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LUBBOCK, Texas - Redshirt sophomore Hannah Null scattered eight hits and struck out five in a complete game performance against Texas Tech, leading Abilene Christian softball to a 3-1 victory Wednesday night at Rocky Johnson Field.
Winners of three straight and six of their last seven games, tonight's victory lifted the Wildcats' season record to a game above .500 for the first time all spring at 19-18. The win also was softball's first in 11 games against their West Texas rivals - a series that dates all the way back to 1997.
Texas Tech fell to 19-25 with tonight's loss and is 4-6 since beating the Wildcats 6-1 at Poly Wells Field on March 30.
Despite allowing only one run to Texas Tech for the second time in as many outings, little came easy tonight for Null and the Wildcats. Three times she had to pitch out of jams with runners in scoring position, and with a swirling wind blowing in from the southwest every fly ball was an adventure for the defense - especially so in the seventh inning.
Null started the final frame around 90 pitches holding a 3-1 lead and going up against the Red Raiders' No. 9, 1 and 2 batters. Getting that first out was of prime importance since Tech possessed two speedsters at the top of their order.
The first batter -pinch hitter Karli Hamilton - started with a pop up that appeared to be hooking foul along the left-field line, but sophomore shortstop Peyton Hedrick never gave up pursuit and caught the ball with a diving grab atop the chalk.
Earlier in the game Hedrick did a somersault over the rail of the visitor's dugout while chasing a foul ball and came up all smiles much to the relief of Wildcat fans everywhere.
The defensive theatrics continued for the Wildcats into the next at-bat as leadoff hitter Jordan Bettiol skied one to the left-field gap. Both center fielder Taylor Brown and left fielder Miranda Herron converged on the ball with neither appearing to have a good read on the direction, but lucky for the Wildcats Herron held onto the ball from her knees as it popped off her glove.
As one of the fastest runners on the Red Raiders' roster, Bettiol for sure would have scored on the next play - a single by Kiani Ramsey - if Herron had not caught the ball.
With Ramsey at first base, slugger Kierra Miles represented the tying run at the plate and Null kept pitching her outside leading to game-ending fly out to Brianna Barnhill in right field.
Incredibly, four of Null's five Ks came against Tech's No. 4 and 5 hitters. Miles finished 1-for-4 with a strikeout, double and a 5-3 twin killing that ended a potential Red Raider rally in the fifth. Brittany Warnecke twice went down swinging vs. Null, and her pinch hitter Kaylee Strickland whiffed to start the sixth.
Unfortunately, Null lost her shutout bid after the Strickland strikeout as Jessica Hartwell deposited her ninth home run of the season into the left field bullpen. Null then hit the next batter but immediately rebounded with a fly to right field and called third strike on third baseman Ashley Fultz.
Overall, Texas Tech left eight runners on base and failed to capitalize on three quality scoring opportunities in the second, third and fifth innings as the Wildcats maintained early leads of 1-0 and 2-0.
Null got a fly out and ground out with runners at first and second base in the second inning, and then in the third, she struck out Warnecke for the second time and got Hartwell out on a pop fly with two runners in scoring position.
Bettiol and Ramsey got on base with one out in the fifth, but Null got Miles to ground into a double play completed by corner infielders Casey-May Huff and Holly Neese.
Miles ripped the ball on one hop to Huff, who was playing a foot in front of the bag along the line. She raced back to tap third for the force out of Bettiol before firing a perfect strike across the diamond to Neese and catching Miles by a half step.
For as good as the Wildcats' defense was tonight, the same could not be said for Texas Tech as its three errors led to ACU's first and third runs of the ball game.
A throwing error by Red Raider starter Dominique Alcocer led to a second-inning run and a 1-0 lead for the Wildcats. Senior Cara Hoover led off with one of her two hits to center and she raced to third base after Alcocer threw to first base on Huff's ground ball despite there being no one covering the bag.
Two batters later Brown singled over the second baseman's glove in finishing 2-for-4 with an RBI. Herron made it a 2-0 game in the third, hitting her first home run of the season off Alcocer with two outs.
The Wildcats went on to leave the bases loaded in the third, but not before chasing Alcocer in favor of reliever Mattison Maisel who flummoxed ACU's offense for the better part of 4.0 innings.
Maisel got Demi McNulty to end the third inning with a ground ball to second base, and stranded three more between the fifth and sixth innings as ACU left 11 runners on base.
The Wildcats finally scratched out a much-needed insurance run against Maisel in the seventh. Pinch hitter Alli Spivey reached first base on the third baseman's error, advanced to second on a Herron sacrifice bunt, and scored on Alyson Bishoff's single to right field after the ball spun off Miles' glove and rolled to the wall.
Texas Tech finished the game with three errors, the last two made in the seventh inning.
The Wildcats return to action this weekend with a three-game home series vs. Sam Houston State. Game one is Friday at 6 p.m. and games two and three are part of a Saturday doubleheader at noon.
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