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Rice Baseball avoids sweep, but drops series to UAB

April 27, 2025 By Matthew Bartlett

Rice Baseball salvaged the series finale against UAB after dropping the first two games behind a largely quiet offense that went off for 12 runs on Sunday.

FRIDAY | UAB 3, Rice 0

Back in the Friday night role after several weeks in the bullpen, Davion Hickson delivered what was unquestionably his best performance of the season. Hickson went 7.2 innings, striking out a career-high 10 while limiting the Blazers to three hits.

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

UAB snuck the first run across in the opening inning with a single, a stolen base and a groundout. Hickson put things in cruise control after that, getting through the first two outs of the eighth before allowing two runners to reach and exiting the game. The last two runs charged to his ledger were allowed by Jack Ben-Shoshan in relief. The Rice bats did little to help the cause, tallying three hits, no runs and 13 strikeouts.

SATURDAY | UAB 8, Rice 6

Rice baseball did not get its typically sharp start from JD McCracken in Game 2, a reality that proved fateful as the bats struggled to produce. UAB scored three in the first, two in the second and on in the third before McCracken was lifted in favor of Von Baker and eventually Mark Perkins. By the time the fourth inning came to a close, Rice was trailing 8-0.

Last Weekend: Rice Baseball takes two of three from Memphis

The Owls most encouraging offensive inning of the weekend would soon follow. The Owls loaded the bases off Braxton Shelton with one out, then proceeded to rattle off five consecutive hits, scoring six runs before a double-play ended the inning. Back within two runs, Rice would manage just two base runners for the remainder of the game, dropping the series.

SUNDAY | Rice 12, UAB 10

The Rice bats woke up for the series finale, scoring three times in the first off UAB starter Isaac Warrick, who would then be the victim of two Rice home runs in the second, putting the Blazers in a 6-0 hole after two frames. UAB gave Rice a scare with a five-run third, with Ben-Shoshan getting a strikeout to strand the would-be tying run in scoring position.

A three-run home run from Blaine Brown, his second long ball of the afternoon, gave Rice some breathing room before the Owls added another insurance run in the sixth and the seventh before UAB began a comeback of their own. UAB scored five straight to get back within one.

Rice pushed one run across in the ninth, turning the ball over to Jackson Blank in the bottom of the inning. Blank got two outs, but loaded the bases. Marco Fuentes entered and coaxed a fly out to right field to extinguish the threat and end the game.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

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Filed Under: Baseball, Featured, Premium Tagged With: Blaine Brown, Colin Robson, Davion Hickson, game recap, Jack Ben-Shoshan, Jackson Blank, JD McCracken, Marco Fuentes, Mark Perkins, Michael Zito, Rice baseball, Tucker Alch, Von Baker

Rice Baseball 2024 Season Review: Bullpen

May 28, 2024 By Matthew Bartlett

The bullpen made improvements as the 2024 Rice baseball season progressed, turning into a dependable unit by season’s end.

It was a rocky start for the Rice baseball bullpen. It took a few weeks for the staff to figure out who they could trust in the most high-leverage moments and for the players put into those positions to feel comfortable in their own shoes. Once everything came together, though, this pitching staff really excelled, providing plenty of backing for the starting pitching and give the Owls a shot to win some ballgames. For the purposes of this discussion, we focused on players who through at least 20 innings this season.

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Filed Under: Archive, Baseball, Premium Tagged With: Davion Hickson, Garrett Stratton, Jack Ben-Shoshan, Jackson Blank, Jackson Mayo, Karl Ralamb, Mark Perkins, Mauricio Rodriguez, Rice baseball, Robert Fernandez, Ryland Urbanczyk, Tom Vincent, Tyler Hamilton

Rice Baseball rolls to run-rule win over Texas Southern

May 14, 2024 By Matthew Bartlett

Rice baseball wrapped up its final midweek game of the regular season, scoring 16 unanswered runs and run-ruling Texas Southern at Reckling Park.

The situation looked dire for Rice baseball in the early goings of its final game at Reckling Park this season. Owls’ starter Karl Ralamb allowed Texas Southern to load the bases without any hits in the first inning. He was lifted quickly in favor of Mauricio Rodriguez, but a wild pitch an a couple of RBI singles allowed the visiting Tigers to take a 4-0 lead in the opening frame.

After going quietly in the first, Rice chipped into the lead with a pair of solo home runs in the second inning, one each for Jack Riedel — who’s tenth blast at home this year is one-shy of the 11 home homers hit by Anthony Rendon in 2010 — and Pierce Gallo.

Last Time Out: Rice Baseball takes battle of the Owls over Florida Atlantic

If that was signs of the dam leaking, it broke open completely the following inning. Rice sent 13 batters to the plate in the third inning, scoring eight runs. Aric Anderson began the scoring run with a leadoff home run and would pick up another RBI later in the inning with a bases-loaded walk.

