There weren’t a ton of positive takeaways from the Texas Tech softball team’s loss to Arizona State in last week’s Big 12 Conference tournament championship game, but Gerry Glasco found one in Logan Halleman.
Late in the game with the Red Raiders needing a spark, Halleman got a pinch-hitting opportunity and delivered an infield single. It didn’t provide the momentum for a comeback then, but Glasco knew in that moment Halleman was going to start the opening game of the Lubbock Regional at Tracy Sellers Field.
Glasco’s intuition paid off in a big way. Halleman’s bunt single kickstarted Tech’s offense in what wound up being a 10-3 win over Marist.
Halleman used that bunt and attempted to steal second. Two poor throws from the Red Foxes later, Halleman scored the tie-breaking run in what was the Red Raiders’ way of getting back to basics.
“She was a nightmare on the bases,” Glasco said, “and that’s what you want out of a speed player. You want to be a nightmare for your opponent. And Logan was a great nightmare. They’ll see her in their sleep tonight.”
Marist head coach Joe Ausiano said the Red Raiders caught his team off guard by the number of bunts and small ball plays they utilized. Two batters after Halleman’s bunt single, Mia Williams — who became the first Red Raider in history with 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases in a season — pulled off a bunt single of her own to drive in another run.
In a game where Texas Tech scored double-digit runs, just two of them — a two-run home run from Taylor Pannell — came from the long ball. Everything else was generated on the field, be it singles and doubles or stolen bases and bunts.
“You want to keep the scouting report as big as you can,” Glasco said, “as broad as you can. I thought it’s important to kind of let everybody know we can put pressure on in different ways, and I think you do that as much for your team to see the depth of talent that we have and different ways that we can manufacture runs.”
Kaitlyn Terry does it all for Texas Tech softball
Lefty Kaitlyn Terry got the start in the circle and delivered a gem after settling in. Marist got a pair of hits and a run off of Terry in the first, and that was about it.
Terry improved to 23-1 with five strikeouts in four innings, which was interrupted by a lengthy rain delay that came in the top of the fourth. Terry returned to the circle when the game restarted, walked the first batter then delivered a strikeout.
“Obviously there’s going to be nerves there no matter what, no matter who you are,” Terry said of her first postseason game start in front of the home crowd, “but just kind of trusting my stuff and trusting my team behind me to get the plays done and generate runs, I think they did amazing.”
Terry also hit a pair of doubles and was 2-for-3 at the plate, scoring three runs.
Lagi Quiroga returns for Texas Tech softball
After taking time away from the team for what Glasco called personal reasons, Lagi Quiroga made her return to the team this week and got her first plate appearance since March 27, when she hit a game-ending home run against Iowa State.
Quiroga became visibly emotional from the cheers of fans and teammates in the dugout and drew a five-pitch walk.
Glasco said he wants to work Quiroga back into the lineup slowly, starting with the pinch-hit opportunity, the hope being she’ll be ready to return to form quicker. Her teammates noted that Quiroga brings more than production to the table.
“She also brings a vibe to the team,” Halleman said, “that everybody’s uplifted and happy and it’s an excitement that we all feel.”
Ole Miss survives comeback scare from Boston U
Short of Boston University’s late comeback attempt, Ole Miss’ first game in the Lubbock Regional was an ideal situation.
The Rebels used a seven-run third inning to take an 8-2 lead. Lilly Whitten, who came in for starter Kyra Aycock with one out in the first, provided six strong innings of relief before the Terriers got a pair of home runs to cut into the deficit.
Ole Miss head coach Jamie Trachsel then brought in No. 1 pitcher Emilee Boyer. The Terriers got runners on second and third with one out, but a second base-running mistake ended the game 8-6 in favor of the Rebels, who now face Texas Tech in the winners bracket.
“That’s postseason, it’s not over until it’s over,” Trachsel said, “and if you think it is, the game’s going to extend longer than you think and it’s not going to go the way that you want sometimes, and that’s just a good lesson for us too, and really continue to capitalize on opportunities.”
Boston U head coach Ashley Waters said she made a calculated move to remove ace pitcher Kasey Ricard after giving up a pair of home runs in the third inning. The fear, Waters said, was the Rebels had timed Ricard up and she wanted to save the pitcher for potentially two elimination games on Saturday.
Had the Terriers made a comeback sooner, Ricard would have been brought back in, but two costly base-running mistakes proved the final difference.
“If you go back to this game, I’m going to reverse two base-running mistakes, I’m not going to change the outcomes of what happened with the pitchers,” Waters said. “That’s like a crazy thing to say, but to me, those are things that are in our control. Those are things we can do better.”
Boston U faces Marist in the first elimination game, the winner taking on the loser of Texas Tech-Ole Miss in another later in the day.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Logan Halleman provides spark in Texas Tech softball’s region opener
Reporting by Nathan Giese, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
