University of Houston Athletics
Preview: Baseball vs. Rice on Tuesday
5/16/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
| HOUSTON (31-20) vs. RICE (32-16) | |
| MIDWEEK BREAKDOWN |
| LOCATION | Sugar Land, Texas / Constellation Field |
| GAMEDAY CENTRAL | GAMEDAY CENTRAL |
| LISTEN LIVE | UHCougars.com/baseradio |
| WATCH LIVE | N/A |
| GAMETRACKER | Tuesday |
| SERIES HISTORY | Houston and Rice have met 180 times. |
| SERIES RECORD | Rice leads all-time 103-77. |
| GAME NOTES | Game Notes |
HOUSTON â€" Houston Baseball will play its final midweek game of the year when it takes on Rice Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at Constellation Field in Sugar Land, Texas for the last of three games of the Silver Glove Series.
The Cougars enter the week with a 31-20 overall record and are coming off a 4-1 week that was highlighted by back-to-back wins over then-No. 13 Rice (10-0) and then-No. 21 Louisiana (3-2) before traveling to Cincinnati to win two-of-three in that American Athletic Conference series.
FOLLOW ALONG â€" GAMEDAY CENTRAL
Listen Live: UHCougars.com/baseradio
ON DECK
Following the midweek game vs. Rice, Houston will wrap up regular-season play with a three-game series vs. Tulane at Darryl & Lori Schroeder Park, beginning Thursday at 6:30 p.m. The series will continue on Friday at 7 p.m. and wrap on Sunday at 3 p.m. The final two games of the series will be televised on CBS Sports Network.
HITS ON HOUSTON
Offensively, Houston is hitting .268 and slugging .369 with 66 doubles, 12 triples and 27 home runs. Leading the way at the plate is freshman Joe Davis, hitting .345 with a team-best 70 hits, 44 RBI, 15 doubles and 10 home runs. His 10 home runs broke the Houston Freshman All-Time Home Run record, last accomplished by Mike Musolino back in 1986 with nine.
Following Davis at the plate is sophomore Corey Julks with a .321 average and sophomore Connor Wong with a .297 average and team-high 42 runs scored.
On the base paths, Houston is 56-of-70, led by sophomore Zac Taylor with 19-of-22.
Houston's pitching staff continues to rank among the nation's Top 10 in several categories, posting a 2.38 ERA with 402 strikeouts to 95 walks in 446.0 innings pitched this season. Opponents are hitting .220 against the Cougars.
Freshman Mitch Ullom paces the starters in wins with a 6-3 record, and with a 2.12 ERA in 12 appearances and 10 starts in his first collegiate season. He is coming off his third career complete game at Cincinnati.
Sophomore Seth Romero has 93 strikeouts in 79.2 innings and is 5-4 with 2.37 ERA in 12 appearances and 11 starts and earned a complete-game victory on the road at Cincinnati last weekend.
Junior Andrew Lantrip follows with a 2.45 ERA and a 5-5 record in 12 starts. He has fanned 76 and walked just five to rank among the nation's leader in strikeout-to-walk ratio in a staff-leading 80.2 innings pitched.
Freshman Trey Cumbie, this week's American Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week, is 4-2 with a 1.33 ERA in 13 appearances and four starts. He is coming off a week in which he tossed 13.2 shutout innings in two starts at Rice / at Cincinnati â€" both leading to victories for the Cougars.
Out of the bullpen, Houston goes to junior Nick Hernandez, who is 2-0 with eight saves and a 1.36 ERA in a team-high 22 appearances. He has struck out 48 in 39.2 innings and is holding opponents to a .174 average.
ABOUT RICE
Rice enters the week with a 32-16 overall record and is coming off a weekend split with C-USA foe Florida Atlantic.
Rice, offensively is hitting .267 and slugging .351 with 58 doubles, 12 triples and 15 home runs.
The Owls are led by Ford Proctor's .351 average and team-leading 59 hits and 24 RBI. He is followed by Charlie Warren with a .245 average.
