Rice (9-16, 1-2 American) vs. Wichita State (15-9, 2-1 American)

Thursday, March 28 | 6:00 pm CT | Wichita, Kansas (Eck Stadium)
TV: ESPN+ | Radio: KFH 97.5 FM/1240 AM
RHP Tucker Alch (0-0, 0.00) vs. RHP Brady Hamilton (1-2, 3.32)

Friday, March 29 | 11:00 am CT | Wichita, Kansas (Eck Stadium)
TV: ESPN+ | Radio: KFH 97.5 FM/1240 AM
RHP Parker Smith (2-2, 3.52) vs. LHP Caden Favors (4-1, 2.83)

Saturday, March 30 | 12:00 pm CT | Wichita, Kansas (Eck Stadium)
TV: ESPN+ | Radio: KFH 97.5 FM/1240 AM
LHP J.D. McCracken (2-2, 3.28) vs. RHP Tommy LaPour (2-1, 4.94)

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SCENE SETTER: Wichita State heads back to American Athletic Conference play with an Easter weekend series against Rice, the first time the Shockers and Owls have met on the diamond since the 2003 Houston Regional championship game. The series will take place Thursday-Friday-Saturday instead of the usual Friday-Saturday-Sunday due to the Easter Sunday holiday. Friday's game will be Kids Day at the ballpark, with local schoolchildren from USD 259 in attendance. WSU has won all five of their weekend series in 2024 and are one of five teams in the AAC to take two of three games on opening weekend as none of the conference series ended in a sweep. The Shockers are coming off a 30-25 season in 2023 that included a 13-10 mark in American Athletic Conference play, good for third place in the final conference standings. Wichita State is hunting their first appearance in the NCAA tournament since the 2013 season, a regional bid that was later vacated by the NCAA.

SHOCKER BASEBALL ON THE RADIO AND ESPN PLUS: KFH 97.5 FM/1240 AM will once again serve as the radio home for Wichita State baseball broadcasts in 2024. "The Voice of the Shockers" and Pizza Hut Shocker Sports Hall of Famer Mike Kennedy will have the call for the series against the Owls. All three games of the series will also be streamed live on ESPN+, with former Shocker pitcher (1991-94) and Pizza Hut Shocker Sports Hall of Famer Shane Dennis handling play-by-play duties on both Thursday and Saturday. Denning Gerig will broadcast Friday's matinee. Live audio, in addition to live statistics, will be available for all games at GoShockers.com/listen and ShockerStats.com. 

SERIES HISTORY: The Shockers and Owls have played just five times in program history, three of which have occurred in NCAA postseason play. The only regular season meeting between the two came in 1986, as the Shockers swept a two-game series in Houston by scores of 8-7 and 4-1. In 1996, the Shockers routed Rice 16-6 in Wichita to claim the Midwest Regional crown and advance to the College World Series. The Owls got their revenge in 2003, downing the Shockers 10-1 and 5-2 in the Houston Regional championship game. Rice went on to win the College World Series that season.

SCOUTING RICE: The Owls are off to a 9-16 start in 2024 following a midweek defeat on the road at Sam Houston State on Tuesday. They dropped two of three games in the AAC opener against Tulane, avoiding the sweep with a 4-2 win on Sunday. Rice features a solid weekend rotation and one of the conference's best closers in Davion Hickson (1-0, 4 saves, 1.27 ERA) but have struggled to put runs on the scoreboard. The Owls rank 284th out of 295 teams in scoring at just 4.2 runs per game and have a team slash line of .229/.332/.341, all percentages that rank 274th or worse nationally. Former Wichita State outfielder Kyte McDonald is among the most potent hitters in the Rice lineup, hitting .288 with 11 extra-base hits. Former Owls star José Cruz Jr. in his third season as head coach, with a career record of 47-92 (.338).

BLANKED AT HOME: Five Oklahoma State pitchers combined to shut out the Shockers on Tuesday night in a 3-0 Cowboys win, the first time that Wichita State has been shut out at home since April 16, 2022 against Cincinnati in a 4-0 defeat.

NEARLY NO-NO: Freshman left-handed pitcher Tyler Dobbs took a shot at history on Tuesday night, carrying a no-hitter into the seventh inning of his start against Oklahoma State. Dobbs exited after 6.1 innings allowing one hit in the 3-0 loss. It's the second game this season the Shockers have held an opponent without a hit through at least six innings; the combination of Daniel Zang and Caleb Anderson worked 7.2 no-hit frames against Utah Tech on March 2.

SHOCKERS IN THE RPI: Wichita State enters the game on Thursday ranked 65 in the latest edition of the Warren Nolan RPI (Rating Percentage Index). The Shockers have the second-best RPI in the American Athletic Conference, trailing only East Carolina at #25. This week's opponent, Rice, checks in at #161.

SEVENTH HEAVEN: The seventh inning has been kind to Wichita State in 2024. The Shockers are outscoring opponents by a staggering 31-6 margin, the most runs scored and fewest runs allowed by WSU in any single inning this season. The Shockers have only been outscored in one inning, the fourth (19-7).

STAYING OFF THE BARREL: The Shockers enter play on Tuesday allowing only 7.07 hits per nine innings, the eighth-best mark in the nation. Wichita State pitchers are holding opponents to a .214 batting average and have held the opposition to six or fewer hits in 13 of 24 games.

BUSY MEN: Wichita State relievers Caleb Anderson and Hunter Holmes have worn out a path from the bullpen to the mound this season, logging 15 and 14 appearances respectively to rank second and sixth nationally through play on Tuesday. The Shockers are the only team in the country with two players in the top ten nationally in appearances.

LEAVING THEM STRANDED: In addition to their high usage rates, Anderson and Holmes have been nearly flawless in cleaning up messy situations. The duo has combined to strand 35 of 41 inherited runners (Anderson 18-22, Holmes 17-19). 

PINCH-HIT POP: Coming into the 2024 season, WSU had not had a pinch-hit home run since Mason O'Brien came off the bench and homered against South Florida on May 11, 2018. Junior Josh Livingston accomplished the feat twice in the first 11 games of 2024, cranking a three-run shot against Iowa on February 25 and replicating the achievement with a solo blast against Oklahoma on March 5.

TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE: With a program record of 2,325 wins, 1,257 losses and nine ties, Wichita State ranks in the top ten of all college baseball programs with a .648 winning percentage. The Shockers have won 20 regular season conference championships and 18 conference tournament championships, earning a trip to Omaha for the College World Series on seven different occasions. WSU claimed the 1989 national championship and finished as national runner-up in 1982, 1991 and 1993.