Texas Tech Athletics
13-2
Iowa
10-2
Red Raiders blast past No. 23 Iowa, 17-5
March 10, 2023 | Baseball
The final blow in the fifth came via Dillon Carter blasting his second home run of the game. Carter's first career multi-home run game helped produce a career-high six RBIs for the junior centerfielder – doubling his previous high of three. Carter is the third Red Raider to post a six RBI game this season, joining Gavin Kash and Drew Woodcox.
"It was good to be able to pick up our guys," said Carter. "Like [Brendan] Girton said, he felt good, but for him it wasn't there. There's going to be days where we're going to have one hit and have to win 1-0, and we're going to rely on [the pitchers]. It was good to see our offense pick up our pitchers. Most of the time it's the pitcher's picking us up, like against A&M, but it was cool today."
Brendan Girton completed three innings on Friday in his third start this season. He tossed a near-perfect first inning but fought the rest of the way. The Red Raiders increased their nation-leading double-play total to 22 to escape the second inning. Josh Sanders entered in relief in the top of the fourth after Girton led off the inning with a hit-by-pitch and his fifth walk of the game. He was charged with two earned runs while three crossed home plate.
Texas Tech led 4-3 going into the bottom of the fourth, following Girton's early exit and Sanders finishing the frame. From that point forward, the Red Raiders outscored Iowa 13-2.
A collection of five bullpen arms worked the final six innings, starting with Sanders. The Red Raiders pen allowed four hits and two runs over those final six innings. Iowa scored the first run of the game in the second, added two more in the fourth, and dinged bullpen arm Jacob Rogers for a pair of runs in the seventh.
The eight Red Raider runs in the fifth were the most scored in a single inning since nine in the sixth inning on May 3, 2022 at Abilene Christian. The 17 runs Friday night rank third this season to the 24 scored versus Western Illinois in game one of the Feb. 25 doubleheader and the 18 scored versus Air Force on March 1.
Kevin Bazzell led Texas Tech with three hits while Carter, Kash, Woodcox, Gage Harrelson and Will Burns each had two. Bazzell extended his team-leading hit streak to 11 games. Harrelson and Kash, who both entered the game tied for the team lead in multi-hit games, remain tied with nine games each with multiple hits. Woodcox hit his third home run of the season and Burns tallied his first career double and triple, respectively.
Up Next
The Red Raiders' series versus Iowa continues Saturday at 2 p.m. while the finale is slated for 1 p.m. on Sunday. Southpaw Mason Molina is projected to be on the mound for the Red Raiders and right-handed pitcher Brody Brecht is scheduled to start for the Hawkeyes.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Free, Ryan (1-0)
L: Ty Langenberg (1-2)
Batting:
RBI: Kyle Huckstorf 1 ; Cade Moss 1 ; Blake Guerin 1 ; Brayden Frazier 1
SF: Cade Moss 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Keaton Anthony 1 ; Brennen Dorighi 1 ; Raider Tello 1 ; Cade Moss 1 ; Ben Wilmes 1
SB: Brennen Dorighi 1 ; Sam Petersen 2 ; Cade Moss 1
CS: Kyle Huckstorf 1
HBP: Sam Petersen 1 ; Brayden Frazier 1
Batting:
2B: Burns, Will 1
3B: Burns, Will 1
HR: Woodcox, Drew 1 ; Carter, Dillon 2
RBI: Hester, Nolen 1 ; Curtis, Jeric 1 ; Bazzell, Kevin 1 ; Green, Austin 1 ; Kash, Gavin 2 ; Woodcox, Drew 2 ; White, Hudson 1 ; Carter, Dillon 6 ; Burns, Will 1
SF: Kash, Gavin 1 ; White, Hudson 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Hester, Nolen 1 ; Harrelson, Gage 2 ; Bazzell, Kevin 2 ; Green, Austin 1 ; McGarrh, Cade 1 ; Kash, Gavin 1 ; Washburn, Owen 1 ; Woodcox, Drew 1 ; White, Hudson 2 ; Carter, Dillon 3 ; Burns, Will 2
SB: Harrelson, Gage 1 ; Carter, Dillon 1
HBP: Carter, Dillon 1