Rice pitching owns a 2.81 ERA and has five shutouts and three complete games. The Owls have struck out 399 hitters and walked 168 through 423.1 innings this season. Opponents are hitting .226 against the staff.
Leading the way from the starters is Jon Duplantier with a 2.14 ERA and a 7-4 record in 13 starts. He has fanned 118 in 92.2 innings.
In the past two midweek games vs. Rice, Houston has faced Willy Amador, who is 2-0 with a 4.65 ERA in 13 appearances and six starts and Zach Esquivel, who is 1-1 with a 4.09 ERA in 13 appearances and two starts.
Out of the bullpen, Rice relies on Glenn Otto, who is 6-1 with eight saves and a 1.56 ERA through 26 appearances.
SERIES HISTORY vs. RICE
Houston and Rice will meet for the 181ST time in program history â€" the longest standing series in program history - and the last of three scheduled games this season.
The series between Houston and Rice dates back to 1948 and the Silver Glove Series officially began in 1998. The Owls own the all-time series, 103-77, but Houston has won the last two season series.
Rice earned the win in Game 1 this season, winning 7-4 at Darryl & Lori Schroeder Park. Connor Wong, Michael Pyeatt, Joe Davis and Justin Montemayor each had a two-hit game for the Cougars. Houston bounced back to win Game 2, 10-0, thanks to 13 walks by the Rice pitching staff and a shutout effort from the Cougars' Cumbie and Bubba Maxwell.
The two teams met four times last season with Houston winning two and Rice winning two, but the Cougars won the Silver Glove Series regular-season in a 2-1 advantage. The last meeting came in a 20-inning outing in the Houston Regional where the Owls prevailed, 3-2 on May 31 over the Cougars.
JOIN THE DUGOUT CLUB
Nationally-ranked Houston Baseball would like to encourage those wishing to support the efforts and success of the baseball student-athletes to consider joining the Dugout Club for as low as $25 a month or $300 annually.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION
LEVELS
PINCH HITTER
For a minimum monthly installment of $25 or a minimum one-time gift of $300, supporters can take advantage of the Pinch Hitter level, which will guarantee an invitation for two to exclusive Dugout Club events and Houston Baseball team apparel.
DIAMOND
For a minimum monthly installment of $100 or a minimum one-time gift of $1,000, supporters can take advantage of the Diamond level, which will guarantee batting practice passes for two to any home game, invitation for two to exclusive Dugout Club events and Houston Baseball apparel.
**Cougar Pride points will be applied accordingly.
For more information on joining the Dugout Club, please contact the Houston Baseball office at (713) 743-9396.
For more information regarding Cougar Pride, please call (713) 743-GOUH
BUY SINGLE-GAME / GROUP TICKETS
Houston Baseball has three remaining home games at Darryl & Lori Schroeder Park and fans can purchase season tickets for as low as $99 online by visiting UHCougars.com/tickets and following the appropriate links or by clicking here.
To purchase tickets in person, fans can visit the Athletics Ticket Stadium Office located on the northeast corner of TDECU Stadium, just outside of Gate 1 off Cullen Boulevard. Parking is available in the TDECU Stadium parking garage with the first 30 minutes free of charge. Regular business hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m., to 5:30 p.m.
Houston Baseball will offer variable pricing on its single-game tickets and group rates.
As noted in the table above, variable pricing occurs. For weekday (Tuesday/Wednesday) games, prices range from $5-$7 depending on the choice of seating.
Weekend ((Thursday) Friday-Sunday) online pricing will range from $6-$8 per game.
GROUP RATES
Group rates are also available (as noted in the table). Weekday (Tuesday/Wednesday) and Weekend ((Thursday) Friday-Sunday) pricing occurs. Groups of 10-24 are set at $4-$5 per person, while groups of 25+ are $3-$4 per person.
All UH main campus students are admitted FREE to regular-season baseball home games with a valid student ID.
STAY CONNECTED
Stay up to date with all Houston Baseball news and highlights by following us on Twitter @UHCougarBB or on Facebook at /HoustonCougarBaseball. Fans can also follow head coach Todd Whitting @toddwhitting on Twitter.
