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Rice Football 2023 Spring Practice Notebook 2: Roster Notes

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Rice Football spring practice has just begun and there are several players who are (and aren’t) participating that are worth noting.

It’s been months since Rice football last practiced. Since then, players have left the program, new ones have come in and the availability of current players is in flux. In order to better understand what’s going to take place this spring, it’s worth setting the table and establishing who is available and who isn’t.

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That means some bad news (injuries) and some good news (reinstatements, waivers) for players that could play a significant role for Rice football this spring and beyond.

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Rice Baseball stymied in road loss to Baylor

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Rice Baseball offered little resistance in a Tuesday night road loss to Baylor, falling back below .500 on the season.

From the first Baylor batter, it was clear Rice baseball was going to be in for a long evening. A fly ball to left field was misplayed, initially ruled an error before later being revised as a leadoff triple. Regardless of how it was scored, a triple from the two-hole hitter on the next at bat put Rice behind early. Baylor would score two more runs in the first, pushing Rice into a 3-0 deficit after one.

Last Time Out: Rice Baseball shows growth in HCU sweep

The second inning was more of the same. Rice was kept off the scoreboard and Baylor strung together more hits, this time a double followed by three consecutive singles to score a pair of runs. Up 5-0, the Bears leaned on their pitching staff the rest of the way with an insurance run added in the eighth. Rice was limited to two hits, and no runs in a quiet road loss in Waco.

What it means | Neither length nor strikes

Rice baseball hasn’t really gotten length out of any starter aside from Parker Smith. Given the number of arms the staff is working to break in, that might not be proof in itself of a problem, but those short stints combined with poor performances are alarming. And the damage they’ve done is unquestionable.

Tuesday’s starter, Mauricio Rodriguez, went two innings and allowed five runs. His season ERA has climbed to 8.83. He’s been roughed up in three of his last four starts, only finding success against UTRGV, but even that was limited to four innings.

More: Rice Baseball Nonconference State of the Program

As exhibited on Tuesday, the Rice offense is not yet good enough to routinely overcome massive early deficits. They did so against Louisiana in the Sunday game. They did it again against Houston Christian this past Sunday. Those were the exceptions. More often than not, it’s bad news. If Rice baseball can’t sort that out and avoid the implosions, it’s going to be a long season.

ON DECK | at UAB (Fri-Sun)

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Rice Baseball 2023: Nonconference State of the Program

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Rice Baseball begins conference play this week. Here’s where the program stands and what’s next for the Owls on the diamond this spring.

With a three-game set with UAB in Birmingham now on deck, Rice baseball is about to enter the thick of its conference schedule. Scattered non-conference games remain in the midweek, but as the Owls enter the middle portions of their season, every game will start to count a little bit more. Nonconference games aren’t finished, but a new portion of the Owls’ schedule is getting ready to start.

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Following a series sweep of Houston Christian, Rice baseball head coach Jose Cruz Jr. says the staff is “excited for the direction that we’re headed.” In this midseason State of the Program, we’ll look at the highs, lows and everything in between as we explore where Rice baseball is now and where it might be in the weeks ahead.

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Rice Women’s Basketball to face BYU in first round of 2023 WNIT

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Rice women’s basketball has accepted an invitation to participate in the 2023 WNIT and will play BYU in the first round.

Rice women’s basketball is postseason bound. After falling to UTSA in the second round of the Conference USA Tournament, the Owls have accepted a bid to the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT). The first round will take place from March 15 to March 17. All host sites for that round and subsequent rounds will be determined by the higher bidding team.

Rice will play BYU in the first round on Friday, March 17 with tipoff scheduled for 8:00 pm CT. BYU enters the tournament with a 16-16 record. The Cougars last played in the WCC Tournament, falling to Gonzaga.

Stream the game on BYUtv here.

The Owls have a rich history with the WNIT. In 2018, Rice defeated Texas State in Round 1 before falling to New Mexico in Round 2. They next appeared in the WNIT in 2021, parading through the field and defeating Ole Miss to take home the tournament championship. Along the way they posted victories over Arizona State, Fresno State, California Baptist and Delaware.

This will be the first appearance for Rice women’s basketball head coach Lindsay Edmonds in a postseason tournament after taking over leadership of the program prior to the 2021-2022 season.

The entire field WNIT was announced on Monday, following the release of the Women’s NCAA Tournament Bracket. Here is the full WNIT bracket. Should Rice advance past the first round, the Owls would play the winner of the first round game between Oregon and North Dakota State.

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Rice Basketball to face Duquesne in first round of 2023 CBI Tournament

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Rice basketball has accepted an invitation to participate in the 2023 CBI Tournament and will play Duquesne in the first round.

Rice basketball is postseason bound. After falling to UAB in the second round of the Conference USA Tournament, the Owls have accepted a bid to the College Basketball Invitation Tournament (CBI). The Tournament will take place from March 18 to 22 with all games at the Daytona Beach Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, FL.

This is the Owls’ third appearance in the CBI. Rice first played in the 2017 tournament, defeating San Francisco in the opening round before falling to Utah Valley in the quarterfinals. Last year Rice went down to the wire against 3-Seed Ohio in the opening round, taking a lead with five seconds to play, only to watch it crumble on a buzzer-beating shot from the Bobcats that sent Rice home.

Opening round games will be played on Mar. 18 and Mar. 19 with the remaining rounds taking place over the next three days. Should a team play on the second day of opening round games and advance to the finals, they would play four games in four days.

Rice basketball head coach Scott Pera released this statement regarding the news:

“We are excited to be heading back to Daytona Beach and participate in the CBI in back-to-back years. We had a good, but too short, experience last year. For our program to get to back-to-back postseasons is another barrier we have broken down as we continue to grow Rice Basketball and head into the American Athletic Conference next year.”

The entire field was announced on Selection Sunday, following the release of the NCAA Tournament and NIT Brackets. Here is the full CBI bracket. Should Rice advance past the first round, the Owls would play the winner of the first round game between Southern Utah and North Alabama.

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