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Rice Women’s Basketball: Owls march past Fresno St for second WNIT win

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Rice women’s basketball exploded out of the gate, leading Fresno State from start to finish to advance in the WNIT.

It was clear from the start that the second-round game for Rice women’s basketball against Fresno State was going to be different than the defensive struggle that encapsulated the Owls first-round win over Arizona State. Rice made their first three shots and scored 25 points in the opening frame. That’s two points less than the Owls and the Sun Devils combined to score at halftime on Friday.

That strong start proved to be the harbinger of good things to come. Rice did cool down from their scorching 64.7 percent field goal percentage in the first quarter, but their lead held from that point onward.

Rice Football: Spring Practice Notebook – Week 2

Fresno State made things interesting with a 9-0 run in the middle of the third quarter, but Rice was quick to respond immediately with an 11-2 run of their own to quiet the threat. Central to that hold, and the sizable lead itself, Nancy Mulkey led all scorers with a season-high 28 points. She also had eight rebounds.

Player of the Game – Jasmine Smith

Smith isn’t traditionally the Owls’ primary scoring option on the court, but her ability to run the offense and set others up for success is differential for this team. On Saturday, though, Smith combined her keen eye for her teammates with a near-perfect shooting performance. She started 4-of-4 from the floor, finishing with 15 points. She also had 10 assists, seven rebounds and four steals.

Up Next

Rice women’s basketball has moved into the win-or-go-home stage of the Women’s NIT. With the win, the Owls will face the winner of San Francisco and California Baptist on Monday, March 22 and 7:00 p.m. Should Rice win that game, they would win the Fort Worth Regional and advance to the Final Four in Memphis.

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Rice Women’s Basketball: Owls explode late, down Arizona State in WNIT opener

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The first round of the WNIT went well for Rice women’s basketball, who beat Arizona State to advance in the winner’s bracket.

Rice Women’s Basketball was disappointed to miss out on an at-large NCAA Tournament selection, but their focus pivoted to the WNIT quickly. Head coach Tina Langley had her team focused on preparation for their second WNIT trip in the past four seasons long before brackets were announced.

When the time came, Rice was paired with Arizona State. On paper, the matchup looked favorable for the 18-4 Owls against the 11-10 Sun Devils, who also boasted a strong defensive presence.

It wasn’t too much of a surprise then when both teams struggled on offense early on in the game. In the first quarter, Arizona State made 2-of-14 shots. Rice was held to 2-of-11 from the floor. The Sun Devils had more fouls (6) and turnovers (5) than points (4) in the initial frame. The Owls walked away with a 4-2 early lead, confident in their defense, but in need of a spark.

Rice Football: Spring Practice Notebook – Week 2

Rice scored on three of their first four possessions in the second quarter, taking a 13-8 lead into the media timeout. They won on the offensive glass and took advantage of their opponent’s miscues, scoring seven of their 10 second quarter points directly off Arizona State turnovers. A 15-12 halftime lead highlighted a gritty, exhausting start.

The lead ping-ponged back and forth in the third quarter, but then Rice found their extra gear when it mattered. Katelyn Crosthwait hit the Owls’ first three-pointer of the game to spark a thunderous finish for the Owls. Rice outscored Arizona State 18-to-5 in the fourth quarter to secure the first-round win.

Player of the Game – Nancy Mulkey

In a game in which points were at a premium, Mulkey tied Lauren Schartz for the lead among all players in scoring with 16 points. The senior center converted on 7-of-10 shots from the field. That 70 percent shooting percentage more than doubled Arizona State’s team scoring rate. She added four blocks and seven rebounds.

Up Next

The format for the 2021 Women’s NIT guarantees two games for every team. With the victory, Rice moves into the winner’s bracket. They’ll face the winner of the second game in the Fort Worth Region between Fresno State (16-10) and Missouri (9-11).

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Rice Football 2021: Spring Practice Week 2 Notebook

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Rice football had their first scrimmage of the spring this past week. A few players stood out, including one very notable position switch.

Rice football head coach Mike Bloomgren called spring practice “the lab” during his opening media sessions. The phrase stuck with me as I’ve watched the team go through drills over the last two weeks. Many things seem relatively mundane, but a few things did stand out as decidedly unique. Whether or not those tidbits remain in the fall might depend on how well the experiments go this month.

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For those that might have missed it, you can check out the initial depth chart reactions as well as the Week 1 notebook. Not subscribed? The Roost will have you covered every step of the way this spring and beyond. Subscribers get access to all practice notes, recruiting updates and special features. Subscribe on Patreon and get access to it all today.

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Rice Women’s Basketball: Owls headed to WNIT for postseason play

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The Rice women’s basketball season ends without an NCAA Tournament selection. Instead, the Owls are headed to WNIT for postseason play.

Rice women’s basketball lost a heartbreaker to Middle Tennesse in the Conference USA Championship Game on Saturday. Rice trailed by as many as 10 points in the second half but thundered back to make it a one-score game in the final seconds.

The loss marks the first conference tournament defeated in the last three sees for Rice. It also means the Owls’ long-hoped automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament disappeared as well. Hoping for an at-large selection, Rice was disappointed when their name was not called on Selection Monday.

The Owls season is not over yet, though. Rice will accept an invitation to the WNIT as an automatic qualifier. Rice will play Arizona State in their first round matchup.

