Texas State dominate Rice Owls in Armed Forces Bowl

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2026 All Rights Reserved

FORT WORTH, TEXAS (January 3, 2026) On Friday, January 2, 2026, the Texas State Bobcats overwhelmed the Rice Owls in the 23rd annual Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl at Amon G. Carter Stadium. The Bobcats, representing the Sun Belt Conference, secured a convincing 41-10 victory over their in-state rivals from Conference USA.

The Armed Forces Bowl, one of the marquee postseason games concluding the 2025 FBS season, blends college football with patriotic celebrations honoring U.S. military service members. Sponsored by aerospace and defense giant Lockheed Martin, the bowl showcases not only athletic competition but also flyovers, parachute demonstrations and tributes to all six branches of the armed forces.

Texas State entered the game with a 6-6 record after closing the regular season with a three-game winning streak. Under head coach G.J. Kinne, the Bobcats’ balanced offense and opportunistic defense set the tone early, building a lead that Rice could not recover from. Rice, which finished the year 5-7 and only received a bowl invitation after other eligible teams declined, struggled to find offensive traction against a disciplined Bobcats unit.

Despite the lopsided score, the event had its share of dramatic moments off the field. One of the pregame parachutists became briefly entangled in equipment above the end zone before descending safely to the ground, an alarming sight that fortunately resulted in no reported injuries.

HBU Huskies women's basketball kicks off season with 83-54 loss to Rice Owls

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 25. 2020) The HBU Huskies women's basketball team led the Rice Owls after 10 minutes of play and trailed their cross-town opponents by four at the half, however a second half scoring drought left them short at the end of the game, as they dropped a 83-54 to the Owls at Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston.

HBU jumped out to a 17-16 lead after the first quarter, with N'Denasija Collins accounting for seven of the Huskies' 1st quarter points. The Owls rebounded in the second quarter, outscoring the Huskies 14-9 to take a 30-26 lead at halftime. Then Rice got their bearings, outscoring the Huskies 20-18 in the third quarter and 24-10 in the final period in route to downing HBU.

The Huskies were led by Abbey Sutherland with 15 points, nine of them from three-point range. HBU head coach Donna Finnie stated after the game "I thought Abbey did pretty good defensively and offensively."

Sutherland was joined in double figures by Collins, with 10 points,. Marilyn Nzoiwu led HBU with seven rebounds.

Rice had four players in double figures; led by center Nancy Mulkey with 23 points and 13 rebounds. Also scoring in double figures for the Owls was Arianna McCurry (12 points), Katelyn Crosthwait (12 points) and Haylee Swayze (11 points).

Finnie added, "We knew these were going to be two tough games to open the season (Rice and Texas Tech). We know basically what  we have to work on after today so we got to do a better job and keep looking for improvement. We are not going to see anyone in our conference that looks like this (Rice) or Texas Tech."

The Huskies will next face Texas Tech on Saturday, November 28 in Lubbock with a 2 p.m. tipoff.

HBU Huskies kick off 2020-2021 season against Rice Owls

File photo by
Darla S Tamulitis
La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2020 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 23, 2020) The HBU Huskies women's basketball team kicks off their 2020-2021 schedule on Wednesday, November 25 against the Rice Owls. Tipoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. CST at Tudor Fieldhouse on the campus of Rice University.

The Huskies, who are picked 11th in the 13th member Southland Conference pre-season poll, have previously played the Owls four times, dating back to 2010.  In that year, they faced off on December 21, when Rice coming out on top by the score of 82-46 at Sharp Gymnasium. They next met on November 16, 2011 at Tudor Fieldhouse, with the Owls again coming out on top, 75-42. It would be five years until they played again. On November 19, 2016, Rice again came out on top, 79-53 at Sharp. The final meeting was November 18, 2017, with the Owls winning at home, 67-45.

The Huskies return eight letter winners from 2019-2020 including all five starters; Timia Jefferson, Julija Vujakovic,  Marilyn Nzoiwu,  Abbey Sutherland, and Kennedy Wilson. Also returning for the 2020-2021 season are Patience Idoko, N’Denasija Collins, and Megan Valdez-Crader. Newcomers include Anna Maguire, Enya Maguire, Linda Brueckner, Naomi Pierce, and Armani Reed.

The Huskies will again be led by head coach Donna Finnie, who is in her eighth season at the helm at HBU. She will be assisted by Becca Allison and Anna Strickland.

