ACU and Texas Tech are hoping third time's a charm

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Game Notes  |  Watch  |  Listen  |  Tickets

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LUBBOCK, Texas – Third time's a charm, right? The ACU baseball team has tried to line up with Texas Tech two times this season, and Mother Nature has flexed her muscles twice to postpone and suspend the previous two matchups. The Wildcats (29-17) and Red Raiders (32-16) will get together on Tuesday night to finish the game that got started in Abilene on April 25, beginning in the bottom of the fourth inning with ACU in front, 6-0. Once the teams resume and finish that contest, they will play again in the originally slated game at 6:30 p.m. If the first game goes long, the second game will start approximately 30-45 minutes after the conclusion. It's going to be a wild night at Rip Griffin Park, and it all gets underway at 4 p.m. on Tuesday night. Both games will air on ESPN+ as well as on the radio on the ACU Sports Network.


GAME #47
ACU (29-17, 13-11 WAC) vs. TEXAS TECH (32-16, 9-9 BIG 12)
Tuesday, May 9 | 4 p.m. | Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park (4,432)
Game resumes in the bottom of the fourth inning with ACU leading, 6-0
Watch: ESPN+, ESPN app
Listen: ACU Sports Network, The Varsity Network app
Live Stats | Tickets


GAME #48
ACU (29-17, 13-11 WAC) vs. TEXAS TECH (32-16, 9-9 BIG 12)
Tuesday, May 9 | 6:30 p.m. | Dan Law Field at Rip Griffin Park (4,432)
Projected Starters: TBD
Watch: ESPN+, ESPN app
Listen: ACU Sports Network, The Varsity Network app
Live Stats | Tickets


A LOOK AT ACU
The Wildcats enter the week with a 29-17 record and a 13-11 mark in WAC play. ACU is looking to build off its first weekend series win since late March after taking two out of three from Utah Tech at home. The Wildcats are in the midst of a stretch of eight of 10 games at home, taking their lone break from Abilene before returning to the friendly confines for a weekend tilt with Tarleton. ACU is tied for fourth place in the WAC standings heading into the final two weeks of the regular season.


SCOUTING TEXAS TECH
The Red Raiders enter the week with a 32-16 overall record and a 9-9 mark in Big 12 play. Texas Tech is in the midst of five consecutive non-conference games after taking two out of three from fellow WAC school Sam Houston over the weekend. Texas Tech topped Sam, 12-10, in the opener, and after falling 9-3 on Saturday, bounced back to win the series with a 10-8 victory on Sunday. Kevin Bazzell leads an impressive offensive group with a .390 batting average, while Gavin Kash leads the team with 21 home runs, 34 extra-base hits, and 72 RBI. The Red Raiders are hitting .315 as a unit with 70 home runs and 426 runs scored.


INSIDE THE SERIES
All-Time: 10th meeting (TTU leads, 8-1)
ACU at Home: TTU leads, 3-0
ACU on the Road: TTU leads, 3-1
ACU at Neutral Site: TTU leads, 2-0
Series Start: 2014
Last Meeting: #9 TTU 16, ACU 12 (5/3/22 - Abilene)
Last ACU Win: ACU 8, #9 TTU 5 (4/26/22 - Lubbock)
Last ACU Loss: #9 TTU 16, ACU 12 (5/3/22 - Abilene)
Last ACU Road Win: ACU 8, #9 TTU 5 (4/26/22)
Last ACU Road Loss: #5 TTU 6, ACU 5 (16) (3/3/15)
Current Streak: L1
McCarty (at ACU) vs. Texas Tech: 1-1


ACU'S GAMES VS. TEXAS TECH FINALIZED
Details were finalized about a week ago for these games against Texas Tech. The teams will finish play of the first game at 4 p.m. and then follow with the originally scheduled game at 6:30 p.m. The first game, originally scheduled for April 4 in Lubbock, was rescheduled for May 9 due to high winds and being unable to travel. The two teams were already scheduled to meet on April 25 in Abilene. That game at The Crutch was suspended in the bottom of the fourth inning due to lightning in the area. The teams will resume play at 4 p.m., with ACU being the home team, in the bottom of the fourth inning, with ACU leading the game, 6-0, with one out and a runner at second base. Once the first game ends, the teams will play the originally scheduled game with ACU being the road team. It's a nine-inning game that is slated to begin at 6:30 p.m., but it will start 30-45 minutes after the first game finishes, treated similarly to a doubleheader.


