Championship contender Texas Tech hits the road for a grueling Florida swing, facing four ranked opponents and extensive travel. Can they maintain their dominance?
After a highly anticipated weekend series between the No. 2 Red Raiders and the No. 12 Arizona Wildcats, Texas Tech proved why it has been one of the most dominant teams in the country.
After dropping Game 1, recording only their second loss of the season, the Red Raiders bounced back in a big way, winning Games 2 and 3, securing the series victory and improving to an impressive 27-2 record.
Although the Red Raiders remain a championship contender, sitting in the top five of the college softball rankings, the program will face a major test this week as it spends the entire week on the road in Florida.
The squad will play five games against three different opponents across the state, two of which are ranked in the Top 25.
• Tuesday, March 17 - 4:00 P.M. at Stetson (DeLand, Florida)
• Wednesday, March 18 - 5:00 P.M. at Florida State (Tallahassee, Florida)
• Friday, March 20 - 5:00 P.M. at UCF (Orlando, Florida)
• Saturday, March 21 - 4:00 P.M. at UCF (Orlando, Florida)
• Sunday, March 22 - 11:00 A.M. at UCF (Orlando, Florida)
This will be a challenging week for the Red Raiders. Although they will remain in Florida, the travel between each game is far from ideal. The trip from Lubbock to DeLand alone is just above 1,400 miles.
From there, the team will travel roughly 240 miles (about a four-hour drive), from DeLand to Tallahassee, followed by another four-hour, 257-mile trip from Tallahassee to Orlando for the remainder of the series.
One of the major keys for Texas Tech this week is simple: start the trip with a win.
To have a successful road trip, the Red Raiders must get off to a strong start. The first game against an unranked, less-talented Stetson team needs to be a win.
An upset in that opener, followed by four games against two Top 25 opponents, could create a major confidence setback for Texas Tech.
Ideally, the Red Raiders will want to set themselves up as strongly as possible heading into the weekend series against a talented UCF team.
Winning the first two games against Stetson and Florida State would keep the team in a great rhythm and position them well to secure a series victory against the Knights.
Playing four ranked games on the road in a single week will be a huge challenge. A clean five-game sweep would be impressive, but realistically, dropping one or two games would not be disastrous for the Texas Tech Red Raiders, given the level of competition, the travel demands, and the fact that the team likely won’t be back in their own beds until late Sunday night.
One of the top pitchers in the country, NiJaree Canady, will be relied on heavily this week to help keep Texas Tech in the win column. Canady currently holds a 10-2 record with a 1.27 ERA and is already just nine strikeouts shy of reaching 100 for the season.
With Canady performing well in the circle, the offense will also need to be firing on all cylinders, and this highly talented lineup is more than capable of doing it on a consistent basis. The Red Raiders have scored eight or more runs in 20 of their 29 games this season.
Much of that production has come from junior second baseman Mia Williams and senior outfielder Mihyia Davis, who have been electric at the plate while leading the team in several offensive categories.
Together, they have combined for 84 hits, 69 RBIs, and 15 home runs. The duo has been the heart and soul of the offense so far this season and will be counted on to rally the lineup and set the tone for Texas Tech.
It’s shaping up to be an absolutely grueling week, both mentally and physically, for the softball program. Here’s hoping the team packs their best neck pillows and maybe a sleeping mask for all the miles ahead.