Baseball 2021
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at Texas May 18, 2021 UFCU Disch-Falk Field BASEBALL • 2021 Austin John Sullivan, Rice Asst. SID/Baseball Contact • [email protected] • PO Box 1892, MS 548 • Houston, TX 77251-1892 • O (713) 348-5636 • C (832) 250-9000 • www.RiceOwls.com • @RiceBaseball Rice Wraps Up Season Tuesday At Texas; Here’s Who’s Hot The old veterans are really stepping Owls Face Longhorns To Close Out Season up and producing in the home stretch! The Rice baseball team (23-29-1 overall) is back on the road for its final Braden Comeaux enters the Texas game of the 2021 season. The Owls play at longtime foe Texas (38-12) on game on a .409 hitting pace (18-of- Tuesday (May 18). Start time at UFCU Disch-Falk Field in Austin is set for last-44) with a .490 on-base percent- 6:30 pm. age and nine runs scored over the last 13 games... Over the last two C-USA Broadcast On The Longhorn Network weekend series totaling eight games three Owls, Will Karp, Bradley Gne- The game at Texas is scheduled for a live iting and Hal Hughes, have stood out. Hughes is 10-for-24 (.417) with a broadcast on The Longhorn Network. grand slam and .pair of doubles for .625 slugging percentage. He’s also Broadcasters Lowell Galindo (play-by-play) and Greg Swindell (analysis) maintained a .516 on-base average and scored six runs. Gneiting is batting have the call Tuesday night. .357 (10-for-28) with a .571 slugging percentage and nine RBI over the last eight games. Karp is 8-for-23 (.348) with seven RBI, seven walks, six runs Rice Play-By-Play Audio On The Web scored and five steals to help the Owls go 5-3... Veteran Austin Bulman Every Rice baseball game is scheduled for a live audio broadcast on the went 5-for-14 (.357) vs. Charlotte with a homer and a double (.643 SLG%)... Internet at RiceOwls.com. Tune-in to the broadcast’s pregame show 10 Freshman Nathan Becker is 8-for-his-last-25 (.320) with two home runs minutes before first pitch. Veteran J.P. Heath is now in his 13th season as and two doubles (.640 SLG%). the voice of the Owls. Winning Is Always In Fashion Live Stats Links Online at RiceOwls.com For the fashion-minded, Rice’s 2021 W-L records while wearing the various Links to live play-by-play text and statistics from every game, home and uniform combinations is as follows: away, are posted on RiceOwls.com. Look for the links on the Rice Athletics 2-1 in blue jersey, ‘Rice’ in white Old English and gray pants front page, the weekly series preview, and/or the baseball schedule page. 4-3 in gradient white jersey 5-5 in pinstripes Follow The Tweeting Rice Owls 3-3 in white jersey, ‘Rice’ in blue Old English The official Rice baseball Twitter account is @RiceBaseball while the Rice 4-5 in all gray (‘Rice’ in blue Old English) Athletics department is @RiceAthletics. Twitter is perhaps the fastest way 3-4-1 in blue top, ‘Rice’ in Old English and pinstripe pants to get weather-related changes to the schedule/updated start times. 1-2 in gradient blue jersey with white pants 1-2 in gray “R” top Did You Know? 0-1 in blue top, ‘Rice’ in Old English and white pants Tuesday’s clash is Rice’s first trip to UFCU Disch-Falk Field since 2019. 0-3 in gradient blue jersey with gray pants The Owls are 3-3 against Longhorns in the previous six games played in Austin dating back to 2014. There was a stretch from 1959 to 1977 in the Previously: Owls Defeat Charlotte Sunday To Split C-USA Series old Southwest Conference where the Owls did not beat the Longhorns in HOUSTON — After the Rice baseball team jumped on the scoreboard for Austin. Finally, on March 27, 1977 behind a sensational 13.0 inning pitch- six runs in the bottom of the first inning, inclement weather in the Hous- ing effort by Owl great Allan Ramirez, Rice beat Texas at the two-year old ton area forced an early conclusion to Sunday’s Conference USA contest Disch-Falk Field by a score of 4-3 in 14 innings. vs. Charlotte making the 6-0 score after 4.5 innings stand as the final out- come... The game entered a lightning/weather delay in the bottom of the Head Coach Matt Bragga fifth inning with the Owls batting and holding a 6-0 lead. The teams were not A 20-year veteran of the head coaching ranks, Matt Bragga was named the 21st head coach in Rice baseball history on June 15, 2018. He went 26-33 at Rice in his first season in Rice's Possible Starters 2019. The Owls were 2-14 when the 2020 season came to C 30 Justin Long an abrupt end, but consider Rice’s (non-conference) sched- (Fr.