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Rice Baseball inches closer to postseason with series win over Wichita State

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Rice Baseball won their fourth conference series in their last five weekends, taking two of three from Wichita State, drastically improving the Owls’ postseason chances.

FRIDAY | Rice 4, Wichita State 3

Rice baseball found itself in another Friday night pitcher’s duel between Owls’ ace Davion Hickson and Wichita State hurler Grant Adler. It was Adler who allowed the first blemish in the form of a leadoff home run from Colin Robson, the first of his Rice career. Hickson was charged with his only two runs of the night when a ball down the line — which resulted in an injury to left fielder Jacob Devenny — allowed one run to score with the second Shocker run coming on an infield single by the next batter.

More: 59 Minutes — David Pierce Challenges Rice baseball to grow

Cole Green leveled the score for the Owls with a single in the fourth to plate Hiram Bocachica, who would reach third base in the bottom of the ninth, but fail to score as the game went into extra innings. Neither side got much going in the next two frames before Wichita State took advantage of a Rice error to score the go-ahead run in the 12th. Green equalized with a home run in the bottom of the frame.

The Owls got a double play ball to make quick work in the top of the 13th inning before Treyton Rank came to the plate in the bottom of the frame. He took a 2-1 pitch deep to right field, the first walk-off home run of his career.

SATURDAY | Rice 9, Wichita State 3

Runs were much easier to come by in the second game of the series with Rice scoring early and often against a Wichita State pitching staff that had burned top arms on Friday night. Paul Smith got the scoring started with an RBI single in the second. Rice added two more in the third before Michael Zito blasted a three-run homer in the fourth to put Rice in front 6-0.

Last Weekend: Hickson gem propels Rice Baseball to series win over Charlotte

Wichita State would get three back in the next two innings, all charged to Rice starter JD McCracken, who still turned in a strong performance, going seven innings with four strikeouts and just those three runs allowed. Garrett Stratton got the final six outs, aided by a trio of insurance runs scored in the bottom of the seventh, the last two coming on a double from Aric Anderson.

SUNDAY | Wichita State 18, Rice 7

Rice baseball struck first with a two-run first, kicking off what would become a high-scoring series finale despite neither team scoring in the next two frames. It was then that the Wichita State bats woke up in earnest, scoring four runs in the fourth to drive Tucker Alch from the game.

With Alch gone, WSU teed off on the remainder of the Owls’ bullpen. Maddox Keo was charged with five runs, and Micah Davis was charged with three. In total the Owls would use 10 pitchers and surrender 18 runs, 15 of which were earned. The bats managed seven runs, nearly half of the last two of which came in on a home run from Blaine Brown, but the deficit proved too large as Rice dropped the series finale in run-rule fashion.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

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Houston tops Rice baseball, takes Silver Glover Series

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Rice Baseball slugged several home runs but still fell to Houston on the road as the Cougars took the Silver Glove Series.

Close games had become the norm for Rice baseball in the early days of the David Pierce era and Tuesday’s midweek tilt against crosstown rival Houston looked like it would follow a similar trend in the initial frames. Houston scratched across a single run in each of the first three innings off Rice starter Jackson Blank with the Owls scoring one run on a wild pitch in the third.

Houston led 3-1 after the third and began to pull away in the next few innings. The Cougars scored two in the fourth with Jack Ben-Shoshan on the mound and three more in the fifth against Von Baker. The bats hadn’t collected a hit yet, waiting until Aric Anderson opened the top of the sixth with a home run to break up five innings of no-hit ball from the Cougars.

Last Weekend: Rice baseball swept by Tulane

No-hitter averted, Rice would get a couple more home runs to pretty up the box score. Cole Green drove a pitch over the wall in the eighth. Blaine Brown followed with another shot to the left side to start the ninth and was joined a few batters later by Hiram Bocachica, who mashed the Owls’ fourth long ball of the night. It wouldn’t be enough to keep pace with the Cougars, though, who prevailed 10-7.

With the win, Houston clinches the Silver Glove series. The two teams will meet once more this season, next Tuesday following the Owls’ weekend series against South Florida.

What it means | Catcher platoon paying off

There was, understandably, much trepidation when longtime backstop Manny Garza entered the Transfer Portal this offseason, forcing the Owls to reckon with a different path forward at the catcher position. They added Lorenzo Rios from Northwestern from the portal, but it’s been their home-grown players who have proven to be the answer at the position.

Podcast: Unpacking the Pierce hire and midseason start

Landon West leads the team in on-base percentage. Anderson has only made 12 game appearances, but is hitting .320 with two home runs and two doubles across his eight hits. Anderson played sparingly under Jose Cruz Jr, but has appeared in eight games since David Pierce took over the program, performing well.

The catching tandem has also gunned down 10 would-be base stealers and allowed just nine passed balls. The defense has been solid, and at times, superb. For a position that was a question mark entering the spring, this duo has answered the call.

