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TUESDAY, JUNE 11, 2019 VOLUME 93 ■ ISSUE 62

NEWS

SPORTS

ONLINE

Tech staff discusses financial aid preparations.

Read our breakdown of the eight teams headed to Omaha this year for the College World Series.

Check out coverage from all three Texas Tech baseball games of the Super Regionals on our website.

PG 2

PG 3

ONLINE

RAISING THE BAR

Tech brings home National Championship in men’s track and field By MAX HENGST

T

Sports Editor

he Texas Tech track and field team became the first Tech men’s athletic team to win a national championship as they topped the competition in the NCAA Outdoor Championship on Friday in Austin. “I’m just so incredibly proud of these guys,” head coach Wes Kittley said, according to a Tech Athletics news release. “They’ve lived with a target on their backs all year long. They just wanted to bring a championship home to Texas Tech, and I’m just so glad they have now done that.” On the first day of the NCAA Outdoor Championship, the Red Raiders led the nation with seven qualifications for a championship race that would be hosted on the final day of the championship. Along with the qualifications, Tech earned its first eight points to put the Red Raiders on the board. The senior pole vaulters led the way as Brandon Bray broke the school record with a 5.70m vault, ranking him seventh, earning the first two points of the meet, according to the release. The vault also ranked the best seventh-place finish at a championship meet. Drew McMichael also earned a single point as he ranked eighth as he cleared

5.60m for a personal best. “The competition was just off the charts,” assistant coach Tom Slagle said, according to the release. “I was hoping Brandon (Bray) and Drew (McMichael) could get in the mix and be a part of it. What they did was just incredible.” Junior Justin Hall scored the final points on day one as he ranked fourth in the long jump, according to the release. Hall leaded 8.05m to tie for the fifth-farthest jump in program history, earning five points for the Red Raiders. “Justin stepping up and snagging five huge points for us today was outstanding,” associate head coach James Thomas said after day one, according to the release. “He can proudly say he was a major factor in one of the best NCAA long jump competitions in decades. I’m extremely proud of his effort and competitiveness.” Tech’s team was led by the junior speedster, Divine Oduduru. Oduduru ran a quick 9.86 in his 100m for the second-fastest time the NCAA Championships have seen, according to Tech Athletics. He then ran his 200m in 16.73 for the second best time in the worlds, as well as the secondfastest time ever recorded by a collegiate athlete. Oduduru became the national champion in both events, earning 20 points

for Tech. “I can tell you without a doubt, (Oduduru) is the greatest 100/200 runner of all-time NCAA,” Kittley said, according to FOX34. “There may be one or two that have a mark a little higher, but clean, without taking drugs and being as passionate about it as he has been and how he’s done it without wind-aided marks, he’s by far the greatest NCAA 100/200 guy of all time.” Oduduru then participated in the 4x100m relay with senior Andrew Hudson, junior Keion Sutton and freshman Jacolby Shelton. After breaking the school record on the first day of the NCAA Championship meet to qualify for the championship race, the foursome broke the school record for the second time with a 38.45 to rank third. The third-place ranking added six more points to the Red Raiders’ overall score. Hudson also competed in the championship 200m race and finished 20.25 to place seventh in his first career outdoor nationals final, according to the release. His time scored two points for the Red Raiders. Adding eight more points to Tech’s score, junior Norman Grimes Jr. placed second in the 400m hurdles with a 48.71 time, according to the release. Grimes set a new PR with the run as well

INDEX NEWS SPORTS CROSSWORD CLASSIFIEDS SUDOKU

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Texas Tech director of track and field and cross country Wes Kittley raises the National Championship trophy over his head as he enters the Sports Performance Center. The men’s track and field team won the 2019 Outdoor National Championship with 60 points. Photo by Adrian Romero/The Daily Toreador

as earning him the fifth-fastest time in the world while breaking the program record. Senior Vincent Crisp and graduate student Jonah Koech added three more points collectively to Tech’s score in the 800m final, according to the release. Koech earned two points after running a 1:47.28 while Crisp earned a single point with a 1:47.48 time. In the final event of the meet, graduate student Duke Kicinski put the meet out of reach for the other schools competing as he threw 62.53m to earn the national title in the event, according to the release. The first-place finish added 10 more points to Tech’s score, giving the Red Raiders 60 collective points. With the meet concluding, Tech earned its first men’s national title in school history with 60 points, according to the NCAA. Florida trailed the Red Raiders with 50 points for a second place finish and Houston left with the bronze as the Cougars totaled 40 points. The Red Raiders’ final meet of the season will be the USA National Championships in Des Moines, Iowa from July 25-27. @MaxHengstDT

