May 27, 2002

LUBBOCK, Texas - The No. 19 Texas Tech baseball team earned its eighth consecutive NCAA Tournament bid, today, as the Red Raiders were assigned as a No. 2 seed at the Rice Regional and will play Washington in first round action on Friday.

Texas Tech, whose eighth consecutive NCAA bids is the longest active streak in the Big 12 Conference, will travel to Houston for the regional round of the tournament and will play the Washington Huskies out of the Pac-10 on Friday at 7 p.m. at Reckling Park.

Texas Tech finished the season with a mark of 41-18 while Washington completed the season with a record of 30-25-1 and finished in third place in the Pac-10. Harvard (Ivy League Champion) and Rice will play the other first round game with the tournament following a double-elimination format.

Tickets for the NCAA Regionals will go on sale on Wednesday morning through the Rice Ticket Office at (713) 348-4068. Tournament packages are priced at $45 while individual game tickets will be $10 for both adults and students.

Texas Tech joined Texas, Baylor, Nebraska and Oklahoma as one of five Big 12 teams to be extended invitations to this year's field of 64.

For more information on the upcoming NCAA Tournament being held at Reckling Park on the Rice University campus in Houston, please log on to www.texastech.com.