FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
LUBBOCK, Texas – The Texas Tech Department of Athletics along with head baseball coach Dan Spencer announced the creation of the Brooks Wallace Memorial Classic, an annual college baseball tournament that will be held at Dan Law Field beginning in 2010.
"This is an exciting opportunity for our program as we get to honor the memory of a really great person and baseball player in Brooks Wallace," said Spencer. "The College Baseball Foundation has made him a national figure in our sport in terms of the Wallace Award and we felt that it was time for our program to do something to honor his memory. Brooks was a Red Raider and we are very proud of that."
The 2010 Brooks Wallace Memorial Classic will feature Bethune-Cookman of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and Washington State of the Pac-10, alongside host Texas Tech. The four day round-robin event begins on Thursday, Feb. 25 and will conclude on Sunday, Feb. 28. The tournament will be hosted at Dan Law Field and ticket information will be announced later this fall.
"To have the memory of Brooks and the legacy of who Brooks was connected with this tournament is very exciting for the Wallace Family, said Larry Wallace, brother of Brooks Wallace. "And to have his name tied to the game he loved, at the university who gave him so much is extremely humbling."
Brooks Wallace was a former Texas Tech player and assistant coach and a slick-fielding shortstop at Tech from 1977-80. A four-year starter, he was named All-Southwest Conference and All-District VII his senior year. He led the Red Raiders to their first appearance in the Southwest Conference Tournament in 1980.
After playing two years in the Texas Rangers organization, he returned to Texas Tech and served as a graduate assistant and later as an assistant coach. In the summer of 1984, he was diagnosed with cancer and fought the disease courageously until his death on March 24, 1985, at age 27. The Plano, Texas, native was married to the former Sandy Arnold and they had one daughter, Lindsay Ryan.
Texas Tech’s entire 2010 schedule will be announced in the coming days and final details are still being worked out. For the latest on Texas Tech Baseball, log on to www.texastech.com.
2010 Brooks Wallace Memorial Classic Schedule
Feb. 25 – Texas Tech vs. Bethune-Cookman – 4 p.m.
Feb. 26 – Bethune-Cookman vs. Washington State – 1 p.m.
Feb. 26 – Texas Tech vs. Washington State – 4 p.m.
Feb. 27 – Washington State vs. Bethune-Cookman – 1 p.m.
Feb. 27 – Texas Tech vs. Bethune-Cookman – 4 p.m.
Feb. 28 – Texas Tech vs. Washington State – Noon
