Men’s basketball gears up for home games against C-USA foes
Rice men’s basketball will aim to pick up its second Conference USA win of the season this week when the team faces the University of Texas, El Paso on Thursday night at Tudor Fieldhouse.
Rice men’s basketball will aim to pick up its second Conference USA win of the season this week when the team faces the University of Texas, El Paso on Thursday night at Tudor Fieldhouse.
The Rice women’s tennis team prepares to face Lamar University in its first home match of the year on Saturday, Jan. 18 after opening its spring season this past weekend.
Rice women’s basketball will aim to extend its current four-game Conference USA winning streak when the Owls take on Louisiana Tech University and the University of Southern Mississippi at Tudor Fieldhouse this week.
In December, the Baker College powderpuff team defeated McMurtry College 7-6 to win its first women’s college flag football title since at least 1999. Baker’s victory broke a four-year streak during which Hanszen and McMurtry each claimed two titles.
In the season finale, Rice football defeated the University of Texas, El Paso 30-16, outscoring the Miners 16-0 in the second half en route to their third consecutive victory on Saturday. The victory in Rice’s season finale improved the Owls’ final record to 3-9, a one-win increase over last year’s total and tied for Rice’s best finish since 2016.
As the semester wraps up, it’s a good time to take stock of how Rice Athletics is doing as a whole. At this moment, we believe that there is good reason to be happy and optimistic with how the Owls are performing now and will perform in the future. On a sport by sport basis, Rice sports teams are ending the decade at a peak.
Volleyball will compete in the NCAA tournament after receiving an at-large bid to play against the University of Oklahoma in the first round during Sunday night’s Selection Show. Transportation will not be provided for Rice students to the match against OU, but the possibility exists a student bus will travel to College Station on Friday if the Owls win their first round match, according to Rice director of marketing David Pillen.
The Rice women’s basketball team earned a 71-57 win over Northern Arizona University on Saturday at Tudor Fieldhouse. By defeating the Lumberjacks, the Owls now hold a 4-3 season record. The win is the second in the row for the team after last Wednesday’s impressive 31 point victory over McNeese State University.
Volleyball won two out of three matches and lost in the final to Western Kentucky University this weekend during the Conference USA Championships. WKU receives an automatic bid to compete in the NCAA Championships, but Rice is likely to receive an at-large bid to compete because of its impressive RPI (No. 14 nationally).
Rice football won its first game of the season, defeating Middle Tennessee State University 31-28 on Saturday in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The Owls are 1-9 on the season and have lost 19 out of 22 games for the last two years with Mike Bloomgren at the helm. Rice now stands at No. 6 in Conference USA’s West Division.
Rice women’s basketball fell to No. 5 Texas A&M University on Sunday, 62-61, in a game which was decided at the last minute. The loss was the Owls’ second in a row, dropping their season record to 2-2.
Freshman Grace Forbes finished sixth at last weekend’s cross-country NCAA South Central Regional Championships, qualifying for the NCAA championship meet this Saturday, Nov. 23. Both the men’s and women’s cross-country teams placed fifth in their respective races, marking the conclusion of the teams’ seasons.
When Rice swimming challenges the University of Houston in the Phill Hansel Invitational this Thursday to Saturday, the team will be competing in its first tournament of the season against UH. Rice will face the Cougars twice more: during a Quad Meet held at UH from Jan. 31 to Feb. 1 and in the First Chance Meet on Feb. 15.
You may know sophomore guard Haylee Swayze from her role as a key contributor to Rice’s successful women’s basketball team, but she’s also a talented multi-sport athlete with passions that guide her life off the court.
Rice women’s club soccer will travel to compete in the Championship Division of the women’s club soccer national tournament from Nov. 21 - 23 in Round Rock, Texas. The Owls qualified for the national tournament by placing first in the Texas Club Soccer League Southeast League and claiming the Region IV South tournament title. During the regular season, the team finished undefeated.
Rice volleyball lost on Sunday to Western Kentucky University, marking the Owls’ first loss in almost two months. Though the match ended on a sour note, it was a closely fought contest, with Rice battling back from an early deficit to force a decisive and dramatic fifth set that featured tense moments on nearly every point. Here are three notable takeaways from the match.
No. 12 Texas A&M University defeated Rice in swimming 158-102 on Saturday at the Owls’ first home dual meet of the year. The loss was Rice’s first of the season, dropping the team’s record to 3-1.
On Sunday, No. 17 Rice volleyball lost for the first time since Sept. 14, in a five-set loss against No. 22 Western Kentucky University. The loss to WKU also marked the end of the Owls’ 13-match winning streak.
Sophomore guard Haylee Swayze had a coming out party for Rice women’s basketball during the Owls’ 71-47 home opening win against Nicholls State University. Swayze excelled off the bench, scoring 22 points in only 17 minutes of play. She was a perfect four for four from the free throw line, and made four threes on a 57 percent shooting clip.
Rice soccer tied the University of North Texas 0-0 after two overtimes on Friday evening, claiming the No. 3 seed in the upcoming Conference USA Championship. Rice holds an overall season record of nine wins, five losses and three draws; in C-USA play, the Owls have six wins, one loss and three draws.