McNeese falls to Rice 81-50 in women's basketball

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

LAKE CHARLES, LOUISIANA (November 27, 2019) The McNeese State Cowgirls jumped out to a 19-12 lead after the first quarter, but could not contain the Rice Owls' comeback in the final three periods as the dropped a 81-50 non-conference match up to the Owls at the H&HP Complex in Lake Charles. McNeese took control of the game in the first period, with 10 of the points coming in the paint. It was a different matter in the second quarter with Rice outscoring McNeese 21-8, lead to the Owls' 33-27 lead at the half. Rice increased their lead in the third quarter, 25-7 in route to their third win of the season. The Cowgirls shot 53.3% (8-of-15) from the field in the first quarter, but could only manage 34.7% by the end of the game. They scored a scant eight points in the second quarter and seven in the third, as opposed to 21 and 25 for the Owls, respectively. They picked up their scoring with 16 points in the fourth quarter.

The Cowgirls were led by starting guard Regan Bolton (St. Thomas Aquinas HS, Hammond, Louisiana) with 11 points and Damilota Balogun (Bossier Parish CC, Lagos, Nigeria) with nine rebounds. Rive had four players in double-figures; Erica Ogwumike (Cypress Woods HS, Cypress, Texas) and Haylee Swayze (Purcell HS, Purcell, Oklahoma)with 12 points and Lauren Schwartz (Larry A. Ryle HS, Union, Kentucky) and India Bellamy (Eagles Landing Christian Academy, McDonough, Georgia)  with 10 reach.

Last season, the Owls downed McNeese 93-65 at Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston on November 11. Rice holds a 8-4 all-time series record against the Cowgirls. The last time McNeese downed Rice was a 61-53 victory an Lake Charles on November 25, 2015.

Rice outlasts TSU, 76-71 for second win of season

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2018 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 20, 2018) Trailing by 14 points in the third quarter, the Rice Owls outscored the Texas Southern Tigers 25-8 in the final seven and one-half minutes to take a 76-71 win in front of 529 fans at Tudor Fieldhouse on Tuesday evening.

TSU jumped out tp a 63-49 lead with 7:49 remaining in the game, but the Owls recovered from their third quarter slump and battled back to take their second win of the season The 2-2 Owls, whose two losses came against ranked teams, will look for their third win of the season on Friday afternoon (November 23) when they host Georgia State with a 2 p.m. tip off.

Erica Ogwumike (Cypress Woods HS, Cypress, Texas) led Rice with 20 points, followed by Jasmine Smith (The Kinkaid School, Cypress, Texas) and Lauren Grigsby (Dekaney HS, Spring, Texas), each with 16. Ogwumike was 11-of-12 from the freethrow line, with Smith shooting 7-of-8. Grisby was 4-of-5 from three-point range. Those stats contributed to 30 of Rice's 76 points. The Owls tallied 11 from behind the arc, to add to theor score.

The Tigers had three players in double figures; Marquia Turner (Hoover HS, Canton, Ohio) with 21 points, followed by Brenae Andrews (Grosse Pointe South HS, Detroit, Michigan) with 16, and Olivia Cunningham (Horn Lake HS, Horn Lake, Mississippi) with 15.

Next up for the 1-2 Tigers is a Friday, November 23 game against McNeese State in El Paso.  

Rice Owls down UTRGV in 2nd round of WBI

Photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2017 All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2017 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (March 19, 2017) The Rice Owls moved to the semifinals of the 2017 Women’s Basketball Invitational (WBI) with a 73-63 win over the UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros by the score of 73-63 at Tudor Fieldhouse on Sunday, March 19, 2017. They will face the winner of the Idaho vs. Eastern Washington game, which is to be played on Monday, March 20 in Cheney, Washington.

Senior Jasmine Goodwine tallied 23 points and 14 rebounds for her sixth career double-double. The Killeen, Texas native shot 9-of-16 from the field and 4-of 6 from the free throw line. Sophomore Lauren Grigsby added 24 points for the Owls while going 12-of-12 from the line. The Vaqueros were 20-of-65 from the field (31%) and 18-of-26 from the free throw line.

The win was the first time since the 1998-1999 season that the Owls have won two games in the post-season. Playing in the Women’s NIT, they downed Miami 65-58 and Baylor 82-20 before falling to Arkansas 76-70 in the third round.