SERIES WIN OVER UTAH TECH
The weekend got off to a tough start as the Trailblazers took it to the Wildcats, 14-6, in the opener on Friday. ACU bounced back with an 8-6 win, holding on in the ninth to what was an 8-2 lead. The Wildcats then won the series with a 4-2 win in the rubber match on Sunday. Grayson Tatrow hit a huge three-run home run in the seventh inning to take the lead on Sunday, and Zach Smith finished the deal with a save to secure the huge series win. The Wildcats hit .274 for the weekend with Logan Britt leading the way with a .545 average. Tatrow hit .444 for the weekend with three home runs and six runs driven in. Britt stole five bases as well to lead the offense. Breck Eichelberger went 5.0 innings to earn the win on Saturday, while Blake Anderson got the win on Sunday with a career-high 3.2 innings pitched.


TATROW AT THE TOP
Grayson Tatrow broke his own single-season Division I program record on Sunday with his 18th home run. Tatrow hit 17 last year, and holds the top two spots in the record book in that stat. Tatrow is already ACU's all-time leader in career home runs with 45.


THE FIFTH INNING
ACU is outscoring its opponents by an insane margin of 49-13 in the fifth inning this season. Of ACU's 52 home runs this season, nine of them have occurred in the fifth inning, the second most in any inning this season (10 in the sixth).


HOME RUN BREAKDOWN
ACU has hit 52 home runs this season, led by Tatrow's 18, Britt's 11, and Tweedt's eight. Of the 52, 30 are solo shots and 13 are two-run homers. 22 have come with two outs in the inning, and another 20 have come with no one out. 31 have come off right-handers, while 21 have come off south paws. Tatrow has two multi-homer games this season, while Tweedt and Britt have one as well.


AN EYE ON THE STREAKS
Miller Ladusau leads ACU with an eight-game hitting stream, while Tatrow has a hit in seven straight games. Tatrow has reached base in nine consecutive games, while Ladusau has reached safely in eight in a row.


PRESEASON POLL / AWARDS
The Western Athletic Conference announced the preseason poll and the preseason all-conference selections for the season, and the Wildcats are picked tied for fourth in the 13-team league. Seniors Grayson Tatrow and Tanner Tweedt were all named to the all-conference list as well prior to the season. Grand Canyon was picked to win the conference, followed by Sam Houston and California Baptist. ACU tied with UTRGV and Sacramento State for fourth overall.


D1BASEBALL PRESEASON
D1Baseball released its preseason picks for the Western Athletic Conference, and ACU was picked sixth in the league. It also highlighted the top draft prospects from the conference, and in the 2023 draft, Eichelberger was the sixth-best prospect in the league, while Texas A&M transfer Logan Britt was ninth overall out of the outfield spot. Morgan, back for his junior season, came in at 13 on the list as well. In the 2024 draft, Byrd was listed fourth in line in the league. Tatrow, the Southland Newcomer of the Year and on the second team in 2021, was labeled #138 in the top 150 outfielders in the country.


BACK TO ONE BIG LEAGUE
The WAC is moving back to a traditional format in 2023. All 13 teams will be in one standings list, and there will be no divisions this season. There will be 30 league games against 10 of the 12 possible opponents, and the 2023 WAC Tournament will start May 24 in Mesa, Ariz.


A GLANCE AT THE TOUGH SCHEDULE
The 2023 slate encompasses 55 games, including 30 Western Athletic Conference games (10 three-game series), and another 25 non-conference games (four series and 11 single games). Overall, the team will host 35 times at Crutcher Scott Field, the most in the Rick McCarty era. ACU will play 21 games against teams that finished in the top 100 in RPI in 2022, nine games against Power 5 opponents (Oklahoma, TCU x2, Baylor x2, Nebraska, Texas Tech x2, Texas), and 14 games against 2022 regional teams (Oklahoma, Southeast Missouri, Oral Roberts, TCU, Texas Tech, Texas, Grand Canyon). There are five first-time opponents on the slate (Southeast Missouri, Sacramento State, Nebraska, California Baptist, Utah Tech), and there are four home games against Power 5 opponents (Nebraska, TCU, Texas Tech, Baylor).


THE COACH
Head Coach Rick McCarty is in his fifth season as the head man at ACU and earned his 100th career win on Opening Day. He sits at 128 career victories in his time at ACU, which includes a regular-season championship and a runner-up finish at the tournament. McCarty ranks second in all-time wins at ACU.