Owls and Bearkats Resume Series on Wednesday

Rice opens its 2025 home schedule one day later than originally scheduled as the Owls host Sam Houston for a single game moved from Tuesday night to Wednesday afternoon due to anticipated heavy showers in the Houston area.

Hot Links
Watch ESPN+ : Sam Houston
Listen: Online / Varsity Network
Live Stats: SideArm.com
Full Game Notes: RiceOwls.com

On the Air
J.P. Heath will be behind the mic for coverage on RiceOwls.com and the Varsity app. Max Kelton and Kyle Rodgers will have the call on ESPN+.

Pitching Matchup
RHP Tucker Alch vs. RHP Noah Kendrick

Making his first start of 2025 and 15th as an Owl... Tossed two scoreless innings in relief vs. Villanova in Ponce, PR on 2/14... Came on with the Owls trailing 5-1 with two on and none out in the seventh and got a strikeout and double play to keep the deficit at four and allow the Owls to tie it with four in the bottom of the seventh and then take the lead in the eighth.

Opening Drought
Rice is 13-12 in opening games at Reckling Park, including an 8-4 record when opening on the road to open the season. The Owls have dropped the last six home openers since they rallied from a 5-0 deficit to down Texas State 8-6 to open the 2018 home season. Freshman Trei Cruz knocked a bases-loaded triple in the bottom of the eighth inning to put the Owls ahead for the first time. Garrett Gayle closed out the Bobcats in the top of the ninth with back-to-back strikeouts to preserve the victory.

Owls and Bearkats

Rice and Sam Houston have met continuously during full baseball seasons since 1975, the longest streak for the Owls. The only break in the streak came in 2020 when the first game of the series was postponed, and the second was canceled when the season was cut short by the pandemic.
Rice holds a 66-55-1 advantage over that time frame (34-32-1 on the Rice campus/1-1 at Minute Maid Park).
The Owls have won five of the last six in the series, including the last three at Reckling Park.
Jose Cruz is 5-1 in his career as a head coach against the Bearkats and the sweeps of the series in his first two years were the first time Rice had done so in consecutive years since they took the slate from 1996-1999.
Rice and Sam Houston have met 28 times at Reckling (25 regular season and three NCAA Regional) with Rice holding a 17-11 lead (2-1 in postseason) in the series.
Sam Houston won the first meeting between the two at Reckling, posting the first shutout of the Owls at their new home, 9-0 on 21/6/00.
Rice broke a streak of six consecutive wins by the road team in the series when the Owls defeated the Bearkats 13-5 in 2022 at Reckling and the Owls followed that up with a 5-1 win in Huntsville to record the first sweep of the series since 2016.

Up Next
Rice welcomes USC to Reckling Park for three games this weekend, opening with a 6:30 game on Friday, followed by a 2 p.m. start on Saturday and wrapping up with a 1 p.m. finale on Sunday.

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