Rice ready to tussle with nationwide competition

By Natalie Clericuzio     2/18/10 6:00pm

As the baseball team begins its campaign for the 2010 College World Series, anyone can see that its path will not be an easy one. On Rice's regular season schedule, the fifth-ranked Owls will face five preseason Baseball America top-25 teams, including three matches against top-ranked University of Texas, who finished as national runner-up in last year's CWS. Rice will also meet No. 11 Texas Christian University, No. 18 East Carolina University, No. 19 University of San Diego and No. 21 University of Southern Mississippi in their regular season slog.And if that weren't enough, the team will start its season today with a three-game series against a Stanford University squad that is ranked 25th by USA Today.

While the Longhorns and Owls have a longstanding in-state rivalry, Rice has earned the upper hand in recent years. In the past three seasons, Rice has downed Texas seven times while the Owls have fallen only twice. Still, this year may be the Longhorns' best shot at stemming that tide, as Texas returns 22 lettermen from last year, including five starters in the field and 10 pitchers, four of whom served on last year's starting rotation. Additionally, Texas boasts four Louisville Slugger preseason All-Americans in Cole Gree, Taylor Jungmann, Chance Ruffin and Cameron Rupp. The combination of returning veterans and the team's winsome tradition - Texas was named Baseball America's Team of the Decade for the 2000s - all but assure that Rice will need to pick up the level of play as the season gets underway.

While TCU's football team earned plenty of press during the 2009 Bowl Championship Series, its baseball team aims to make a name of its own this spring. The Horned Frogs return 18 lettermen and are the pick of Mountain West coaches and national analysts alike to win the Mountain West Conference. A bevy of fresh faces will balance out the team's veteran presence, as the team brought in the nation's fourth-ranked recruiting class.

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On the West Coast, San Diego's strength lies in pitching, as the team returns three All-American pitchers: A.J. Griffin, Sammy Solis and Kyle Blair. The Toreros are also picked to win the West Coast Conference despite finishing fifth last season. This season will be a chance for redemption: The team did not make the NCAA Regionals for the first time in five seasons last year.

Among the other top teams in the Baseball America poll, second-ranked University of Virginia is picked to win the Atlantic Coast Conference over five other top-25 ACC schools, including No. 6 Georgia Tech University, No. 9 Florida State University, No. 15 Clemson University, No. 16 Miami University and No. 20 University of North Carolina. Last season marked the Cavaliers' first trip to the CWS, where they fell to the University of Arkansas after losing to Louisiana State University and eliminating California State University-Fullerton.

LSU, the 2009 CWS champ, comes in third in Baseball America's poll after losing nearly as many players to the draft (33) as they returned (34). However, the team ushers in 13 new recruits, including eight true freshmen and five junior college transfers. Regardless of team makeup, the team's storied history - last year's championship was the program's sixth in the last 20 years - and championship-caliber coach Paul Mainieri should assure that the Tigers will not stray far from the title hunt.

Regardless of the competition the Owls face this spring, be it Texas during the regular season or others in the postseason, the team's return to the CWS will be a challenge. However, if the team finds itself in Omaha come June 19, it will know it has earned its place there.

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