Feb. 27, 2011
Final Stats
Final Box in PDF Format 
Texas Tech 14, Northern Illinois 8
Dan Law Field | Lubbock, Texas |
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1 |
2 |
3
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4
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5
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6
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7
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8
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9
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R
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H
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E
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| NIU |
0
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0
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4
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0
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0
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1
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2
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0
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1
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8
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13
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1
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| TTU |
6
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0
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0
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2
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1
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0
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0
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5
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X
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14
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16
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1
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W: McCrummen (1-0) L: Gonzales (0-2)
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Player of the Game
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Troy White
3-for-5
3 RBI
2 R
2 3B
1 2B
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LUBBOCK, Texas - In its second straight contest against Texas Tech, the Northern Illinois baseball team could not avoid a similar fate in a 14-8 loss Sunday afternoon at Dan Law Field. But this time, the Huskies did not go down without a fight as they fell short of bouncing back from an early six-run disadvantage with season highs of eight runs and 13 hits.
Yesterday, the Red Raiders (7-1) jumped on the Huskies (0-6) quickly with a six-run first inning with the help of a pair of free passes, leaving too large a deficit to overcome. TTU did the same on Sunday against starter Jeremy Gonzales, who labored through a six-run first inning. Jamodrick McGruder started the game with a triple and scored on a Bo Altobelli sacrifice fly. Then Gonzales could not find the strike zone consistently enough as he walked three of the next four hitters and hit the next batter to give TTU a 3-0 lead. David Paiz's two-run single broke the frame open and Reid Redman followed with a double to leave the Huskies with a 6-0 hole that they were not able to dig out of.
In the third inning, NIU nearly evened the score with four runs. After missing out on a two-out scoring opportunity in the second, the Huskies broke through with help from a near-costly Red Raiders miscue. Tom Kotis led off with a double and seemed stuck on the bases until Troy White tripled with two outs. White then scored on a balk and a Joe Etcheverry infield single kept the inning alive. Jordan Rishavy followed with a single and Jeff Zimmerman drew a walk. Then the error came -- Alex Beckmann hit a grounder that appeared to be an inning ender. But second baseman McGruder booted it, allowing Rishavy and Etcheverry to score.
Two Texas Tech runs in the fourth and another in the fifth could have sucked the wind out of the Huskies, but they kept clawing. Zimmerman began the sixth with a single and came around to score on a two-out single by Kotis.
After a scoreless frame by Kyle Glancy, who replaced Gonzales on the mound, NIU pulled within two runs once again in the seventh. Jamison Wells singled to kick off the frame and stole third an out later. Another triple from White scored Wells and an RBI groundout by Etcheverry made the score 9-7.
However, that was all the closer NIU would get as the Red Raiders added five insurance runs in the eighth, which were more than enough to withstand a White RBI double for the Huskies in the ninth.
White did the most damage in the Huskies' near-comeback effort. The junior went 3-for-5 with three RBI and two runs. All three hits went for extra bases -- two triples and a double. Two three-baggers in a game hadn't been accomplished by a Huskie since Alex Jones did it at Western Michigan on May 14, 2009. For his contributions on the weekend, White was named to the Brooks Wallace Memorial Classic All-Tournament Team -- he hit .500 (9-for-18) with a team-high four RBI and four runs scored and had a pair of doubles and triples.
Three other Huskies had multi-hit days. Rishavy went 2-for-4. Zimmerman went 2-for-2 and reached base in all five plate appearances with two walks and a hit-by-pitch. The freshman joined White on the All-Tournament Team, hitting .625 (5-for-8) with two RBI and a run scored over three games. Kotis had a career-best 2-for-3 performance.
Etcheverry kept his hitting streak alive, extending it to nine-games dating back to May 22, 2010. The senior has had at least one hit in all six games in 2011.
With 3.1 innings of relief, Jerad McCrummen (1-0) picked up the win despite giving up two runs on three hits. Gonzales (0-2) took the loss for NIU, allowing nine runs on nine hits and six walks with one strikeout in five innings.
Altobelli led the Red Raiders by going 3-for-5 with two RBI and a run scored.
The Huskies hit the road again next week to face four opponents in four days in Surprise, Ariz. at the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals Spring Training Facility. The trip begins on Thursday, March 3, with a 5 p.m. (CT) contest against Air Force. NIU will also face No. 9 Arizona State, UC Riverside and Cal State Bakersfield next weekend.
-NIU-
