Owls Return Home to Face UAB Thursday Night

Rice Owls (7-2-1, 1-1 AAC) vs. UAB Blazers (4-2-2, 1-0-1 AAC)
Match 11 • Thursday, Sept. 26, 2024 • 6:05 p.m. CT
Houston, Texas • Holloway Field
Video Stream: ESPN+
Live Stats: Sidearm
Twitter Updates: @RiceSoccer

Home, Sweet Home
The Owls will put their eight-match home unbeaten streak on the line Thursday night against UAB. Rice will then travel to UTSA on Saturday.

Last Time Out
Leah Chancey extended her goal-scoring streak to five matches, but the Owls fell on the road 2-1 to South Florida. Taylor Rish recorded her third assist of the season on Rice's lone goal. All three goals in the match were recorded in the opening 15 minutes.

Take a Chance(y) On Me
Leah Chancey scored her team-leading sixth goal of the season against South Florida. She has now scored a goal in six of the last seven matches for Rice, including five consecutive matches, the second-longest goal streak in program history. Her six goals this season are tied for the most in the AAC. Her three game-winning goals are tied for first in the AAC and 11th in the NCAA.

Rice vs. UAB
The Owls are 10-6-1 all-time against the Blazers, including a 6-1 mark at Holloway Field. In the last five matches, Rice holds a 3-1-1 record against UAB. Rice has also won the last four home matches against the Blazers.

Conference Honors – 9-16-24
Three Owls earned weekly AAC honors, with Leah Chancey being named AAC Offensive Player of the Week and Faith Hutchins and Lilly Reuscher being named Honorable Mention. Chancey netted the game-winning in Rice's 1-0 win over Tulsa last Thursday, her fourth consecutive match with a goal. Hutchins earned her third conference honor of the season, also being named goalkeeper of the week twice already. Reuscher earned her first career conference honor, playing all 90 minutes against Tulsa, guiding Rice to its fourth shutout of the season.

Welcome to *Our* House
The Owls have defended Holloway Field fiercely this season, holding an unbeaten record at home at 8-0-1. The eight-game unbeaten streak is tied for the second-longest home unbeaten streak to open a season in program history. The eight-game unbeaten streak also ranks as the seventh-longest home unbeaten streak in program history. The Owls hold a 139-59-23 all-time home record.

Non-con Phenoms
Rice posted a 6-1-1 record during the non-conference slate, tied for the second-best eight-game start to a season in program history, including a perfect 6-0-1 home record. Rice's six wins during the non-conference slate are tied for the third most in a single season in program history. This marks the seventh time in program history Rice went unbeaten at home during the non-conference schedule.

Making Great First Impressions
Through the season's first eight matches, Rice's newcomers have tallied 25 points with seven goals and nine assists. Freshman Dayo Tennyson netted her first career goal in her first collegiate game against Texas State, becoming the 11^th Rice athlete in program history to score a goal in their first Rice game. Graduate transfer Leah Chancey recorded the assist on Tennyson's goal, becoming the 10^th athlete in program history to record an assist in their first Rice game.

August Slipped Away
The Owls posted a 4-1 record for the month of August, including a perfect 4-0 home mark during the month. The 4-1 record was the best August for Rice since the 2021 season (4-0 record), tying for the most wins during the month of August in program history. Rice's undefeated mark at home during the month also marked the 22nd time in program history Rice went unbeaten (win or draw) at home during a single month (min. two matches).

Weekly Honors (Week Three)
The Owls took two of the week's four AAC weekly honors, with Faith Hutchins earning the AAC Goalkeeper of the Week honor and Allie Love being named the AAC Freshman of the Week. In addition, Carsyn Martz earned national recognition after being named to the TopDrawer Team of the Week Honorable Mention.

Conference Honors (Week One)
The first week of play brought the first weekly honor for Rice as graduate goalie Faith Hutchins was named the AAC Goalkeeper of the Week (8-19, Week 1). Hutchins played all 180 minutes in goal during the week, earning wins against Texas State (2-1) and Navy (2-1). She had a 1.0 goals against average on the week, making seven saves on 23 shots faces. Hutchins posted a .778 save percentage on the week.

Killgore Returns Home
Bella Killgore, who played her college days with Rice from 2018-22, returns home for the 2024 season after being hired as the team's Goalkeeper Coach. During her five-year career, Rice captured two regular season titles and one CUSA tournament title (2020-21), where the Owls advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16. She was a two-time CUSA Goalkeeper of the Year, two-time All-CUSA First Team and a United Soccer Coaches First Team All-South Region honoree in 2021.

Preseason Honors
Three Owls were named to the 2024 AAC Preseason Watch List with Leah Chancey, Faith Hutchins and Carsyn Martz all earning honors. The Owls were selected 10^th in the AAC Preseason Coaches Poll.

2024 Recruiting Class Tops AAC
The Owls had big-time commitments with four grad transfers and six freshmen for the 2024 recruiting class, the top-ranked recruiting class in the AAC and 32nd-ranked class in the nation according to TopDrawerSoccer.

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