Rice Owls advance in WBI with 73-72 win over Lamar

Photo by Darla S. Tamuitis
La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2017
All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2017 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (March 16, 2017) Leading at halftime 35-27 due largely to the shooting of senior Jasmine Goodwine (No. 33, shown right), the Rice Owls (19-13) went on to down the Lamar Cardinals (22-8) by the score of 73-72 in a first-round game of the Women’s Basketball Invitational (WBI) at Tudor Fieldhouse on Thursday, March, 16, 2017. With the win, the Owls will face UT-Rio Grande Valley in the quarterfinals of the tournament at home on Sunday, March 19 with a 2 p.m. CDT tipoff. The Owls and Lady Cardinals have played each other 31 times, with the current win raising Rice’s record to 9-22.

Goodwine, who played her prep ball at Killeen (Texas) High School, scored 21 points along with pulling down six rebounds and three assists. Both Maya Hawkins and Shani Rainey each added 14 points for the Owls. Lamar had three players in double figures; with Kiandra Bowers and Chastadie Barrs each scoring 14, while Moe Kinard chipped in 11. The Owls led by a game-high 11 points at the 9:50 mark in the third period while leading the game for 32:40. Rice head coach Tina Langley stated after the game:

Photo by Darla S. Tamuitis
La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2017
All Rights Reserved

 “I couldn’t be more proud of our team and staff. This season has been a journey that we’ve really enjoyed so far and we definitely don’t want it to end. I’m really excited about the progress we’ve made this season.”

The win was the sixth victory in post-season play for the Owls, with their last previous win coming during the 2005-2006 season when the downed Jackson State 64-48 in the first round of the WNIT. That win was also the last time the Owls hosted a post season game.

When Rice faces UT-Rio Grande Valley on Sunday, they will be looking at a team that finished fourth in the regular season of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). In the conference tournament, the No. 4 Vaqueros dropped a 77-69 decision to the No. 5 University of Missouri-Kansas City Kangaroos in Las Vegas.

Lamar and Rice to faceoff in first round of Women's Basketball Invitational

By Robert H. Kelly

Copyright 2017 TexSport Publications

PASADENA, TEXAS (March 13, 2017) The Lamar Cardinals women’s basketball team has received a bid to play in the 2017 Women’s Basketball Invitational (WBI). The Cardinals will face the Rice Owls at Tutor Fieldhouse in Houston on Thursday, March 17, 2017. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. CDT.

Lamar is coming off a 22-7 season in which they posted a third-place finish in the Southland Conference with a 15-3 record. In the first round of the Southland Conference tournament, the Cardinals fell to Stephen F. Austin 62-48. Rice finished the regular season with a 18-13 record and an 8-10 record in conference play.

The Cardinals hold a 22-7 record all time against the Owls. The WBI is a 16-team postseason tournament that started in 2010. The Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns have won the past two tournaments.

HBU falls to Rice Owls 3-point shooing 79-53 in women's basketball action

Taylor Kollmorgan (24) scored seven points and pulled
down 10 rebounds against the Rice Owls.
Photo by Darla Tamulitis, La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2016 All Rights Resaved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2016 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 19, 2016) The Houston Baptist University Huskies could not contain the three-point shooting of Rice University and as a result, dropped at 79-53 decision to the Owls at Sharp Gymnasium on the HBU campus on Saturday, November 19, 2016. The Owls connected on 11 of their 26 attempts from beyond the arc to raise their season record to 2-1 for the season. The Huskies, who shot 29% from the field, dropped to 0-3.

Starting forward Lauren Calver scored 13 point in the Huskies' loss. The 6-1 freshman from Helensburgh, Australia had her best game of the season; bettering her 11-point performance against the Texas Longhorns on November 16, 2016. Sophomore center Veronika Kirienko (Tashkent, Uzbekistan) came off the bench to score nine points and pull down 12 rebounds, while starting guard Bria Johnson and forward Taylor Kollmorgan each chipped in seven. Kollmorgan also pulled down 10 rebounds. The Owls has four players scoring in double-digits with starting guard Wendy Knight leading the Owls’ effort with 13 points.

Huskies continue their home stand against Southwestern Assemblies of God Wednesday at 7 p.m., before closing it out with Oral Roberts Saturday at 2 p.m.

