University of Houston Athletics
Baseball Ready to Take on Rice on Tuesday
3/31/2003 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 31, 2003
HOUSTON - Winners of six of its last seven games, the University of Houston baseball team looks to ride that momentum into Tuesday night when it faces No. 1 Rice at 7 p.m. in Reckling Park.
The teams will square off in Game Four of the annual Silver Glove Series. The Owls have already claimed the trophy by winning the first three games of this season's series. However, those contests have been close affairs with the Owls winning 3-0 on Feb. 18 and then taking a pair of one-run wins.
The game can be heard live on KAXF 88.3 FM or over the Internet at www.UHcougars.com with pre-game slated begin at 6:45 p.m.
UH head coach Rayner Noble, now in his ninth season as the Cougar skipper, has not announced a starter for Tuesday's game. However, junior righthander Gene Flores has started the last two contests against the Owls and is a candidate to throw again.
Tuesday's game will be the eighth straight contest for the Cougars on the road. However, the team looks to take its "Road Warrior" mentality into Reckling Park after winning six of their previous seven games in unfriendly environments.
The Cougars (14-14) come into the game on the heels of a 6-5 win at TCU on Sunday. With that win, UH claimed the series victory over the Horned Frogs for the second consecutive season.
Junior third baseman Hyung Cho continues to lead the team in all Triple Crown categories with a .389 batting average, five home runs and 18 RBIs. In addition, the Toronto, Canada, native has recorded at least one RBI in each of his last eight games.
Freshman outfielder Travis Tully has been equally explosive at the plate, compiling a nine-game hitting streak as well and .393 batting average, which would top all Cougars if he had enough at-bats to qualify.
Rice (28-1), the consensus No. 1 team in all four national polls, comes into Tuesday's game on the heels of a Western Athletic Conference series sweep of San Jose State. That extended the Owls' winning streak to 28 consecutive games.
Chris Kolkhorst leads the Owls with a .405 batting average, while Austin Davis is a close second at .400 and leads the Owls with 31 RBIs. Enrique Cruz and Craig Stansberry are tied for team honors with four home runs each.
