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Rice Baseball 2021: Previewing the UTSA Series

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The Rice baseball kicks off conference play this weekend with a four-game home series against UTSA. Here’s how the Owls stack up with the Roadrunners.

Rice baseball enters their first Conference USA series with momentum, courtesy of head coach Matt Bragga’s first win over Texas A&M  since his arrival two seasons ago. Their non-conference slate gives way this week to the first of two four-game series against UTSA. The Owls will host this time around with the Roadrunners returning the favor in a few weeks.

Game Notes

Times: Friday 6:00 p.m. | Saturday 1:00 p.m. / 4.00 p.m. | Sunday 1:00 p.m.
Venue: Reckling Park
Radio: Stretch Internet Portal
Watch: CUSAtv

How each team fared this week

Rice baseball (11-9) took their weekend series against Southern, wining two of three. Then they hit the road to play Texas A&M in a midweek game, which they won 2-1. Altogether, Rice enters this series as winners of three of their last four and five of their last seven.

UTSA (8-7) swept Texas A&M Corpus Christi last weekend, snapping a five-game losing streak. The Roadrunners have played seven in a row away from home entering their weekend tilt with the Owls.

Probable Pitchers

Friday | Blake Brogdon (2-2, 5.47)
Saturday 1 | Mitchell Holcomb (3-1, 4.78)
Saturday 2 | Brandon Deskins (1-2, 3.97)
Sunday | TBD

UTSA Pitching

Luke Malone is the probable Friday night guy. He owns a 3.66 ERA and has failed to get out of the fourth inning in two of his last four starts. If he does get into trouble, expect UTSA to turn to folks like John Chomko, Daniel Garza, Reece Easterling and Simon Miller out of the bullpen.

UTSA Hitting

This lineup can hit. UTSA has only played 15 games so far, the second-fewest among C-USA teams, but they’re near the top of the stat sheet in most of the key offensive metrics. They lead the conference in batting average (.294) and on-base percentage (.389) and they’re third in slugging percentage (.462).

First baseman Griffin Paxton has 23 hits in 15 games, nine of which have gone for extra bases. He, along with reigning C-USA hitter of the week Nick Thornquist and two other Roadrunners have three or more home runs. The Rice pitching staff is going to have its hands full.

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Rice Baseball 2021: Owls knock off Texas A&M in midweek road tilt

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Rice baseball picked up one of their biggest wins of the year on Tuesday, taking down Texas A&M in College Station, 2-1.

Winners of six of their last nine, Rice baseball entered its midweek bout with Texas A&M on the upswing. The Aggies had just been swept on the road by No. 5 Florida, but still boasted a stalwart 15-8 record.

To earn the pivotal win, Rice needed a big game from redshirt freshman starting pitcher Garret Zaskoda, who had struggled in his prior outing against Texas State surrendering seven runs in 3+ innings. This Tuesday night it was abundantly clear that Zakoda was not phased by the bright lights of Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park.

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Zaskoda pitched a gem. He held the potent Texas A&M offense to a first inning single, their only hit against him in 5.1 innings while striking out four and walking four. Most importantly, he kept the maroon and white off the scoreboard,

The offense did their part, manufacturing a crucial run in the fourth inning. Guy Garibay signled and stole stolen base. A throwing error got him to third, where Cade Edwards drove him in with a sacrifice fly.

Rice would add a necessary insurance run in the top of the ninth when Hal Hughes drove in Connor Walsh in the top of the ninth. Texas A&M would get one run back via the long ball in the ninth, but Rice held on to win 2-1.

What it means

This was the first win for Rice over Texas A&M under head coach Matt Bragga. The Owls ended the 2020 season prematurely following a midweek loss to the Aggies at Reckling Park. They fell to Texas A&M on the road in 2019 in Bragga’s first season at the helm in Houston.

When Rice is at its best, the Owls have gone toe-to-toe with every other program in the state. Trading blows with the Aggies and the Longhorns is an important measuring stick for what the Owls’ hope is an upward trajectory. So far, so good. Rice plays Texas in Austin in their last game of the regular season.

