Owls Wrap Up '22 Home Slate by Hosting Middle Tennessee

Rice wraps up its 2022 home schedule this weekend by hosting Middle Tennessee for games on Friday (6:30 p.m.), Saturday (2 p.m.) and Sunday (noon).

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Salute to the Seniors
Rice will celebrate the careers of Austin Bulman, Thomas Burbank, Caleb Burgess, Antonio Cruz, Brandon Deskins, Alex DeLeon, Justin Dunlap, Roel Garcia, Drake Greenwood, Hal Hughes, and Dalton Wood prior to Sunday's final game as part of Senior Day ceremonies,

Pitching Matchups
Friday: David Shaw (2-1, 6.60 ERA) vs. Peyton Wigginton (5-4, 4-14)
Saturday: Cooper Chandler (1-7, 5.64) vs. TBA
Sunday: Mark Perkins (1-0, 5.06) vs. TBA

Owls on the Hill
#14 David Shaw
6-7 205, Fr. Houston, Texas
Making his third career start and first in the Friday night slot... Made his starting debut in a series-opener last weekend in Charlotte, but the game was moved up to a 1 p.m. start... Tagged for a pair of homers in three innings in the loss, had given up just one in his first 27 innings... Has made 13 of his 20 appearances this season at home… Made his collegiate starting debut last Saturday vs. WKU and worked the first five innings to pick up the win (5,3,2,1,1,3)… Moved into the rotation after posting a team-leading 18 appearances in relief... 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA and 0.86 WHIP in his last six appearances (14,9,4,3,3,12)... Earned his first career win in relief at Sam Houston on 4/12... Came into a 2-1 game with two outs in the third and a runner at second to face the nation's leader in RBI (Carlos Contreras) and retired him on a fly ball to center...Made his collegiate debut at Texas on 2/20, striking out Trey Faltine with the bases loaded and two out.

#32 Cooper Chandler
6-2, 200, Gr. Frisco, Texas
Making his 12th start and first since he dropped a tough 1-0 loss at then #6 Southern Miss where he worked a season-high seven innings while allowing only one run in 1-0 loss (7,5,1,1,0,4)... First C-USA pitcher to work seven innings and hold Golden Eagles to a run... Made the first 10 Friday starts, the most since Matt Canterino started all 15 Friday games in 2019)... 10 starts are two shy from his career high of 12 when he was a Freshman All-American at Pepperdine in 2018...Has struck out a career-high 59 and is 17.1 innings away from matching his 2018 total...1-3 with a 4.93 ERA in six C-USA starts... Ranks 14th in C-USA in strikeouts in conference games (37)... 11th in C-USA with 12 struck out looking... Picked up his first win as an Owl and his first in two years overall at Marshall on 3/25 (6,4,2,2,2,7)... Last previous win came in his final start of 2020 for Pepperdine vs. FIU (2/29)... Has worked six innings in five of his last six starts... Has struck out at least five in every start this year... Started the season opener at Texas and the home opener vs. Lamar... Returned home to Texas for his final collegiate season after posting a 12-5 record and 3.17 ERA over 147.2 innings (98 strikeouts/45 walks) for the Waves and earning Freshman All-American honors in 2018. He pitched in six games with three starts last season at Pepperdine.

#32 Mark Perkins
6-1 185, Fr. Houston, Texas
Making his third career start and first in conference action... Has posted a 1.12 ERA in four C-USA appearances, including a career-best 4 innings last Saturday in Charlotte (4,3,1,2,2,1)... Made his starting debut vs. Texas A&M CC on 3/30 (2.1,1,3,3,3,2) and his second on the road vs. Sam Houston on 4/12 (2.2,2,1,1,4,0)... Owls are 1-1 in his starts.

Rice-Middle Tennessee Did You Know?
The schools have met 25 times since the series began in 2014. Rice has won seven of the nine games played at Reckling Park, including the last four in a row. MTSU has won two of the four series against Rice in Murfreesboro (2014 & 2021) while Rice has won each of the three series at Reckling and the teams have split a pair of games at the C-USA tournament. Rice's win at the 2014 event was the Owls' second on their way to the championship.