Fellow Conference USA squad Charlotte has also made the field. They’ll play Florida. Rice women’s basketball will play its first game on Friday. It can be streamed on FloHoops.

Podcast: Former Rice football star Christian Covington talks football, Marvel

The structure for the tournament has been tweaked. Each of the four regions will include an opening round on Friday, March 19 followed by a second-round on Saturday, March 20 featuring semifinal matchups and a consolation round. The finals for the championship bracket and consolation bracket will be played on Monday, March 22.

Rice last played in the WNIT in 2018. The Owls defeated Texas State in Round 1 before falling to New Mexico in Round 2. Rice last made the NCAA Tournament in 2019, falling in overtime to Marquette in College Station, TX.

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Rice Baseball: Owls take three of four from NIU and Kansas State

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Rice baseball went three for four on the weekend, sweeping Northern Illinois and splitting a pair of games with Kansas State.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

1. Rice baseball rotation is starting to settle in

The rotation has been somewhat of a work in progress over the first several weeks of the regular season. With Roel Garcia working his way back to 100 percent and the order in flux because of the winter storm, some growing pains were expected as the Owls readied for conference play in a few weeks.

As a whole, the starters compiled what has to be considered their best weekends of the season to date:

  • Blake Brogdon earned a win, pitching into the seventh inning while allowing just two earned runs with six strikeouts.
  • Roel Garcia went 5.2 innings against a potent Kansas State offense, allowing four earned runs, but keeping Rice in the game until he departed.
  • Mitchell Holcomb threw 7.2 innings of scoreless ball, striking out for and allowing just five hits.
  • Brandon Deskins struck out six in 5.0 innings, allowing four hits with one walk.

Altogether, the four arms in the weekend rotation pitched 24.2 innings and allowed six runs, a 2.19 ERA.

2. Gneiting not under the radar anymore

Entering the season, senior Bradley Gneiting was expected to be a part of the outfield rotation and platoon at the designated hitter spot. The same was said for a half dozen players who hoped to earn playing time on a regular basis. Not only has Gneiting had his fair share of at bats, he’s inked his name on the lineup card for the foreseeable future.

Gneiting reached base in all four games this weekend, going 5-for-15 with a home run and two RBI. He currently leads in batting average, OPS, hits and RBI. He’s one five players to start and finish every game this season.

3. One significant shutout

In the final season of the Wayne Graham era, Rice baseball won two games with shutouts. They beat Western Kentucky 4-0 and downed Old Dominion 9-0 that season. The next year, Matt Bragga’s first, Rice earned just one shutout win, a 4-0 victory over Southern Miss. They did not blank any of their opponents in 2020.

In total, Rice pitched one shutout victory in the first 75 games in Bragga’s tenure, a rate of 1.3 percent. So far in 2021, they tallied three such skunks in their first 14 games, 21.4 percent of their games. That doesn’t account for the two games in which they came up one run short.

More than the positive feelings of seeing a zero on the opponent’s box score, a string of shutouts points to a pitching staff capable of operating at a high level. Channeling that potential into consistent, dependable performances from a core of trustworthy options could make this team dangerous if and when the bats follow suit.

THE PLAY BY PLAY

FRIDAY | Rice 6 – Northern Illinois 3

Northern Illinois struck first with a run in the top of the third but the 1-0 lead didn’t last long. Guy Garibay delivered the equalizing home run in the bottom half of the inning. Then Rice exploded for four more runs in the fifth to take a commanding 5-1 lead. Four different Owls had an RBI hit in that inning.

Blake Brogdon and Reed Gallant proved to be a strong tandem on the mound. Gallant took over in the seventh, allowing two inherited runners to score, but finished the remainder of the game unscathed, giving Rice the win.

SATURDAY 1 | Kansas State 8 – Rice 3

Things were close in the second game for the Owls right until they weren’t. Roel Garcia kept the Kansas State bats at bay, allowing two runs through the first five innings. Unfortunately, the offense was only able to muster one run of support over that span.

When Garcia exited, Kansas State pounced. Already leading 4-1 at the time, the Wildcats tacked on four more runs over the final three innings. Rice finished 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position in the loss.

SATURDAY 2 | Rice 4 – Northern Illinois 1

Rice responded well in the second half of the Saturday double-header. Mitchell Holcomb delivered far and away his best performance as an Owl, going 7.2 innings without allowing a run. The strong start allowed the offense to gradually pull further and further away over the course of the game.

The Owls first took the lead on a bases-loaded walk in the second inning. They added two more runs in the fifth and another in the sixth. By the time Holcomb exited the game and Christian Cienfuegos extinguished any hopes of a late NIU rally in the eighth, Rice was in total command.

SUNDAY | Rice 1 – Kansas State 0

The bats were more subdued when Rice met Kansas State for the second time on the weekend. Once the rain dried up and the tarp was removed, Brandon Deskins and KState hurler Connor McCullough were lights out. Neither side scored against the other teams’ starters, leaving it to the bullpens to finish up the game.

Rice would prevail thanks to the bat of Braden Comeaux who drilled a liner at the foot of the Kansas State shortstop. The ball deflected just far enough for Ben Dukes to scamper home and break the tie. Dalton Wood converted the save.

ON DECK | Rice Baseball vs Texas State (Wed), Southern (Fri-Sun, four games).

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