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Rice Baseball rockets past Sam Houston to sweep season series

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Hitless through five, the Rice Baseball bats caught fire late, pulling away from Sam Houston late to sweep the season series two games to none.

A walk, stolen base and a Sam Houston error put Rice baseball in the driver’s seat in their rematch with the Bearkats on Tuesday night. The Owls were able to plate two runs in the first inning, taking advantage of Sam Houston mistakes and putting some pressure on their hosts in the early goings.

Staked to a 2-0 lead, Jackson Blank turned in 4.1 clean innings of work, weaving through three walks and three hits, but keeping Sam Houston off the scoreboard. Neither team would interfere with that meager two run Rice advantage until Max Johnson opened the sixth inning with a home run, which oddly enough was the Owls’ first hit of the game.

Last Weekend: Rice baseball swept by East Carolina despite strong pitching performances

Once Johnson broke the seal, his teammates followed. Hiram Bocachica walked in the next at bat, passing the baton to Blaine Brown, who lifted the first pitch he saw over the fence in right center field. Suddenly, it was 5-0 and the Owls were in control.

Rice reliever Marco Fuentes was tagged for one run before Jack Ben-Shoshan ended the next two innings with punchouts — two of a career-high nine strikeouts on the night — to keep Sam Houston at arm’s length until three insurance runs in the eighth, aided by more Sam Houston mishaps, gave Rice a commanding 8-1 lead, which they’d pad further in the ninth.

What it means | Ready to hit late

Having a lead certainly helped, but the fight showcased by this team in the late innings on Tuesday was crucial. Hitless through five innings, a quiet final four frames wouldn’t have been shocking. The team could have chalked things up to another “not their night” at the plate and looked ahead to UTRGV.

Instead, they got their best sequence of plate approaches of the evening and built up much needed margin for a bullpen still working through its own challenges. From that point onward, it was Sam Houston playing timid, not Rice.

Podcast: Unpacking the Pierce hire and midseason start

Colin Robson reached on what should have been a routine ground ball in the eight and Trey Duffield made the Bearkats pay with an RBI single, padding the lead. These are the sort of avalanche-type moments Rice baseball has been searching for and might finally be on the cusp of finding.

Up Next: at Sam Houston (Tues), vs UTRGV (Wed), at Tulane x3 (Fri-Sun)

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Rice Football: Spring Practice Takeaways – March Q&A

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A month into Rice Football spring practices, some clarity is emerging. This Q&A focuses on what we’ve learned about the Owls on the gridiron so far.

More than half of spring practices are in the books, and a better picture of what Rice football will look like under head coach Scott Abell is beginning to form. This month’s Q&A focuses on some of those takeaways, ranging from the team’s propensity to avoid huddling and the quarterback race to what’s going on with the kicking game.

Questions were edited briefly for clarity. Want to get your questions answered? Subscribe on Patreon for our monthly mailbag.

For those checking in for the first time, or those returning, a quick programming note. Special features like this are reserved for our subscribers. Have questions? You can get those answered in our monthly Q&As and get access to all practice notes, recruiting updates and features like this one when you subscribe on Patreon today.

Q: On the new offense: Will the team huddle? Will the linemen line up in a 2-point stance?

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Rice Baseball swept by “three clean games” from East Carolina

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Rice baseball dropped three close games to East Carolina over the weekend, making progress while still making it clear this team has a ways to go.

FRIDAY | ECU 4, Rice 2

Davion Hickson set the tone on Friday night, reaching season-highs in innings (eight), pitches (121) and strikeouts (9), battling against ECU. He allowed four runs, three earned, and while not a perfect night, the length was instrumental in limiting the Owls’ bullpen exposure for the remainder of the weekend.

More: Why Wait? David Pierce hired as Rice baseball head coach

Hickson’s lone run support came in the fifth inning via a two-run home run from Blaine Brown, turning a 4-0 deficit into a more manageable two run game. That margin would stay at two, though, with Rice producing just one more base runner for the remainder of the game, unable to do further damage against ECU starter Ethan Norby or his relief, Brad Pruett.

SATURDAY | ECU 5, Rice 3 (11 inn)

Rice baseball had every chance to even the series on Saturday, opening the game with two runs in the first inning to support JD McCracken, who turned in a marvelous outing. McCracken kept ECU off the board until the eighth, but still left the game as the pitcher of record in line for the win. McCracken had reached that place thanks in part to a crucial sac fly from Blaine Brown in the seventh, the difference in the score to that point.

Last Weekend: Rice Baseball takes one of three from FAU in Pierce’s AAC debut

Unfortunately, the bullpen could not close things out as ECU tied the game off Jack Ben-Shoshan in the ninth. Rice got the winning run into scoring position with one out in the bottom of the inning, but couldn’t bring him around. ECU would take the game with two runs in the 11th, their first lead of the game.

SUNDAY | ECU 8, Rice 5

It was death by paper cut in the early innings for Rice in the series finale. ECU leaned on bunts and singles to cobble together a 3-0 lead through three, not delivering an extra-base hit until a double that made it 5-0 in the fourth. All of those runs were charged to Rice starter Tucker Alch.

On the brink of falling out of the game, head coach David Pierce turned to pinch hitter Jacob Devenny with two outs and two men on in the fourth. Devenny responded with a three-run shot down the right field line to get the Owls back within two.

Both teams traded runs in the fifth before ECU tacked on two more in the seventh, leaving Rice in a three-run hole by the time the bottom of the ninth arrived. Rice would load the bases for Michael Zito who drove a ball to right center field but saw it fall harmlessly into the glove of an ECU outfielder to end the game.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

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Rice Football 2025 Spring Practice Notebook 4: QB Battle and Scrimmage Thoughts

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The three-man quarterback race is heating up as Rice football pushes past the midpoint of spring practices, making progress with the new offensive scheme.

With more than half of Rice football spring practice in the books, the Owls’ offense is beginning to materialize. Several weeks of installs have led to the beginnings of a pecking order with a few skill players making their names known alongside a heated battle in the quarterback room.

More: Spring Practice Notebook 3 — The Rice Football defense takes shape

The second scrimmage of the spring wrapped up on Saturday with plenty to be gleaned from that side of the ball. This update dives into what scrimmages (and the upcoming Spring Game) will look like under head coach Scott Abell, how the quarterback race is shaping up and more as we cross the midpoint and get into the final weeks of spring practice.

Rethinking the word scrimmage

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Rice Football 2025 Spring Practice Notebook 3: Defense takes shape

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The first signs of a hierarchy within the Rice football defense are beginning to form as the Owls work through the first few weeks of spring ball.

So much focus has, understandably, been given to the Rice football offense as it installs a new scheme under head coach Scott Abell. And while that has been fun to watch and filled with unexpected twists and developments, the relatively smooth deployment of the defensive scheme under first-year DC Jon Kay has begun to crystallize.

More: Spring Practice Notebook 2 — Unpacking the offense and QBs

This update digs into what potential starting roles on defense are nearly secured, which pieces are fighting for meaningful depth spots and a host of other spots still up for grabs as spring progresses.

Early contenders for First Teamers

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