Rice vs. Middle Tennessee (13-9-2)
                 4/3/2021                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                                 T              9 - 9 (12)
                 4/2/2021                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                               W                4 - 1 (7)
                 4/2/2021                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                                 L                3 - 4 (9)
                 4/1/2021                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                                 L                    1 - 4
              4/20/2019                Reckling Park                                               W                    7 - 5
              4/19/2019                Reckling Park                                               W                     7 - 2
              4/18/2019                Reckling Park                                               W                  10 - 4
              4/15/2018                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                                 T                     5 - 5
              4/13/2018                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                                 L              8 - 9 (10)
              4/13/2018                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                               W                     7 - 2
              5/14/2017                Reckling Park                                               W                     4 - 0
              5/13/2017                Reckling Park                                                 L                 1 - 13
              5/12/2017                Reckling Park                                               W                     5 - 3
                 4/3/2016                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                               W                    6 - 2
                 4/2/2016                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                               W                     1 - 0
                 4/1/2016                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                                 L                     0 - 3
              5/21/2015                Hattiesburg, Miss.                                       L                     5 - 6
                 4/5/2015                Reckling Park                                               W             10 - 0 (8)
                 4/4/2015                Reckling Park                                                 L                     4 - 7
                 4/3/2015                Reckling Park                                               W                     7 - 2
              5/22/2014                Hattiesburg, Miss.                                    W                    8 - 2
              3/30/2014                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                                 L                     5 - 8
              3/29/2014                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                               W                     8 - 0
              3/28/2014                Murfreesboro, Tenn.                                 L                     2 - 3

Tough Slate
Rice's 2022 schedule ranks as the 30th toughest in country and second in C-USA in the most recent tabulation by the NCAA. The Owls past opposition had compiled a .569 winning percentage through May 6. Middle Tennessee led C-USA schools with a .575 winning percentage for its past competition (24th overall).

End of an Era
This weekend's series with Middle Tennessee will be the final games played on natural grass at Reckling Park. Rice announced plans on Monday to replace the natural grass field with a state-of-the-art Act Global TM NR34 synthetic turf playing surface in time for the opening of drills in the fall of 2022. The renovation of the 23-year-old facility's playing surface was made possible by a lead gift from former Owl and World Series champion Anthony Rendon and his wife Amanda, through their foundation Husky Owl, along with support from Rice alumni JC and Jen Kneale, the RBI Club and Rice University. Texas- based sports field construction company Ryan-Sanders Sports Services, (RS3 Turf) will be the installer for the project. Rice will become the RS3 Turf signature NCAA Division I baseball field featuring its new NR34 system manufactured by Act Global. Features of the NR34 system include a natural ball bounce, reduced infill splash, and a ball pace that closely simulates a natural grass playing surface. The feature infill will be an organic Brockfill (wood chips as opposed to rubber) specifically designed to reduce surface heat in the summer. A Brockpad will also be featured to help reduce surface impact and promote player safety. RS3 (parent company Ryan Sanders) has been based in Texas for the past 22 years.In addition to serving as the home field for five of the Owls' seven College World Series teams, Reckling Park has hosted 10 NCAA Regional, five NCAA Super Regionals, and a pair of Conference USA Championships since it first opened in 2000. The original field was renovated after the 2007 season to install an upgraded drainage system that vastly increased the facility's ability to withstand the impact of thunderstorms.

Solid Up the Middle
As a team, Rice leads C-USA with 36 double plays this season, thanks in large part to the play of Pierce Gallo who has started 47 of 49 games this season (28 at short and 19 at second base). He opened the year at short and then moved to second for 19 games when Hal Hughes returned from an injury and moved back to shortstop for the Charlotte series. Gallo leads Conference USA with 142 assists and is tied for second with 27 double plays.

Lights Out Linskey
Matthew Linskey is 10th in C-USA with four saves, which is two shy of the Owls' team total from 2021... He did not allow a run in his first 14 appearances and has struck out 43 in 20.2 innings (18.7 per nine innings)... He worked a career-best three innings at LA Tech on 4/10 and struck out eight (also a career-high and one less than the season-high for any Owl in 2021). On the season, he is holding opposing hitters to a .151 batting average (11x73). Opposing hitters are hitting .156 (5x32) with runners on base.

Doubling Up
Owls hitters have 92 doubles in 49 games, 25 more than they totaled in 53 games last year.

Getting it Done in a Pinch
Rice pinch hitters are hitting .308 (12x39) the Owls' most pinch hits since they collected 19 in 2007 (19x57). Nathan Becker (4x6) leads the team. The last Owl to have four pinch hits in a season was Grayson Lewis (4x15). The last to have more than four was Keenan Cook, who was 5x9 in 2012.   On the other side of the diamond, Rice pitchers have held opposing pinch hitters to a .176 average so far (6x34).

Coming in Bunches
Rice has scored at least three runs in an inning 26 times in the last 33 games after doing it only six times in the first 16 games.

