HOUSTON – The weather was not the only thing that went cold on Wednesday as the Rice Owls held the Sam Houston offense to just one run on four hits in a 6-1 win over the Bearkats on Wednesday afternoon.
Rice (1-3) scored three times in the first inning and held a 5-0 advantage thru five on its way to picking up its first win of 2025. After a scoreless first inning from opener Blain Brown, righty Tucker Alch proceeded to throw 7.0 scoreless innings of relief, allowing only three hits with no walks and two punchouts to earn the win.
Owl catcher Landon West carried the load at the plate with a 3-for-4 day which included a homer and two RBI.
Noah Kendrick got his first start as a Kat (1-3) and allowed four runs – one earned – in 3.0 innings before turning it over to the bullpen. The Sam Houston bullpen looked strong, allowing just two runs in the final 5.0 frames with eight strikeouts.
Cam Diaz picked up three of those punchouts, while Connor Zaruba and Danny Valadez had two apiece in scoreless frames.
At the plate, the Kats were unable to muster much and didn't push a run across the plate until a sacrifice fly from Ryan Franden with one out in the ninth. Hunter Autrey and Addison Smith each had a double apiece, while Brady Christensen and Ty Marthiljohni had a single.
UP NEXT
Sam Houston will return home to The Don to open a 4-game series vs NJIT beginning Friday night. Game 1 vs the Highlanders is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. and will be aired on ESPN+.