Houston Cougars take second game of Silver Glove Series over Rice Owls

Photo by Darla Tamulitis, La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2016, All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2016 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (May 10, 2016) The Houston Cougars evened the 2016 series at 1-1 as they downed the No. 13 Rice Owls by the score of 10-0 in the second game of the Silver Glove Series on Tuesday, May 10, 2016 at Reckling Park in Houston, Texas. The Owls took the first game of the three-game series on March 22 by the score of 7-4 at Darryl and Lori Schroeder Park on the campus of the University of Houston. The two teams will play the final game of the series on Tuesday, May 17 at Constellation Field in Sugar Land, Texas.

The Cougars jumped out to a quick four-run lead after three innings by getting one runner home in the second inning and three more in the third. Seven batter faced Rice starter Zach Esquivel in the inning with Houston scoring their three runs on two hits and one error. The added three more runs in the fourth inning to take post a 7-0 lead after 21 outs. The Owls came to bat in the bottom of the fourth, but were unable to cut the Cougar lead. Houston added an insurance run in the fifth to increase their lead to 8-0 and two addition runs in the seventh inning to make the score 10-0.

The Cougars are  77-102 against the Owls in a series that dates back to 1948. The Cougars won that first matchup by the score of 10-5 at Rice. When Rice has hosted the Cougars, the Owls have posted a 53-29 record in addition to recording a 6-3 record when they have faced each other at a neutral site.

The Cougars post a 28-19 for the season and 8-9 in conference action. They are currently tied with Connecticut for fourth place in the American Athletic Conference, with six conference games to go. The will play at Cincinnati on May 13-15 and host Tulane on May 19-21. The Bearcats are in third place in conference with a 10-7-1 record. Tulane leads the conference with an 11-5 record. They will begin play at the American Baseball Championship on May 24 with the tournament final scheduled for May 29.

Rice currently leads Conference USA with six conference games remaining. The will face Florida Atlantic at Reckling Park on May 13-15 and finished out the regular season when they travel to Ruston, Louisiana to take on Louisiana Tech. After that, they travel to Hattiesburg, Mississippi to play in the Conference USA Tournament on May 25-29.

Houston falls to Rice 7-4 in first game of Silver Glove Series

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2016, All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2016 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (March 22, 2016) The No. 16 Houston Cougars and the Rice Owls took to the grass inside Darryl and Lori Schroeder Field on the campus of the University of Houston on Tuesday, March 22, 2016 for the first game of their annual Silver Glove Series. After playing an intense nine innings, Houston dropped a 7-4 decision to the Owls.

Rice jumped out to an early two-run lead in the first inning and extended their lead to 4-0 after the second inning. The Cougars responded in the bottom of the second, scoring two runs to cut the Owls’ lead back to two. Rice tallied their fifth run in the fifth inning, with Houston responding the keep the Owls’ two run advantage intact heading into the final four innings of the game. Houston, after a momentous seventh innings which saw their bats explode for four hits and one run. With one out in the ninth inning, Rice capitalized on two Houston errors to add two additional runs to their total to close out the scoring.

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2016, All Rights Reserved

The second game of the Silver Glove series will a May 10 matchup at Reckling Park on the Rice University campus. The third meeting between these two cross-town rivals, and the possible rubber game of the series, will take place at Constellation Field in Sugar Land, Texas on May 17. Both games have a scheduled 6:30 p.m. first-pitch.

Next up for the Cougars is a three-game home series against the George Washington Colonialsbeginning on Thursday, March 23 with a 6:30 p.m. start. They will continue the series on Friday, March 24 with a 6:30 p.m. first pitch and finish it up on Saturday, March 25 with a 1 p.m. start. George Washington brings an 8-13 record into the weekend series, while the Cougars post a 13-7 mark.

Rice will host Conference USA opponent Old Dominion on Friday, March 25; followed by a 2 p.m. matchup on Saturday, March 26. They will close out their three-game series with a noon meeting on Sunday, March 27.

Rice Owls fall to UTEP in hard-fought C-USA game

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2016 All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2016 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (January 1, 2016) The Rice Owls outscored the UTEP Miners 16-10 in the third quarter, but were unable to keep the momentum going and dropped a 60-54 Conference USA game at Tudor Fieldhouse on the campus of Rice University on January 1, 2016. The Owls fell to 0-1 in conference play and 1-11 for the 2015-2016 season. The Miners went to 1-0 in conference and 10-1 for the season.