Ben Dukes drove in a run in the fifth before Gallo’s second home run of the day jumpstarted a 5-run sixth inning that officially put the game out of reach. Texas Southern would get one run in the top of the seventh inning, breaking through after Mark Perkins twirled three innings of no-hit ball to earn the win. The game would be called after the top of the seventh inning with Rice baseball earning the run-rule victory.

What it means | Locked In

Rice baseball just authored perhaps its most impressive midweek game this season. In the grand scheme of things, the additional non-conference win doesn’t do much to bolster the Owls’ record nor resume, but it could serve as a notable signal that this team is as locked in as they can get going into what has become the most crucial series of the season.

If Rice wins the series this weekend at East Carolina they’re extremely likely to punch their ticket to the conference tournament. ECU, while still the top team in the league standings, has lost five games in a row and looks mortal for one of the first times all season. Rice played its best baseball today. ECU hasn’t had that sort of rhythm in a few weeks. The Owls are heating up at the right time. All that’s left to do is to capitalize on that momentum.

ON DECK | at ECU (Thr-Sat)



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Filed Under: Archive, Baseball Tagged With: Ben Dukes, game recap, Jack Riedel, Karl Ralamb, Mark Perkins, Rice baseball

Rice Baseball wins battle of the Owls over Florida Atlantic

May 12, 2024 By Matthew Bartlett

Rice Baseball took two of three from FAU in their final home series of the weekend, taking one step closer to a berth in the conference tournament.

FRIDAY | Rice 5 – FAU 4

Parker Smith and Davion Hickson combined to pitch nine innings of four-run ball in the series opener with Hickson taking over for Smith with two away in the sixth and going the rest of the way. Hickson’s lone blemish was a leadoff home run in the ninth which allowed FAU to tie the game 4-4.

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With the threat of extra innings looming, Manny Garza, who had already delivered a go-ahead home run, led off with a single. Jacob Devenny got the runner to third with a double down the line. The tying run scored on the next play when Rank hit a high hopper to shortstop who tried unsuccessfully to turn two, allowing Rice to win the game in walk off fashion.

SATURDAY (AM) | FAU 6 – Rice 5

After trading a run apiece in the early innings, FAU jumped in front with three runs in the third, forcing Rice starter JD McCracken from the game early. Tyler Hamilton came through with 3.1 clutch innings out of the pen, striking out four without allowing a hit. He handed the ball to Jackson Blank, who was tagged for two more runs in the seventh.

Facing a five-run deficit, Rice did all they could to make things interesting in the final frame. The Owls loaded the bases for Pierce Gallo who launched a grand slam over the right field fence. Eric Correa doubled to get the tying run to second, but he was stranded there, leaving Rice just run short of a thrilling comeback.

SATURDAY (PM) | Rice 5 – FAU 4

Tucker Alch delivered a gem in the second half of Saturday’s doubleheader, throwing 5.1 innings of one-run ball, allowing four hits with four strikeouts. A two-out RBI single in the second inning was the lone blemish on his resume, but even that run came after he’d been staked to a 2-0 advantage. Those runs, both unearned, came courtesy of multiple FAU errors in the first inning and a sac fly from Jack Riedel.

More: Jose Cruz Jr. and the trajectory of Rice Baseball

Both sides traded zeroes for quite a while after those early runs to open the game until the bats woke up in the bottom of the sixth inning. Rice scored three in that frame. FAU answered with three of their own in their next two trips to the plate, setting up a pressure-packed ninth inning which ended with a strike ’em out, throw ’em out double play.

THREE FOR THE ROAD

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1. Manny Garza heating up

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ON DECK | vs Texas Southern (Tues), at ECU (Thr-Sat)



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Filed Under: Baseball, Featured, Premium Tagged With: Davion Hickson, Eric Correa, game recap, Garrett Stratton, Jacob Devenny, JD McCracken, Manny Garza, Mark Perkins, Parker Smith, Pierce Gallo, Rice baseball, Tom Vincent, Tucker Alch, Tyler Hamilton

Rice Baseball 2023 Season Review: Bullpen

June 14, 2023 By Matthew Bartlett

The bullpen was a perpetual work in progress for Rice baseball in 2023. There was talent, but the control and dependability were erratic.

The Rice baseball pitching staff never quite settled in during the 2023 season. Individuals had their moments, but it was hard to know what was going to happen when the ball changed hands late in games, particularly in high-leverage situations. The starting rotation was addressed previously. This roundup focuses on the relievers.

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Filed Under: Archive, Baseball, Premium Tagged With: Blake Brogdon, Cristian Cienfuegos, Garret Zaskoda, Jack Ben-Shoshan, Jake Crews, Justin Long, Krishna Raj, Mark Perkins, Matthew Linskey, Rice baseball, Ryland Urbanczyk, Tom Vincent, Tyler Hamilton

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