade. The freshman has earned 18 wins on the year, the most for a Tech pitcher since Amanda Renfro picked up 21 during her 1999 sophomore season. Custer, who is currently ranked second in the Big 12 for wins, is currently fourth on the school's single-season wins chart with the top-three spots all being held by Renfro. In the career record book, Custer is tied with teammate Ashley Brokeshoulder for eighth all-time already. Renfro is the only Tech player in school history to have a number retired after she totaled 93 wins from 1998-2001, leading Tech to two postseason appearances during that span as well.
RED RAIDER DEFENSE RANKS EIGHTH NATIONALLY
With home runs leaving the ballpark in record numbers again this year, it can be easy to forget one key improvement for the Red Raiders this year - the defense. Despite three errors last weekend at Oklahoma, the Red Raiders remained in the top 10 of the NCAA rankings for fielding percentage as Tech is now eighth in the country with a .978 average. Tech currently ranks first among Big 12 schools in fielding percentage and assists and just four shy of Texas A&M for the conference high in putouts.
TECH OFF TO BEST START IN BIG 12 PLAY SINCE 2006
The Red Raiders' 4-4 start to league action marks the school's best record through the first eight games since the 2006 squad also went 4-4 to start conference play. In 2006, league series covered only two games as Tech followed a Big 12-opening sweep at the hands of No. 19 Baylor by splitting series with No. 15 Oklahoma and new No. 15 Texas A&M the following week. The Red Raiders came back to sweep Iowa State later that weekend in what would be their final conference win of the season. Tech wrapped 2006 with a 19-35 overall record and a 4-13 mark in Big 12 play before ending the year with a first-round loss to Missouri at the Big 12 Tournament in Oklahoma City. This season marks the first in league history where all conference series are all three games each.
