Rice University Athletics
Stellar Relief Sparks Owls over Wildcats
3/6/2026 11:27:00 PM | Baseball
Diaz fans nine in six innings
Abilene- Anthony Diaz held Abilene Christian in check over six innings of standout relief, and Rice took advantage of two late Wildcat errors to take a 5-4 win in the first meeting between the schools in baseball on Friday night.
How it Happened: Paul Smith gave the Owls a quick 2-0 lead when he slammed his fifth home run in the top of the first after Colin Robson led off the game by being hit by a pitch. ACU stormed back to take a 3-2 lead in the third, but Diaz shut them out over the next five innings, striking out a career-high nine. In the bottom of the sixth, ACU advanced runners to second and third with none out, but Diaz used a strikeout and a pair of ground outs to keep the game at 3-2. Rice put runners in scoring position in each of the last six innings, but could not convert until the seventh when Jacob Devenny singled home pinch runner Zachary Daigre to tie the game 3-3. Diaz struck out the side in the bottom of the seventh, and Rice rewarded him by taking the lead in the eighth. Cole Green reached second on a misplayed ball to center with two outs and scored when Garet Boehm slapped an 0-2 pitch into center for a single. Diaz walked the leadoff hitter in the bottom of the eighth, but Landon West erased the threat by picking the runner off first. The Owls extended the lead to 5-3 in the ninth thanks to a second error by ACU. Masa Chilcutt walked with one out, moved to third on the error, and scored on a sacrifice bunt by Landis Davilla. ACU made one final charge in the ninth, loading the bases with two outs and cutting the lead to one. Tanner Wiggins was called on to end the threat, which he did with one pitch, coaxing a groundout to short.
Next Up: The Owls and Wildcats resume the series at 3 p.m. on Saturday before wrapping things up with a 1 p.m. finale on Sunday.
Notes
How it Happened: Paul Smith gave the Owls a quick 2-0 lead when he slammed his fifth home run in the top of the first after Colin Robson led off the game by being hit by a pitch. ACU stormed back to take a 3-2 lead in the third, but Diaz shut them out over the next five innings, striking out a career-high nine. In the bottom of the sixth, ACU advanced runners to second and third with none out, but Diaz used a strikeout and a pair of ground outs to keep the game at 3-2. Rice put runners in scoring position in each of the last six innings, but could not convert until the seventh when Jacob Devenny singled home pinch runner Zachary Daigre to tie the game 3-3. Diaz struck out the side in the bottom of the seventh, and Rice rewarded him by taking the lead in the eighth. Cole Green reached second on a misplayed ball to center with two outs and scored when Garet Boehm slapped an 0-2 pitch into center for a single. Diaz walked the leadoff hitter in the bottom of the eighth, but Landon West erased the threat by picking the runner off first. The Owls extended the lead to 5-3 in the ninth thanks to a second error by ACU. Masa Chilcutt walked with one out, moved to third on the error, and scored on a sacrifice bunt by Landis Davilla. ACU made one final charge in the ninth, loading the bases with two outs and cutting the lead to one. Tanner Wiggins was called on to end the threat, which he did with one pitch, coaxing a groundout to short.
Next Up: The Owls and Wildcats resume the series at 3 p.m. on Saturday before wrapping things up with a 1 p.m. finale on Sunday.
Notes
- Rice improved to 8-6 on the season, 4-0 in one-run games, 3-1 in series openers, 4-1 on Fridays, and 2-3 on the road.
- The Owls have won five straight, their longest streak since they won five straight in 2024.
- The two runs in the first by the Owls give them 11 runs in the opening inning in the last six games.
- Diaz set career highs with six innings and nine strikeouts and is 2-0 with an 0.90 ERA and 13 strikeouts in his last three appearances (1 ER in 10 IP).
- His nine strikeouts are the most by a Rice reliever since Jack Ben Shoshan fanned nine in 3.2 innings vs. Sam Houston last season.
- Smith has hit in four straight games (6x19) with four home runs and a double, and eight RBI.
- Lorenzo Rios was 2x3 to extend his hitting streak to three games, matching the longest of his career, with his first multi-hit game as an Owl.
Players Mentioned
INF
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C/UT
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OF
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OF
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LHP
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INF
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C
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OF
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1B/C
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C
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RHP
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