-HS, R-R; .257/1/11) ule featuring road series at Texas Tech and UC Irvine, plus 1B 7 Austin Bulman another four games against Texas and Texas A&M, was rated 2021 C-USA Standings (Jr.-1L, R/R; .270/7/25) as the 11th-toughest in all of Division I. Prior to Rice Bragga sent 15 years All Games C-USA 2B 14 Will Karp West W-L W-L as the Head Coach at Tennessee Tech, building that program into one of (Gr.-Tr., R/R; .271/1/21) Louisiana Tech 36-14 22-8 the best in the Ohio Valley Conference. The four-time OVC Coach of the SS 3 Hal Hughes Southern Miss 35-17 22-9 Year led the Golden Eagles to three NCAA Tournament appearances, win- (Jr.-Tr., R/R; .258/3/20) UTSA 22-24 14-17 ning six OVC championships in 10 years while reaching 40 or more wins 3B 9 Braden Comeaux Middle Tennessee 23-27-1 12-19-1 in four of six seasons from 2013-2018. In 2018, he helped Tennessee Tech (Sr.-3L, R/R; .346/1/23) Rice 23-29-1 11-20-1 to its best season in school history, amassing a school and OVC-record 53 LF 6 Cade Edwards UAB 18-35 11-21 wins, the most in the country, while leading the team to the league’s regular (Sr.-2L, R/R; .288/9/30) season title and its first-ever trip to the NCAA Super Regionals. The Jeffer- CF 2 Guy Garibay son, Ohio, native who played collegiately at Kentucky before a pro playing (Fr.-HS, L-L; .234/6/26) East W-L W-L career, owns a Division I coaching record of 497-468-3. Bragga is aided by RF 32 Bradley Gneiting Charlotte 37-16 24-8 assistant coaches Cory Barton (Memphis, 2007, third year), Paul Janish (Gr.-4L, L/R; .302/8/37) Old Dominion 36-14 22-10 (Rice, 2004; fourth year), and Trevor Putzig (Tenn Tech, 2018; first year). DH 47 Nathan Becker Florida Atlantic 29-23 18-14 (Fr.-HS, L/R; .253/6/20) Western Kentucky 25-27 15-17 Rice’s Possible Starting Pitcher SP TBA FIU 20-30 11-19 Coach Bragga will announce the starting pitcher of the Texas game at a Marshall 10-35 6-26 later time. Rice Since 1999 OWL IN Using the 1999 season as the starting point (the year the NCAA expanded The Owl In logo represents the continued commitment the postseason tournament field to 64 teams with the current Super Re- of Rice Athletics’ student-athletes, coaches, and staff to gional format), Rice baseball has maintained one of the nation’s top win come together for positive change throughout our de- percentages over the last 22 years. Here’s a closer look at the country’s partment, campus, and world. With increased efforts in winningest programs from 1999-2020 (note: this listing will not be up- education, policy development, and action as it relates to dated to include games played in 2021): diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice, members of Team Years Wins Loses Ties PCT the Rice Athletics community will become better equipped Florida State 22 1019 391 1 .723 to ensure we can fulfill our department’s desire to be a more inclusive North Carolina 22 948 406 1 .700 and welcoming place. To learn more about being Owl In, visit RiceOwls. LSU 22 950 432 6 .687 com/OwlIn. South Carolina 22 938 438 0 .682 Coastal Carolina 22 896 418 2 .682 able to return to the field for the remainder of the day. Charlotte completed Rice 22 924 435 2 .680 its five offensive innings, making it an official league game... Rice improved Miami (Fla.) 22 894 421 3 .679 to 23-29-1 overall and 11-20-1 in C-USA games. Charlotte is now 37-18 Oral Roberts 22 849 416 0 .671 on the season and 24-8 in conference... Keeping a watchful eye that an Cal St. Fullerton 22 881 434 0 .670 inclement weather system was approaching the Houston area, Rice duti- Texas 22 894 450 1 .665 fully moved the game from its originally scheduled 12 noon start and had Oregon St. 22 811 422 3 .657 Louisville 22 866 453 1 .656 the first pitch at 10:33 am. The game went into the weather delay at 12:17 Arizona St. 22 805 422 2 .656 pm... Early morning hours or not, Rice was quick to light up the scoreboard.