Rice University
8-11
Houston Christian
7-13
Fast Start Propels Owls to Sweep
3/17/2024 5:41:00 PM | Baseball
Silver Glove Series opens at UH on Tuesday
The Details: Unlike the first two games where HCU scored first, Rice took command in the first two innings, scoring a pair in the first on solo homers by Riedel and Becker. The Owls tacked on a season-high seven runs in the second, sending 11 men to the plate who combined for seven hits. Ben Royo opened the scoring by doubling home Jacob Devenny who singled to open the inning. McDonald followed with a double to score Tobias Motley and Royo. Riedel singled and Treyton Rank walked to re-load the bases and Becker followed with a double to score McDonald and Riedel. Trey Duffield closed out the scoring with a two-run single to score Rank and Becker and give him six RBI in the series. McDonald added the Owls' 10th run, scoring on a passed ball in the fifth. HCU chipped away at the Owls' lead and had the bases loaded in the ninth and none out after cutting the deficit to four (10-6) before Davion Hickson ended the threat to pick up his third save of the year.
Up Next: Rice and Houston renew their annual battle for the Silver Glove with the first two games of the three-game series this week. The series opens at Houston on Tuesday at 6:30 and continues the following night at 6:30 at Reckling Park.
Notes:
- Rice improved to 8-11, 5-7 at home, 1-4 in series finales.
- Rice is 31-4 all-time vs. the Huskies and has won the last 11 consecutive.
- The top four hitters in the Owls' lineup (McDonald, Riedel, Rank and Becker) were a combined 11x16 (.688) with seven runs scored and six RBI.
- Riedel and Becker's first-inning homers marked the first time this season the Owls have hit multiple homers in an inning. The last time they went deep in the same inning was on May 6, 2023, at UTSA when Riedel and Aaron Smigelski left the park in the first inning.
- The Owls' three doubles give them 25 doubles in the last 10 games after collecting just seven in the first 10 games.
- Riedel's homer extended his hitting streak to 12 games and he finished the three-game series hitting .538 (7x13) with a home run and two doubles.
- McDonald matched his career high with three hits for the third time in the last five games. He has hit in seven straight and is hitting .379 (11x29) and scored six runs over that span.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Rodriguez, Mauricio (1-0)
L: Feltman, Jett (2-2)
S: Hickson, Davion (3)
Batting:
2B: Benjamin, Samuel 1 ; LaRue, Tyler 1 ; LaRue, Dylan 1 ; Hodge, Ty 1
HR: Bard, Luke 1
RBI: Roper, Trevor 1 ; Halligan, Katcher 2 ; Bard, Luke 2
SF: Halligan, Katcher 2
Base Running:
RUNS: LaRue, Tyler 3 ; LaRue, Dylan 1 ; Bard, Luke 1 ; Hodge, Ty 1
SB: Benjamin, Samuel 1
CS: Jewell, William 1
HBP: Benjamin, Samuel 1
Batting:
2B: McDonald, Kyte 1 ; Becker, Nathan 1 ; Royo, Ben 1
HR: Riedel, Jack 1 ; Becker, Nathan 1
RBI: McDonald, Kyte 2 ; Riedel, Jack 1 ; Becker, Nathan 3 ; Duffield, Trey 2 ; Royo, Ben 1
Base Running:
RUNS: McDonald, Kyte 2 ; Riedel, Jack 2 ; Rank, Treyton 1 ; Becker, Nathan 2 ; Devenny, Jacob 1 ; Motley, Tobias 1 ; Royo, Ben 1
SB: McDonald, Kyte 1
CS: Riedel, Jack 1 ; Motley, Tobias 1
HBP: Motley, Tobias 1
