By: Tobey Schulman
NCAA Baseball Recap: FAU at Rice
FAU concluded their series at Rice on Saturday with a doubleheader. After taking the first game 6-5, Rice would bounce back to take the final game of the doubleheader, ultimately taking the series two games to one. Both Rice and FAU sit at 11-13 in the AAC standings after this weekend, and FAU now holds a 25-24 record.
FAU seemed to have control the entirety of game one. Trey Beard put together yet another incredible start going for six innings pitched, while only giving up one run, four hits, and striking out five in the process. The offense consistently scored across the entire game, and saw production from many different hitters.
John Schroeder got the Owls started in the first with a sacrifice fly out, and did the same in the third to give the Owls a 2-0 lead. The rest of the third inning would feature Patrick Ward scoring on a passed ball, and Jake Millan recording an RBI single to give FAU a 4-1 lead.
FAU added two more runs in the seventh with a Daulton Frank RBI double, and a sacrifice fly out from Emilio Gonzalez. While Rice would threaten the lead with a Pierce Gallo grand slam, FAU prevailed to take the first game 6-5.
Game two of the doubleheader would be a similar theme, one team seemingly in control until the end. This time it was flipped. Rice was in control for a majority of this one, holding FAU to a single run before the seventh inning. After going down 5-1 heading into the seventh, Jalen DeBose and Carter Brady would help put three back up on the scoreboard for FAU, but they would ultimately fall 5-4 in the series finale.
FAU now has only four games remaining in the regular season. They’ll travel down to Fort Myers for a single game matchup against Florida Gulf Coast, and return home to Boca Raton for a weekend series against UTSA. With UTSA in second place in the AAC with a 14-9 record, it gives the Owls one last chance to move up in the AAC standings.