Rice University
12-14, 0
Middle Tennessee
15-10, 0
Holcomb Fires Complete Game Win Friday
4/2/2021 9:32:00 PM | Baseball
Owls Split Twinbill At Middle Tennessee
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Rice's Mitchell Holcomb struck out a season-high ten batters in a seven-inning complete game 4-1 road victory in the nightcap of a Conference USA doubleheader at Middle Tennessee Friday evening in Murfreesboro, Tenn. In the day's opening game of the league twinbill the Blue Raiders slipped away with 4-3 win.
Holcomb was sound and solid to record a complete game outing for the second time in as many starts. In his game last week against UTSA Holcomb got only a single run of offensive support and was tabbed with a hard luck loss. This time his teammates supported him with four runs while out-hitting the Blue Raiders 8-4, more than enough room as the right-handed grad transfer turned in a sterling performance that featured a season high ten strikeouts without issuing any walks.
The lone damage was a solo home run by the Blue Raiders in the bottom of the second. The homer seemed to make Holcomb work that much harder. He went on to strike out the side in the fourth and get three more Ks in the fifth after a leadoff single.
Rice came alive on the offensive side in the fifth inning of a game only scheduled for seven. After a quick out the Owls proceeded to record six-straight base hits. Justin Long and Hal Hughes started the hit parade. Cade Edwards tied the game 1-1 with a single into right field. Bradley Gneting's infield single gave the Owls their first lead in the weekend series, 2-1. Braden Comeaux's short single into left loaded the stations and Guy Garibay drove in two with a base hit to right-center.
Middle Tennessee continued to battle, and twice brought the potential tying run to the plate in the bottom of the seventh. Holcomb ended the threat to notch his team leading fourth win of the season.
Winning the second game of the day snapped a four-game losing streak that included a heartbreaking 4-3 decision in game one. Rice had battled back from a pair of deficits to tie the score in the top of the seventh. With one away Edwards blasted a pitch over the wall in left field for his fourth homerun of the year to make it 3-3. Middle Tennessee rallied for a run in the bottom of the ninth, which for this game was technically extra innings.
Records
Rice is now 13-14 on the year and 2-5 in C-USA league games. Middle Tennessee moved to 15-11 overall and 4-3 in conference.
Series Finale Saturday
The same teams conclude the four-game C-USA series Saturday. The finale is a nine inning game beginning at 1 pm.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: David Zoz (3-0)
L: Wood, Dalton (1-1)
Batting:
2B: Garibay Jr., Guy 1
HR: Edwards, Cade 1
RBI: Edwards, Cade 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Edwards, Cade 1 ; Long, Justin 2
HBP: Edwards, Cade 1
Batting:
2B: Nathan Sanders 1
HR: JT Mabry 1
RBI: Luke Vinson 1 ; JT Mabry 3
SH: Brett Coker 1 ; Bryce Symlar 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Nathan Sanders 1 ; Brett Coker 1 ; JT Mabry 1 ; Daniel Freeman 1
SB: Cole Escher 1 ; Jake Hagenow 1
CS: Hunter Sullivan 1 ; JT Mabry 1 ; Jake Hagenow 1
HBP: Brycen Thomas 1 ; Daniel Freeman 1
