Aggie softball team blanks Texas Tech 3-0

There will be a few tears shed Saturday at the Aggie Softball Complex for Senior Day, but a couple youngsters showed Friday night the program should continue its winning ways after the veterans move on.

Sophomore stalwart Melissa Dumezich pitched a two-hitter and homered to lead 18th-ranked A&M to a 3-0 victory over the Texas Tech Red Raiders that clinched third place in the Big 12 for the Aggies (40-13, 12-5).

Dumezich stifled the Red Raiders (40-13, 5-12), who came in hitting .355 to lead the nation. She also put A&M on the board with an opposite-field homer that jetted over the fence in right field despite a stiff breeze blowing in.

While Dumezich had a big night, the Aggie who had the crowd of 1,028 buzzing was Tarah Tyler when she delivered a two-run triple in the sixth.

Tyler has been overshadowed by fellow freshmen Amber Garza, Nicole Morgan and Cassie Tysarczyk who are every-day starters and have combined for 22 home runs and 77 runs batted in. But Tyler's third at-bat of the season made sure the Aggies would extend the school's record for consecutive home victories to 23.

A&M head coach Jo Evans, at the urging of associate head coach Joy Jackson, called on Tyler to hit for Morgan who had struck out twice against Tech starting pitcher Brittany Talley (14-6).

"[Jackson] came up to me and said, 'Hey, what do you think about hitting Tarah for [Morgan] when she comes up?'" said Evans, who agreed it was the right move.

Tyler had a pretty good idea what she was up against before stepping into the batter's box.

"You've got to look at the charts and see what pitches she's been throwing," Tyler said. "Her change-up had been on, so I was looking for that."

Tyler, though, found out seeing is believing.

Talley threw a dandy two-strike change. Tyler started to swing thinking it was a riseball but held up. Then as the ball seemed ready to float into the catcher's mitt, she flicked it foul.

"That was beautiful," Evans said. "I loved it. It gave me goose bumps."

The crowd acknowledged Tyler's effort, but she didn't hear it.

"I was zoned in," she said.

Tyler then lined a shot into right-center field that sent home Garza and Dumezich who had walked.

"It looked like a dropball to me," Tyler said. "It was low in the zone, and I was just looking to hit."

It was her first official at-bat in Big 12 play. She walked in the last inning of a 13-0 victory on May 1 at Kansas, an at-bat that Evans believes helped prepare her for Friday night -- that and tons of at-bats in practice against Dumezich who also has a great change-up.

"Our pitchers do a good job in practice of throwing [batting practice], and their movement helps a lot," Talley said.

Dumezich's ball might have been moving too much early. She just missed the outside corner enough to walk two and hit a batter in the first three innings, but she settled down to lead the surging Aggies to their sixth straight victory.

Dumezich, who shared pitching duties much of last season with Rebecca Arbino who has since transferred to San Diego State, has been in the circle for eight straight games. She's already exceeded last year's win total by seven and pitched 54 more innings. It also was her 12th shutout of the season, twice as many as she had last season.

*

NOTES -- A&M and Tech will play at noon Saturday in the regular-season finale. ... Evans is two shy of 900 career victories at 898-494-2.