Up Next: vs South Florida x3 (Fri-Sun)

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Rice Baseball swept at Tulane

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Rice baseball was able to manufacture more timely hits, but couldn’t get enough of them as the Owls were swept in three games on the road at Tulane.

FRIDAY | Tulane 7, Rice 5

Things were going just fine for Rice baseball starter Davion Hickson on Friday… until they weren’t. Hickson breezed through two innings before a leadoff home run to left greeted him in the third and Tulane proceeded to square him up much more often over the next two and a half innings.

Tulane led 3-0 entering the fifth before Rice responded in earnest, driving in four in the top of the fifth to take a 4-3 lead, courtesy of big hits from Hiram Bocachica and Michael Zito. The feeble lead was quickly erased by a Tulane grand slam in the bottom of the inning. Shortly thereafter, Hickson was ejected, forcing Jackson Blank into the game on little notice.

More: 59 Minutes — David Pierce Challenges Rice baseball to grow

Blank did all he could to give Rice a chance, turning in 3.1 scoreless innings in relief, allowing one hit to the 11 Tulane batters he faced. The Owls’ last-ditch effort in the ninth saw the would-be tying run get into scoring position with one out, but Rice would come up two runs short.

SATURDAY 1 | Tulane 10, Rice 3

Tucker Alch drew the start in the first game of the Saturday double-header and despite being staked to a 1-0 early lead on a Tobias Motley home run found himself working from behind following three runs from the home Green Wave across the next two frames. Alch got another dose of run support in the fifth on RBI hits from Blaine Brown and Jacob Devenney before allowing the leadoff man to reach and ceding the mound to Tom Vincent.

Last Weekend: Rice Baseball swept by “three clean games” from ECU

Vince got out of the fifth unscathed but ran into trouble in the sixth and was quickly lifted for Garrett Stratton, who got roughed up a bit as well. Tulane was tally 10 runs against the Owls’ staff in the game, striking 20 hits to the Owls’ 10 base knocks.

SATURDAY 2 | Tulane 6, Rice 5

JD McCracken was competitive in the series finale, but still saw three runs charged to his ledger across 5.1 innings of work. He would depart the diamond with the lead, though, supported by a run scoring double from Aric Anderson in the fifth and two-run home run from Zito in the sixth, the latter followed soon after by a go-ahead single to center by Jacob Devenny three batters later.

Jack Ben-Shoshan entered the game in the sixth with the lead and got through the remainder of the inning and the next without issues before Tulane tied things up with a solo home run in the eight. For a moment, the Owls appeared to have landed a sufficient counterpunch with a go-ahead hit from Bocachica in the ninth, but Tulane walked it off with a two-out, two run shot over the right-field wall.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

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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 Baseball winless at Astros Foundation College Classic

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Rice Baseball went winless at the Astros Foundation College Classic, dropping three one-sided affairs to some of the nation’s top teams.

FRIDAY | Mississippi State 14, Rice 3

Staff ace Davion Hickson opened the weekend with great stuff but inconsistent command. Walks and a balk set up a pair of two-out RBI singles in the second and third innings, respectively, which put Mississippi State in front 3-0.

Last Time Out: Rice Baseball falters late against Arizona

Hiram Bocachica got Rice back in the game with a screaming two-run shot into the Crawford Boxes before Mississippi State got another run off Hickson, driving him from the game in the fifth inning, putting the pressure on the bullpen to go the rest of the way. Garrett Stratton worked out of that jam but was less fortunate in the sixth, giving up two runs on four hits.

The Bulldogs would take a 6-3 lead into the seventh, in front but not yet out of sight. That would change quickly with a pair of home runs of Maddox Keo and another off Jack Ben-Shoshan, the latter of which ended the game via run-rule.

SATURDAY | Tennessee 13, Rice 3

Rice baseball opted to use Blaine Brown as an opener in the Saturday game but the freshman struggled mightily against the Vols’ vaunted lineup. He recorded one out, walking four and leaving the Owls in a three-run deficit when he was lifted in favor of JD McCracken.

That Rice got one run back in the bottom of the inning by way of a wild pitch would prove to be little solace thanks to a four-run outburst from the Volunteers in the second inning.

Trailing 7-1 after two, the Owls managed just enough offensively down the stretch to avoid another run-rule decision, scoring two in the seventh on RBI from Austin Eppley and Graiden West to keep the margin within 10 until their final at bat in the ninth.

SUNDAY | Texas A&M 14, Rice 4

Things got off to an encouraging start for Rice baseball in the tournament finale. Barrett Eldridge put the Owls in front with a two-run double in the first inning before Cole Green tacked on a solo shot to the Crawford boxes in the second. Rice was up 3-0 and feeling good but the Aggies wouldn’t be put down that easily.

More: 2025 Rice Baseball Season Preview

Texas A&M tied the game in the fourth on the second of five home runs they’d go on to hit that evening. The onslaught commenced in earnest in the fifth. The Aggies scored three in the fifth and six in the sixth before pushing two more across in the seventh to enact the run-rule. After falling behind by three, Texas A&M scored 14 unanswered runs, going on to win by 10.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

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