ON DECK |  UTSA

Rice baseball returns home this weekend to kick off their conference schedule against UTSA. This will mark the first of a series of four-game sets against the same team. Rice also has a return trip to San Antonio on the calendar for a second series in late April.

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Rice Baseball 2021: Offense lifts Owls to series win over Southern

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Rice baseball took two of three from Southern, winning their first non-conference series of the season prior to Conference USA action.

THREE FOR THE ROAD | Rice baseball wins series 2-1

1. Rice baseball should have swept Southern

On paper, Rice looked to be the better baseball team entering the weekend. The Owls had the better pitching staff and the better offense. Friday and Saturday proved that expectation to be true. That made Sunday’s loss all the more puzzling.

Yes, it’s baseball, and strange things happen all the time. Winning the series was an absolute must, and that was achieved. But the Owls proved their bench is better than many of their opponents’ regulars.  This team shows what it’s capable of achieving, expectations can and should rise.

2. Braden Comeaux is officially Mr. Consistent

Leading Rice with a .352 batting average through 19 games, the senior third baseman has proven to be the most unflappable Owl. When the offense scuttled on Sunday, Comeaux stayed productive, tallying two hits in four at bats and driving in one of the Owls’ four runs. He hit a blistering .500 on the weekend, driving in three.

Rice has found a healthy amount of productive bats this season. Bradley Gneiting has been superb. Antonio Cruz forced his named one the lineup card and has played well of late. Freshman Guy Garibay has showcased tremendous play discipline and lead the team in walks. Rice needs all of them to continue to produce. When they do, Comeaux’s ever-ready swing will amplify their efforts.

3. Building trust on Wood

Dalton Wood has been eased back into the bullpen after missing the 2020 season. He made his fourth appearance on Sunday, entering the game with his team trailing. If Rice was going to have a chance, he needed to be superb, and he was. Wood threw three scoreless innings, maintain a spotless 0.00 ERA while tallying his 10th strikeout of the year.

Wood is the only Rice pitcher to have four consecutive multi-inning scoreless outings this season. He’s been the guy tasked with holding the line when Rice is trailing so far, but his reliability could warrant more crucial innings in the near future. Few Rice relievers have produced to his level and he has the arm to be a special asset for this club.

THE PLAY BY PLAY

FRIDAY | Rice 14 – Southern 2

Rice baseball came out swinging on Friday night, scoring two runs in the first inning and never looking back. The Owls’ offense was as good as it’s been all season, scoring in six of eight innings. Justin Dunlap led the team with four hits. Connor Walsh had one but drove in four.

On the mound, Blake Brogdon was dynamic. He struck out 10 batters in seven innings, allowing two runs and walking one along the way. Staked to an early lead, he was fearless, and for the most part, he avoided significant damage.

SATURDAY | Rice 13 – Southern 4

Saturday brought more of the same. Bradley Gneiting got things started with a solo shot in the first inning. Southern would equalize in the second and keep the game close, briefly. Then Rice exploded for six runs in the fifth inning, including three by way of bases loaded RBI walks.

Elevated from the Sunday spot after Roel Garcia was a scratch, Mitchell Holcomb put together his second consecutive strong performance. He struck out nine in seven innings, allowing just two earned runs. Micah Davis closed the door in the ninth with three-straight strikeouts.

SUNDAY | Southern 6 – Rice 4

Things started off the right way for Rice in the series finale thanks to a first inning RBI double by Braden Comeaux that spotted the Owls’ to a 1-0 lead. It would not last. Starting pitcher Brandon Deskin’s started to spiral in the third inning, allowing four two-out runs to put Rice in an early hole.

Unlike the prior two outings, the bats did not wake up. After clawing back to a 6-4 deficit, Rice managed two hits in the final three innings and left the tying run on base in the ninth.

ON DECK | Rice Baseball vs Texas A&M (Tues), Southern (Fri-Sun, four games).

