Rice University’s baseball team is set to play a three-game series against Wichita State at Eck Stadium, starting Friday, April 23. The games are scheduled for Friday evening, Saturday afternoon, and Sunday midday. Rice aims to build on its recent success after sweeping Charlotte in its last conference road series and winning eight of its last eleven away games.
The matchup holds significance as both teams have a competitive history. Wichita State leads the overall series 7-4 and has a 6-2 record in regular-season meetings. At Eck Stadium, the Shockers are undefeated against Rice in four contests. The teams first played each other in 1986 and met again during the postseason in 1996 when Wichita State ended Rice’s run just short of their first trip to Omaha.
Pitching will be key for the Owls this weekend. Tanner Wiggins is slated to start Friday with a record of two wins and one loss and an earned run average of 3.24. Matthew Cuccias will pitch for Wichita State with a record of three wins and two losses and an ERA of 3.43. Starting pitchers Ethan Sanders and Ryland Urbanczyk have also contributed strong performances this season by working at least six innings in several starts.
This year, Rice reached seven conference wins faster than it has since the 2016 season—accomplishing this milestone within twelve games compared to previous years when it took more contests to reach similar marks.
After completing their series with Wichita State, Rice will return home to Reckling Park on Tuesday for a four-game homestand beginning with Lamar.