Quick Hits
• Nathan Becker 3x7 with two RBI vs. Louisiana... Hitting .352 at Reckling Park with 20 of his 25 RBI... Leads the Owls with a .333 average and a .422 on-base percentage and third with a career-high 49 hits... Opened the season by reaching base in 26 games (the longest streak by an Owl since 2017) and has reached in 35 of his 38 starts while also going 4x6 as a pinch hitter, the most pinch-hits by an Owl since 2015.
• Jack Ben-Shoshan 0x1 in one game vs. Louisiana... Moved into the starting role in center vs. UTSA and singled in his first at-bat, breaking an 0-22 streak after singling in his first career at-`bat on 2/19. Hit safely in all three games vs. UTSA (4x12) along with his first two RBI and his fourth stolen base (tied for the team lead)... Has started five of the last six in center.
• Austin Bulman 4x8 with three doubles, two runs and an RBI vs. Louisiana... Leads the Owls in homers (9), doubles (15), RBI (36) extra-base hits (26), slugging percentage (.516) and total bases (99)... Has hit in 21 of 24 conference games and has five of his seven multi-RBI games in C-USA action... Slammed a pair of homers at Marshall in his return to his home state. Owls' active career leader with 16 homers... Has three of the Owls' nine homers on the road...12-game hitting streak this year was the longest by an Owl since 2018.
• Antonio Cruz 2x5 with two doubles (career-best) and three RBI (tied career-best) after entering the game vs. Texas A&M CC... Has scored five runs in his last seven games.
• Justin Dunlap Made his first start since 3/12 at Southern Miss on 4/24 and was 1x3 with a walk... Started vs. Houston on Wednesday and was 1x5.
• Pierce Gallo 4x12 with two RBI and three doubles at Charlotte... Leads the Owls with a .316 average in C-USA games (30x95) and with nine steals (five in the last three games)... Became the second Owl this season with a pair of four-hit games when he was 4x5 vs. WKU on 4/30... Collected four RBI in the same game and leads the team with three games with four RBI (two of them in C-USA play)... Has driven in 29 runs in his last 32 games after driving in just one in the first 14.. Has started 27 games at short and 19 at second base.. Leads C-USA with 146 assists overall... Tied for 2nd with 27 double plays in all games.
• Guy Garibay Jr. 1x8 in two games against Louisiana... Hitting .339 and slugging .551 at Recking Park (10 doubles, five homers) and 30 of his 32 RBI... Hit his first road home run at Charlotte since his career opening series against Louisiana last season... Had gone 113 at-bats on the road without a homer since connecting for the first of his career at Louisiana on 2/28/21… Leads the team in hits (53), multi-hit games (15), walks (29) and runs (37) and is second in RBI (32) and doubles (13),... All totals are career highs... Collected a career-best four hits vs. SFA and matched it the next night vs. Sam Houston... After hitting his first career homer at Louisiana on 2/28/21 he has hit his last nine homers at Reckling Park.
• Manny Garza 2x3 in in the first game vs. Louisiana... Has hit in seven of 10 starts (15x31) since returning to action after missing 30 games with an injury... Has four multi-hit games in eight C-USA starts and has also thrown out eight base runners in conference play (tied for third)... Hit his first career triple and added a double vs. Houston on 5/3... Started two of three at Southern Miss and threw out all three attempting to steal... Returned to the lineup vs. UTSA on 4/16 with a splash, collecting a career-high four hits (4x4), including his first career double.
• Johnny Hoyle Has made 14 starts this year (4 at 3B, 7 at 2B, 2 in CF, 1 at 1B). Three hits in a start vs. Sam Houston were his career-high.
• Hal Hughes Returned to action after recovering from a preseason injury and delivered an RBI single in his first at-bat (3/30 vs. A&M CC)... Has started the last 19 at short… Committed only one error over his last 41 games dating back to last season and none in his last 28 (120 chances) before suffering an injury at Houston on 5/3.
• Justin Long 0x3 in the second game vs. Louisiana... has made three starts at third base...Has hit in four of his last seven starts (6x25)... Picked up his first multi-RBI game of the year vs. Sam Houston driving in a pair on a sac fly when his bases-loaded drive to center was snagged by the diving Bearkats centerfielder who was unable to regain his footing in time to hold the runners.
• Jack Riedel 2x8 with two RBI vs. Louisiana... Has started 16 of the last 20 at third... Has collected three hits in a game three times (tied for third on the team).
• Benjamin Rosengard Started at short in two games vs. Louisiana, going 1x4 with two walks... Has an RBI in two of his last four starts... 11 starts this season (5 at third, 3 at second and 3 at short).
• Aaron Smigelski 1x4 in game one vs. Louisiana… Leads the team with eight multi-RBI games, is tied for second in homers (6) and is third in RBI (31)...Looking to become the first freshman to lead the Owls in RBI since Trei Cruz tied for the lead with 45 in 2018... Drove in a career-high five while going 3x5 vs. HBU on 4/5… Singled twice and drove in three runs in the Owls' 11-run fifth innings… Broke an 0x13 stretch with a double vs. A&MCC on 3/30... Collected a hit in 15 of the first 17 games of his college career (19x51), the first two as a pinch hitter and the last 13 as a starter... Slugged homers in three consecutive at-bats (his last vs. SFA and his first two vs. UAB)... His first homer against the Blazers was measured by StatCast at 444 feet, the longest by an Owl at home this season.
• Connor Walsh 3x7 with an RBI vs. Louisiana… Set career-highs for hits (4), runs (3), home runs (2) and RBI (5) at Charlotte… Homers were his first in over a year and the second, which drew the Owls to within one at 14-13, was measured by StatCast at 466 feet.
• Drew Woodcox Tied for fifth on the team with six doubles and has eight extra-base hits in his last 17 games after collecting none in his first 13 games

