Tech set to host Red Raider Classic
Texas Tech (3-2) will host three teams this week in the annual Red Raider Classic. The Red Raiders will open the invitational against UTRGV at 11 a.m. on Thursday followed by a 7:30 p.m. night cap against Prairie View A&M and then conclude the week against Portland State at 1 p.m. on Friday.
The Red Raiders have fared well against all three teams in the past boasting a combined 15-2 record including a 12-0 record against UTRGV. The last time Tech played the Vaqueros, the Red Raiders completed a reverse sweep to continue their 12-match winning streak against them.
Quick Hits:
Texas Tech is set to have a record number of students attend this week’s match.
Tony Graystone enters his 11th season as the head coach for the Red Raiders and is third all-time in program history for wins.
Three Red Raiders have spent all four seasons in Lubbock including Katelyn Cochran, Emily Contreras and Reagan Engler.
Texas Tech’s Sara Bowcutt and Elia Dinsmore have already shown flashes of brilliance in their short careers. The freshmen duo rankings first and fourth in the team in points, respectively. They both recorded their first career double-double against St. Thomas in the second match of the season and Bowcutt became the first Red Raider this season to record 20 kills in a match when she did so in Tech’s win over St. Mary’s (9/3).
Sophomores Kenna McKenzie and Shelby Ignash are taking the step forward that everyone hoped they would after finishing their freshmen campaigns so strongly last year. Ignash recorded a career-high eight blocks against St. Mary’s and then tied her career-high for kills in back-to-back matches with nine against Sacramento State (9/4) and Nevada (9/5).
Texas Tech will debut its new Taraflex court this season. Joining the rest of the Big 12, Tech invested in the program by getting the vinyl flooring that not only looks great but is safer for volleyball athletes due to its shock-absorption technology.
Release provided by Jay Strader Texas Tech Athletics