This has been an eventful weekend for Texas Tech, let’s get to the thick of it.

Football rallies, comes up short against Mountaineers

Texas Tech hosted a top 25 showdown as the No. 12 West Virginia Mountaineers came to Lubbock for the second game of conference play. After one hellish quarter of everything Will Grier was said to be, throwing for 198 yards and two touchdowns, Tech’s defense kept the Heisman hopeful at bay the remainder of the game. Alan Bowman went down with an injury late in the second quarter (update: appears to have been a collapsed lung), giving way for Jett Duffey to make a name for himself while Carter is still out. With the added dynamic of a running quarterback, the Mountaineer’s defense came apart at the seams and allowed Tech to score 17 unanswered points. It wasn’t until three minutes left in the fourth quarter that WVU would see the end zone again off of a pick-six. Despite scoring one last time to make the game 42-34, Tech was unable to convert an onside kick and the rally was put to bed. Up next Texas Tech faces TCU after a much needed bye week on Thursday, October 11 in Fort Worth.

Volleyball continues undefeated in Big 12

Rallies were also on the menu for the Texas Tech volleyball team as they took on Iowa State last Friday. After falling 22-25 in the first set and being down 18-23 in the second set, Junior Kylie Rittimann started a momentum swing that rocketed the team to win three straight sets. Coach Graystone remarked” Kylie (Rittimann) was the server in that rotation, and she got us started with good serving. We got a little momentum and next thing you know we’re right there and we stole the set. That momentum carried us through from then on.” Junior Emily Hill stepped up to help big time as she compiled a season-high 18 kills, followed by junior Chandler Atwood, freshman Brooke Kanas and senior Katy Keenan finishing the night with double figures. Senior Missy Owens also recorded a season-high, garnering 57 assists; to cap 3,000 career assists in her collegiate career. The win breaks a twenty-three match losing streak to the Cyclones dating back to 2006, and moves the volleyball team to 3-0 in conference; for the second time in program history (previously in 2000). Up next for the team they will face the Wildcats at 6pm on Wednesday.

Soccer draws OU, falls to Baylor

Although there was plenty of action from the Red Raiders, the Sooner defense proved to be too stout. Texas Tech ended a double overtime battle against Oklahoma on Friday night racking up sixteen shots (7 in the second half alone) but no goals. “It was pretty even in the first half, but it was really mostly us in the second half. When that happens, you hope that you tuck one of your chances in,” said Coach Stone. Unfortunately the full ninety of effort given by the soccer team only awarded them a point as they walked away with the draw. The following match, Texas Tech faced off against Baylor Sunday afternoon. A similar narrative played out for Tech as the Coach stated how “we were in charge the whole game, but we missed chance after chance. This was easily the most dominant we’ve been against them [Baylor] in the past several years, but they got the three points and that’s all that matters.” Despite ruling the stats table in shots and other key areas, Baylor certainly did come out ahead after converting in the 30th and then 83rd minutes of the match to leave Lubbock with a 2-0 victory. Texas Tech is now 1-2-1 in conference and is looking to bounce back against Oklahoma State on Friday at 6pm.

Cross country competes in Nuttycombe Invitational

The cross country teams competed this past weekend in Wisconsin’s Nuttycombe Invitational, and compiled a number of person bests. The woman’s team finished 33rd overall with sophomore Lauren Offerman, freshman Seselia Dala, and junior Bret Leigh Nance all setting personal records. The men were led by senior Miguel Bautista, who was the only Red Raider to place in the top 100 (finishing 77th). Junior Grant LaSelle was the only scorer on the men’s team that set a personal record. Up next for the cross country teams will be the Texas A&M Arturo Barrios Invitational on Oct. 13.