Quick Pitches
• Thomas Burbank Worked a career-best 3.2 innings in relief to close out the game at Charlotte on 5/6 (3.2,3,1,1,1,4). His four strikeouts were his most as a reliever. Made his first career Friday start vs. WKU on 4/29 and took the loss (2.2,2,2,2,2,3)… Picked up his first career win in a start vs. HBU on 4/5 (5,1,0,0,2,5) and came back five days later to work five innings in a start vs. LA Tech (5,7,3,3,0,2) to take a tough 3-1 loss.. Worked three innings in relief against Texas Tech on 3/11 and struck out a season-high four (3,2,1,1,1,4)... Made three starts on the weekend to open the year and started a pair of Sunday games (UTSA, @Southern Miss)... Also started three midweek games.
• Micah Davis Worked a season-high two innings vs. Houston on 5/3 (2,2,0,0,1,2) .
• Brandon Deskins Has made a career-high 21 appearances this season, including four starts… Second on the team with 50 strikeouts (20 looking, T9 in CUSA) ... Broke a four-game losing streak by picking up the win in relief vs. UTSA on 4/17, matching his season-high with 3.2 innings out of the pen while giving up one hit and fanning three... Worked a scoreless eighth in the win at Sam Houston on 4/12.
• Roel Garcia   Second on the team with a 3.86 ERA at home (12 ER in 28 IP)... Third on the team with 45 strikeouts... Tossed two scoreless innings out of the pen at Sam Houston on 4/12... Worked a team-high 4.0 innings in relief vs. FAU on 4/2 (4,5,2,2,0,4) but was tagged with the loss... Picked up his first win of the year with three shutout innings in relief at Marshall on 3/26 (3,1,0,0,2,3)... Fanned six in two innings at LA Tech on 4/9... Opened the year with a relief outing at Texas and then made four weekend starts… Struck out a career-high nine in four innings in a start vs. Texas Tech on 3/12 (4,2,2,0,1,9).
• Mark Perkins   Worked a career-best four innings in relief at Charlotte on 5/7 (4,3,2,2,2,1) Pitched two scoreless innings in relief vs. UTSA on 4/16 and has allowed just three runs over his last 13.0 relief innings (eight appearances).. Made his second start at Sam Houston on 4/12 (2.2, 2,1,1,4,0)... .Made his starting debut in his last outing (vs. A&MCC on 3/30: 2.1,1,3,3,3,2)... Picked up his first career win with a career-long three innings against SFA on 3/15.
• Parker Smith Returned to the mound vs. Houston on 5/3 for his first start since 3/26 at Marshall (2,3,1,1,1,2) and then made a relief appearance at Charlotte on 5/7... Has started both games of the Silver Glove Series... Has made seven starts (three in the weekend rotation) and three relief appearances... Started game one of the Silver Glove on 3/8, but was not involved in the decision (3.1,4,5,3,1,2)... Made his collegiate debut in relief against Texas on 2/20 (2,2,1,1,0,0) and followed that with a midweek start at HBU on 2/23 in the first meeting between former Rice road roommates/Astros teammates José Cruz Jr. and Lance Berkman. Smith worked six shutout innings, allowed a pair of hits and struck out four while throwing just 56 pitches. Joined his head coach in earning his first career collegiate win in a 6-2 win... Smith prepped at Houston's Bellaire HS, the same school that sent Cruz to Rice in 1992.
• Tom Vincent Picked up his first career win in relief against Sam Houston on 3/16.
• Garret Zaskoda Worked a season-high 4.0 innings vs. Louisiana on 5/10 (4.0,6,2,1,0,6) and struck out a career-high six batters... Leads the team with a 3.60 ERA at home (10 ER in 25 IP) has four outings this year of at least three innings... had four K's (in three innings) vs. Houston... Has worked at least an inning in 14 of 17 appearances.

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