ADRIAN ROMERO/The Daily Toreador

LEFT: The Texas Tech men’s track and field team throws its guns up during the singing of the Matador Song on Sunday, June 9, 2019 at the Sports Performance Center. The Red Raiders brought home the NCAA National Championship in men’s Track & Field for the first time in school history. RIGHT: Texas Tech Director of track and field and cross country Wes Kittley speaks to the crowd in attendance as the track and field team is welcomed back to Lubbock. With 60 points at this year’s NCAA Championship meet, the Red Raiders defeated second-place Florida by a margin of 10 points.

BASEBALL

Tech headed to College World Series for second-straight year By MAX HENGST Sports Editor

The No. 8 Texas Tech baseball team advanced to the 2019 College World Series after defeating No. 9 Oklahoma State in the Super Regional round of the NCAA Tournament in Lubbock from June 7-9. In the three-game Super Regional, the Red Raiders played in front of one of the largest crowds Rip Griffin Park has seen. The total attendance for the series consisted of 14,347 fans, making it the second-most fans to attend a three-game series in school history. With the Super Regionals series win, the Red Raiders will make their fourth College World Series appearance in the last six season, according to Tech Athletics. The appearance also marks the first time that Tech has made back-to-back College World Series appearances in the stretch. “I don’t know if I want to think about what I feel,” head coach Tim Tadlock said regarding his feelings about making the College World Series. “What I do know is June 26th or 27th, you can win the whole thing. We’re five games away from doing that, and that’s a long time. There’s going to be distractions along the way, but it’s usually play a game, take a day, play another game. So that’s not necessarily what I feel, but that’s our plan. We plan on playing.” Heading into the Super Regionals,

the Red Raiders faced the Cowboys towards the end of their regular season with a three-game series at home, according to Tech Athletics. In the Big 12 series, Tech swept Oklahoma State, 3-0, winning by a margin of 29-8. Tech started the Super Regionals strong as they defeated Oklahoma State, 8-6, to open the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Red Raiders’ freshman RHP Micah Dallas led the team defensively as he earned a career-high nine strikeouts in just 5.0 innings pitched, according to Tech Athletics. Dallas gave up five hits and three runs (two earned), earning him the win at the mound in his first appearance in the Super Regionals. “(Oklahoma State), they’re a great offense,” Dallas said. “If you leave it up, they’ll for sure make you pay. That was the game plan going in, try and miss low, just try to get some ground balls. If they swing and miss, they swing and miss.” Oklahoma State started to come back after the Red Raiders maintained an early lead they earned as the Cowboys made it a one-run game in the seventh inning. Junior Josh Jung then swung the momentum back in the Red Raiders’ favor after he hit his 12th home run of the season to give Tech a 7-5 lead in the bottom of the seventh. The Cowboys then answered back with another run in the eighth inning and were looking to tie the game with

a hit up the middle but Jung made a highlight play as he dove for the stop and made the out at first to end the inning with a one-run lead. “One of the biggest things we pride ourselves on is not giving up too many runs,” Jung said. “Seemed like we hit a lapse on defense for a second, two or three errors. We were just looking for that one play. Anyone on the field could have made it. Just happened to be me this time. I think it sparked us to get through the rest of the game.” A sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth while the bases were loaded sent freshman Max Marusak home to give the Red Raiders an 8-6 lead and junior RHP John McMillon closed the game with three-straight strikeouts to secure Tech’s first win of the Super Regionals.

SEE CWS, PG. 4 CHASE SEABOLT/The Daily Toreador

TOP: Junior infielder Brian Klein and Sophomore outfielder Dylan Neuse hug one another after defeating the Oklahoma State Cowboys and advancing to the College World Series. BOTTOM: Sophomore pitcher Kurt Wilson celebrates his home run as it goes over the fence in the bottom of the eighth inning. Wilson’s three-run home run gave Tech the lead back, and a scoreless ninth inning secured the win for the Red Raiders to advance to the College World Series.


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