Rice has been one of the hottest teams in the nation over the last two months. Entering the super regional, the Owls have won thirteen straight games and boast a 35-2 record since losing their conference opener on March 24th. One of those losses was a midweek tilt at Oklahoma, when the Sooners pounded out fourteen hits in rolling to a 15-3 victory that snapped a 14-game Owl winning streak. The two clubs also met in February at Reckling Park, where the Owls knocked out Sooner ace Daniel McCutchen in the sixth inning on their way to an 8-2 win.

Recent Owl clubs have been led by their pitching, and this year is no exception. The staff is third in the nation with a 3.02 ERA, and the pitchers have struck out an NCAA high 594 batters in 557 2/3 innings. In addition, they trail only Cal State Fullerton in limiting opponents to a .227 batting average.

Eddie Degerman (12-1, 1.67) is the ace of the staff and a semifinalist for the Roger Clemens Award. After a shaky finish to the season, the senior righty returned to form in the regionals with a 14 strikeout performance against Baylor. While the rotation for the weekend is undetermined, he’ll likely be joined by Craig Crow (8-1, 3.08) and Joe Savery (5-1, 2.76). Crow entered the weekend rotation after Bobby Bell (8-0, 3.67) was injured early in the season and the junior transfer has been solid throughout the year. The four weekend starters combined for a 33-3 record as the Owls raced to the Conference USA title.

The Owls are also blessed with one of the deepest bullpens in college baseball, a group that has allowed just one run over 30 2/3 innings since May 19th. Cole St. Clair (5-2, 1.55, 11 saves) is the stopper, and has limited batters to a paltry .134 batting average in his appearances. Ironically, St. Clair is the only Rice pitcher with more than one loss, as eight other Owls each have one blemish on their records. He’ll be set up by the lefty/righty combination of Bobby Bramhall (4-1, 2.31) and Bryce Cox (4-1, 4.91). Cox struggled with his control for much of the season, but has been lights out since a tweak in his pitching mechanics over the school’s break for finals, allowing just one run while striking out 19 batters over 13 1/3 innings. Midweek starter Will McDaniel (7-1, 2.86) also joins the bullpen for the weekend, providing plenty of options for head coach Wayne Graham.

But this Rice club isn’t just about pitching, as the offense has contributed a .320 batting average and scored almost 8 runs per game so far this season. The balanced Owl attack features eight starters who bat over .300 with at least five home runs. Shortstop Brian Friday (.377-8-52), third baseman Josh Rodriguez (.346-9-58) and first baseman Joe Savery (.336-7-59) are the heart of the order and have been providing clutch hits all season. Center fielder Tyler Henley (.339-7-52) sets the table from the leadoff spot and has scored a team leading 68 runs. Aaron Luna (.318-14-48) broke the school’s freshman home run record (previously held by Jose Cruz Jr.) and provides pop lower in the order.

Rice’s defense has been solid since Josh Rodriguez returned from an early-season injury to anchor the left side of the infield. Rodriguez and Friday have the flair for the spectacular, while Greg Buchanan and Joe Savery provide Gold Glove caliber defense on the right side of the infield. Henley covers lots of ground in center, and all three outfielders have strong arms (led by Henley’s seven outfield assists). The Owl catchers have thrown out 31% of attempted base stealers, but a late season injury to Travis Reagan has limited the team’s depth behind the plate.

Last year, a young flock of Owls had #1 seed Tulane on the ropes at the New Orleans Super Regional. The returning players gained from the experience of winning a regional at Baton Rouge and being one win away from Omaha. This year, Rice’s Road to Omaha goes through Reckling Park, where the team is 32-5 this season.

The first game of the Houston Super Regional is scheduled for 6:00 on Saturday. Rice and Oklahoma will also play on Sunday at noon, with the final game (if necessary) tentatively set for noon on Monday. The winner of the series will advance to Omaha, where they will open the College World Series against the winner of the Athens Super Regional on Saturday, June 17th.