Texas Tech Athletics
3-9
Grand Canyon
9-4
Tech drops Friday night opener at GCU, 12-5
March 07, 2025 | Baseball
Despite leading 2-0 heading to the home-half of the sixth and being locked in a 2-2 game after seven, the Red Raiders fell Friday
In the setback, Texas Tech (3-9) got off to a good start, racing out to a 2-0 lead, before Grand Canyon (9-4) struck for 12 unanswered runs.
The Red Raiders did fight back in the ninth, using a Little League home run from Logan Hughes to score three times in the final frame. Hughes went 3-for-4 a finished a home run shy of the cycle. Following the Hughes triple and the error, Tech scored twice more, but the damage was done, as GCU closed out the victory in the opening game of the three-game set.
In his fourth start of the season, Heuer was sensational, as the righty did not allow a run through the first five innings of the game. He struck out a season-high six batters and allowed just three hits until a lead-off double to Emilio Barreras.
Barreras would be the final batter that Heuer would face, as Tech turned instead to freshman Will Jordan.
After another double made the score 2-1 Red Raiders, Jordan recorded a pair of outs before loading the bases on a hit-by-pitch and a walk.
With two outs, Jordan walked in the tying run, before recording the final out of the inning.
Tied at two-all, and following a 1-2-3 inning by GCUs Connor Mattison, Tech turned to lefty Zach Crotchfelt who matched the Lopes 1-2-3 inning with one of his own. Â
Following another 1-2-3 inning in the top of the eighth, Crotchfelt returned for the eighth and struck out the first batter of the inning.
With one out and nobody one, GCU immediately threatened, using a double and an infield single to place runners at the corners for Cannon Peery. Peery flashed bunt and ultimately laid down a perfect bunt into the direction of first baseman Robin Villeneuve.
Villeneuve charged the ball, and in one seamless motion glove-flipped toward the plate. His feed beat the charging runner and catcher Dylan Maxcey looked to swipe the tag on Eddy Pelc, but the runner was deemed safe. With no video review the call stood.
The play turned the tide and opened the floodgates, as GCU placed nine-straight batters on base including a dropped-third strike throwing error and a bases-clearing three-run triple.
Down 12-2, Tech scored three times in the ninth and had runners on first and third, but Mattison and the Lopes used a pop-up and a strikeout to end the game.
UP NEXT:
The Red Raiders look to even the series at one-game all on Saturday night. First pitch from the GCU Ballpark is set for 7 p.m. (CT)/6 p.m. (MT).
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Mattison, Connor (1-0)
L: Crotchfelt, Zach (1-1)
Batting:
2B: Hughes, Logan 1
3B: Hughes, Logan 1
RBI: Thompson, Kyeler 2 ; Hughes, Logan 1 ; Pompey, TJ 1 ; Lopez, Tracer 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Villeneuve, Robin 1 ; Hughes, Logan 1 ; Schulze, Peyton 1 ; Rivers, Davis 1 ; Pompey, TJ 1
SB: Thompson, Kyeler 1 ; Pompey, TJ 1
Batting:
2B: Barreras, Emilio 1 ; Yorke, Zach 1 ; Pelc, Eddy 1
3B: Sanders, Troy 1
RBI: Barreras, Emilio 1 ; Yorke, Zach 2 ; Diaz, Michael 1 ; Peery, Cannon 3 ; Galvan, Marcus 1 ; Sanders, Troy 3
SH: Peery, Cannon 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Wakefield, Josh 1 ; Barreras, Emilio 2 ; Yorke, Zach 2 ; Paton, Eli 1 ; Pelc, Eddy 2 ; Diaz, Michael 1 ; Peery, Cannon 1 ; Galvan, Marcus 1 ; Sanders, Troy 1
HBP: Paton, Eli 1 ; Diaz, Michael 1
