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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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Rice Baseball shows growth in sweep of Houston Christian

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Rice Baseball improved to 8-8 on the season, taking all three games against Houston Christian, some in thrilling fashion.

FRIDAY | Rice 5 – HCU 1

Parker Smith held Houston Christian to one run in five innings on Friday night, putting Rice baseball in a prime position for a series-opening win. Matthew Linskey took the baton and delivered what was probably his best outing of the year, tossing four scoreless frames with five strikeouts to earn his first save.

With those two hurlers keeping the Owls’ opponent at bay — HCU scored just one run in nine innings — the Rice offense was handed an easier assignment. In the second, Paul Smith drove in the first run via a sacrifice fly in the second to put Rice in front. In the third, Drew Holderbach tripled to drive in what would become the game-winner, stole home a few moments later then added another insurance run with an RBI single in the fifth.

SATURDAY | Rice 14 – HCU 12

If Friday was for the pitchers, Saturday was for the bats. Rice delivered the first crooked number, taking a 7-2 lead after three innings, but HCU would continue to chip away. The Huskies big break came in the top of the seventh with a three-run home run to left field giving the visitors a 10-7 lead. It would not be enough.

The HCU pitching imploded an inning later. Rice batters walked five times in the inning and were hit by pitches twice. Rice collected one hit, a single by infielder Ben Royo, but scored seven runs to take a 14-7 lead. HCU would give Rice a scare in the ninth, but couldn’t overcome the deficit, allowing Rice to secure the series win.

SUNDAY| Rice 7 – HCU 6

Rice starter Mark Perkins worked around a hit batter in the first inning before running into trouble with the back half of the lineup in the second. Houston Christian took a 2-0 lead following a pair of doubles in the inning, then doubled their advantage to 4-0 on a two-run homer from their nine-hole hitter.

JD McCracken who keep the Huskies off the board for the next several frames as everyone awaited the awakening of the Rice offense, which came via a six-run bottom of the sixth, highlighted a trip of two RBI singles to put Rice in front. HCU would tie the game in the seventh with a home run off Krishna Raj before Rice went ahead for good in the bottom of the inning on a bases-loaded hit by pitch. Converted outfielder Jack Ben-Shoshan got the win on the mound.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

Rice baseball notched a series sweep, taking all three games against Houston Christian, led by former Rice great Lance Berkman. Here are a few takeaways from the weekend.

1. Are we putting labels on things or not?

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ON DECK | at Baylor (Tues),  at UAB (Fri-Sun)

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The Roost Podcast | Ep 140 – Rice Football Spring Practice and Coaching News

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Rice Football has started spring practice with three new assistant coaches, college football has new rules and the Owls’ 2023 schedule is out!

A lot has happened in the world of Rice football since the Owls last took the field. From coaching staff changes to new coaches (and a new conference and a new schedule!) there’s a lot to work through for an “offseason” show. We attempt to cover it all on our first show under the banner of Dave Campbell’s Republic of Football Podcast Network.

You can find previous episodes on the podcast page. For now, give a listen to Episode 140.

Episode Notes

Housekeeping

The Roost Podcast is now part of the Dave Campbell’s Republic of Football Podcast Network. You’ll still get the same content with the same hosts you’ve grown to love (or at least tolerate), but now with new partners.

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Rice Football Spring Ball and news round table

  • DCTF Network news
  • 2023 Rice Football schedule anaylsis. It’s a step up, but not that big of a step.
  • Unpacking the upcoming college football rule changes and how they might impact the game
  • Reviewing the coaching changes and discussing the significance of the turnover and new hires
  • Spring practice final thoughts. Two things we’re looking forward to this spring.

Where can you find us?

The Roost Podcast is part of the Dave Campbell’s Republic of Football Podcast Network. You can find this podcast and all of our partner podcasts on Apple, Spotify and wherever you get your podcasts.

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