Rice baseball held a productive Charlotte offense in check, sweeping the 49ers on the road in a statement performance.
FRIDAY | Rice 7, Charlotte 5
The Rice bats provided a steady stream of support for starter Tanner Wiggins in the series opener, getting a run across in each of the first two innings before Hiram Bocachica provided some added breathing room with his first home run of the year, extending the Owls’ advantage to 4-0 after three. That would grow further to a six-run edge after five before Charlotte was able to get their offense going.
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The 49ers got two back in the sixth on a home run of their own, adding three more on a subsequent blast in the eighth inning off reliever Brayden Sharp. Despite surrendering the big swing, Sharp bounced back to retire three straight in the ninth to secure the win.
SATURDAY | Rice 6, Charlotte 2
The second game of the series played out eerily similar to the first. Rice got ahead early with a slow trickle of runs as the Owls’ starting pitching kept the 49ers off the board. This time it was largely efficient execution that did the trick for Rice, picking up six runs through six innings with just one long ball, a solo shot from Paul Smith in the sixth.
Charlotte went yard in the sixth, scoring two runs to get themselves on the board. That was all they’d manage, though, as the tandem of Ethan Sanders and Ty Thames combined to strike out nine, allowing just those two runs. It was Sanders’ second win and Thames’ third save.
SUNDAY | Rice 3, Charlotte 2
Charlotte went to the bullpen before the third Rice batter made it to the plate in the series finale. It didn’t make much of a difference. JC Davis reached on an infield single, loading the bases for Paul Smith, who singled as well to put Rice in front. An error would allow another run to score, setting Ryland Urbanczyk up with a two-run lead before he put his toe on the rubber.
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Urbanczyk was fantastic in his own right, mowing through the Charlotte lineup with relative ease. He went seven innings, allowing two hits and two runs, topping out at 100 pitches before he was lifted after seven innings. He was still in line for the win at the time of his departure, thanks to a JC Davis, who broke the 2-2 tie with an RBI single in the fifth. A trio of Rice arms procured the final six outs to claim the series sweep.
THREE FOR THE ROAD
