Scary Terry: Junior Pitcher Throws First Career No-Hitter
Kaitlyn Terry pitched a five-inning no-hitter on Sunday, Feb. 22, leading to a 16-0 Red Raiders win over UC Riverside.
The junior spent two years at UCLA as a two-way player, compiling 73 pitching appearances and 333 strikeouts to go with a .252 batting average in 139 at-bats. On her eighth appearance in the circle for Texas Tech, she completed the no-no, a first in her collegiate career.
Dawg pic.twitter.com/ycr3zsHJB2
— Texas Tech Softball (@TexasTechSB) February 22, 2026
The junior southpaw, in addition to Samantha Lincoln and NiJaree Canady, has helped form a three-headed monster in Texas Tech’s pitching staff. Through Tech’s 16-1 start to the season, the trio has allowed 16 earned runs in 93 innings pitched, and racked up twice as many strikeouts as hits allowed.
Texas Tech’s team ERA of 1.36 ranks within the top-10 of all college softball teams.
Though her season-long stats have been stellar, Terry entered the game versus the Highlanders coming off of her worst outing of the season, a five-inning, three-run performance versus Cal State Fullerton on Saturday, Feb. 21. Whereas the Red Raiders entered Sunday’s matchup as the No. 2 team in the country and winners of all but one game, UC Riverside found itself in search of its second win of 2026.
From the get-go, it was clear that Texas Tech was not the team that was going to happen against. The Red Raiders erupted for seven runs in the top of the first inning, then Terry made quick work in the bottom of the frame, walking the first batter she faced before forcing a double play and a ground out to first base.
The Highlanders would only put one more runner on base all game.
The Red Raiders tacked on four more runs to give Texas Tech an 11-0 lead in the second. Terry walked another batter but created three consecutive ground outs for a clean second. In the third inning, she finally got a strike out, punching out left fielder Isa McElroy and center fielder Aubrey Marx.
The fourth and fifth innings were equally as dominant for Terry. The junior sat down two more Highlanders swinging in the fourth and forced another two to whiff in the fifth for six strikeouts on the day. Thanks to a five-run fifth by Texas Tech, Terry and the Red Raiders walked away with a 16-0 mercy-rule win.
Of Texas Tech’s 16 wins, eight have come via mercy rule. However, this marked the first no-hitter of the season, and the first by a Texas Tech pitcher since Canady blanked the Kansas Jayhawks on Mar. 28, 2025. In total, there have been 11 no-hitters in Red Raiders history, with Terry marking the latest addition to the list.
Terry’s impressive resume as a Red Raider continues to grow. She now sits at 6-0 with three complete games, 47 strikeouts and just eight walks. Her 1.34 ERA and .165 BAA rank second amongst Texas Tech pitchers in 2026. Terry and the Red Raiders will look to climb to the No. 1 ranked team in the nation with a strong showing in the Jeannine McHaney Memorial Classic. The home tournament includes two games apiece against North Texas and Texas A&M Corpus Christi, as well as one-off games against Abilene Christian University and the University of Detroit Mercy.
Texas Red Raiders softball will be on display next on Thursday, Feb. 26 at 5 p.m. versus Abilene Christian University.
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Tyler Welch is a reporter based in Dallas, TX. He has experience as a sports editor writing and editing for The Daily Campus at SMU, where he wrote about basketball, football, volleyball and other sports. He does color commentary for high school sporting events in the Dallas area with Champions Sports Radio. He contributed to the Desert Dwellers Sports Network covering college football, college and MLB baseball and the Olympics.
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