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Rice Baseball 2021: Previewing the Southern Series

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The Rice baseball enters the weekend fresh from one of their best weekends of the season. Here’s how the Owls stack up with visiting Southern.

It was a good weekend for Rice baseball, who won three of four in a multi-team event. It was the first time Rice has won three games in any weekend span since they swept a three-game series from Louisiana Tech in April 2019. Tuesday’s one-sided loss to Texas State cooled the Owls’ momentum, but they’ll have fresh arms and ready bats for the upcoming three-game slate.

This series marks their final weekend tune-up before Conference USA play begins the following weekend. The Owls will then host UTSA in a four-game series.  But first, a look at how Rice matches up with Southern. Originally scheduled for a Saturday doubleheader, the series will now be a more traditional three game affair.

Game Notes

Times: Friday 6:00 p.m. | Saturday 1:00 p.m. | Sunday 1:00 p.m.
Venue: Reckling Park
Radio: Stretch Internet Portal
Watch: CUSAtv

How each team fared this week

Rice baseball (8-8) took both games against Northern Illinois and split a pair of games against Kansas State. They lost their midweek game against Texas State.

Southern (5-10) lost three of their last four, dropping their most recent weekend series with Prairie View A&M (whom Rice beat 10-0) as well as a midweek game against Lamar.

Projected Pitching Matchups

Friday | Blake Brogdon (1-2, 6.52)
Saturday | Roel Garcia (1-1, 3.86)
Sunday | Mitchell Holcomb (2-1, 5.59)

Southern Pitching

Willhelm Allen is their definitive Friday night guy. He owns a 5.30 ERA in 18.2 innings pitched across four games. He’s not going to go deep, and with a .304 batting average against and only 14 strikeouts, Rice should be able to get some hits off of him.

Larry Barabino has been the go-to guy out of the bullpen. He’s allowed two runs in 9.1 innings with eight strikeouts. Walks have been his nemesis though. He’s surrendered seven on the season. The staff as a whole owns at 5.52 ERA almost a full point higher than the Owls.

Southern Hitting

The offense hasn’t been much better than the pitching. Southern has a team average of .233 shared by 20 different hitters. They do have a fairly consistent core led by Bubba Thompson (.271 avg, 16 hits, 10 runs) and Zavier Moore (.246 avg, 14 hits, 8 runs). While they might lack truly elite hitters, they have a smattering of guys who have shown flashes and can put the ball in the gap for an extra-base hit.

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Rice Baseball 2021: 12-run inning dooms Owls at Texas State in midweek tilt

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A rough fourth inning snowballed quickly on Rice baseball, who fell in seven innings to Texas State on the road on Wednesday.

The first three batters reached base for Texas State in their midweek win over Rice baseball. The third baserunner reached via a single to give the Bobcats an early 1-0 lead. They would never look back.

Texas State was ready for Rice pitcher Garret Zaskoda in his first career start. He lasted 3+ innings and was charged with six runs. Following his hook, Dillon Janac and Mike Davis struggled to close out the inning. In total, Rice pitchers allowed six hits, four walks and four hit baseman in what became a disastrous 12-run fourth inning for Texas State.

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Ny the time the Rice offense got going, it was too-little-too-late. Rice scored five runs in their final three frames, but it wasn’t enough to curtail a 10-inning run-rule which halted the game after the seventh inning. It was the first time Rice has lost by run-rule since 2016.

A double from Hal Hughes and a home run from Connor Walsh were the only extra-base hits from Rice hitters in the game.

What it means

Rice baseball lost to Texas State for the seventh consecutive time on Wednesday. The Owls still lead the all-time series 61-20, but it’s been all Bobcats for the last several seasons. An 8-8 record through 16 games is head-and-shoulders better than the 2-14 mark where Rice ended last season. Yet nights light this one serve as a reminder there is work still to be done.

ON DECK |

Rice baseball returns home for a three-game series against Southern this weekend. It’s their last scheduled nonconference weekend series of the year.

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