Making amends: Tech preps for West Virginia in Big 12 tournament
Even before he knew whom Texas Tech would play in the first round of the Big 12 baseball tournament, Zac Vooletich knew the team he wanted to beat.
Sitting in a group of Tech players who were asked what they felt they needed to accomplish this week in Arlington, Vooletich grinned and offered, "Beating West Virginia's at the top of my agenda, personally. That would be nice."
It turns out the Red Raiders will open against the Mountaineers in the last of four first-round games Wednesday at Globe Life Field. No. 6 seed Texas Tech (37-19) and No. 3 seed West Virginia (39-16) are scheduled to play at 7:30 p.m.
The first pitch could come later because Wednesday's first three games — beginning at 9 a.m. and with the game times separated by 3 1/2 hours — must be completed first.
Tech's next-to-last series of the regular season was at West Virginia, and was one of three conference series the Red Raiders lost. The Mountaineers won two of three, scoring the last two runs in the rubber match for a 5-3 triumph.
"I felt like we had an opportunity to win that last game, and it slipped from us," said Vooletich, the Tech right fielder. "But yeah, that would be nice to beat West Virginia."
West Virginia led the Big 12 through much of the conference schedule.
In the last week of the season, though, Texas swept WVU and Oklahoma took one of three games from Oklahoma State, making conference tri-champions of Texas (38-18, 15-9), Oklahoma State (37-16, 15-9) and West Virginia (39-16, 15-9). They are seeded in that order, based on tiebreakers, for the conference tournament.
"The Big 12's tough," Tech coach Tim Tadlock said. "There's no easy ones, so let's go play."
The tournament format again consists two separate four-team brackets with the bracket winners playing for the championship at 5 p.m. Sunday.
In Tech's bracket, the other first-round game pits No. 2 seed Oklahoma State against No. 7 seed Oklahoma at 4 p.m. Wednesday. The Tech-WVU and OSU-OU losers play an elimination game at 12:30 p.m. Thursday, and the winners play at 7:30 p.m.
The Red Raiders, with an RPI of No. 43, can continue to improve that number, given that Oklahoma State and West Virginia rank No. 20 and No. 21, respectively, in the RPI.
The first-round games in the other bracket are Texas-Kansas and TCU-Kansas State.
Tech, with a team earned-run average of 5.00, suffered a blow in the last regular-season series when No. 2 starter Trendan Parish left a start against Kansas with apparent pain his right shoulder. Tadlock said on Saturday Parish is not likely to pitch in the conference tournament.
He indicated freshman righthander Zane Petty (3-0, 5.28), coming off five scoreless innings in a start Saturday against Kansas, likely will move up in the rotation behind No. 1 starter Mason Molina (4-2, 3.91).
Hester honored
Tech left fielder Nolen Hester on Monday was named the Big 12 newcomer of the week. In three games against Kansas, the Red Raiders' leadoff batter went 7 for 12 with three doubles, five runs scored and two runs batted in.
Hester reached base four times in six plate appearances Friday and all five times he went to the plate on Saturday.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Texas Tech baseball team preps for West Virginia in Big 12 tournament