The Miners jumped out to a 26-21 lead at halftime by shooting 37% and shutting down the Rice offense. The Owls shot 22% with 13 of their points coming from Alyssa Lang, Jasmine Goodwine, and Shani Rainey. In the third quarter, the Owls capitalized on UTEP’s mistakes and took a 37-26 lead by the end of the period. Maya Hawkins went on a seven-point scoring streak as Rice tallied a 9-0 take the lead. However, that would not be enough as the Miners outscored the Owls 24-17 in the final quarter to take the win.

Rice head coach Tina Langley talked about the Owls’ effort in the post-game press conference with the media.

"We took some strides forward today. Obviously we still need to value the ball more and protect it when the game gets physical. We've got to continue to get better at building leads and just keep fighting."

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2016 All Rights Reserved

Hawkins was 4-of-15 from the field and 6-of-6 from the free throw line to tally her 16 points for the afternoon. Wendy Knight chipped in 11 points while Rainey pulled down eight rebounds. UTEP had three players scoring in double figures; with Starr Breedlove scoring 15, followed by Jenzel Nash with 12 and Sparkle Taylor added 10. Agata Dobrowolska pulled down seven rebounds to lead UTEP.

Next on tap for the Owls is a 2 p.m. CST C-USA game against UTSA, who are 4-7 for the season and 0-1 in conference play.

Post-game statement by Rice Owls head coach Tina Langley

By Robert H Kelly

Copyright 2015 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (December 21, 2015) Post-game statement by head coach Tina Langley after the Rice Owls drop a 69-66 overtime decision to Texas Southern University in women's basketball on Monday, December 21, 2015. 

Video by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography, All Rights Reserved

Houston downs cross-town rival Rice in first game of Silver Glove Series

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2015 All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly

Copyright 2015 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (March 17, 2015) Exploding for five runs in the fourth inning, the No. 21 Houston Cougars added insurance runs in the seventh and eighth innings to down the No. 8 Rice Owls by the score of 8-3 at Cougar Field on Tuesday, March 17, 2015. The match-up was the first of the three-game series to determine the winner of the Silver Glove Series.

Rice scored two runs in the sixth inning and added one run in the eighth inning in the loss. Rice fell to 15-7 for the season. The Cougars raised their record 14-7.  The two cross-town rivals will again face-off on April 14 at Rice’s Reckling Park and May 12 at Constellation Field in Sugar Land.

The Cougars clobbered off 11 hits in route to the win with Chris Iriart going 2-of-3 and raising his batting average to .338.   Center fielder Zac Taylor was 3-of-3, scoring one run and knocking in one RBI.  Starting pitcher Seth Romero, pitching 6.1 innings, gave up two earned runs and struck out nine. He raised his record to 2-1. Rice starter Jordan Stephens received the loss, dropping his record to 1-1. Aaron Garza, pitching 1.1 innings in relief, received his first save of the season. Houston stranded six runners on base, while Rice left nine on base. Rice used seven pitchers in the loss, while Houston used three pitches in relief.

Houston will now hit the road for a three-game series in Albuquerque against New Mexico on March 20-22, 2015. They will return to Cougar Field on March 25 to face the Lamar Cardinals before again hitting the road for an eight-game road trip. 

Rice Owls soar past Fresno State Bulldogs; 30-6

By Mike Stockman

Staff Correspondent 

Copyright 2014 TexSport Publications

HONOLULU, HAWAII (December 24, 2014) The Rice Owls’ offense soars past the Fresno State Bulldogs while the defense keeps the Bulldogs caged for a controlling 30 – 6 victory at Aloha Stadium in the 2014 Hawai’i Bowl on December 24, 2014.

The Owls’ junior quarterback Driphus Jackson, who was selected the Player of the Game, led the offense with 318 yards passing and three touchdowns. Dennis Parks caught five passes for 109 yards and a touchdown, while Mario Hull and Jordon Taylor scored the other two passing TDs’.

After a 58 yard screen to sophomore running back DarikDillard from San Antonio, TX, Dillard punches it in for a one yard touchdown.

Rice’s senior kicker James Hairston completed the scoring by connecting with a 21 yard field goal in the first quarter and three extra-points.

The Owls’ defense closed down the Bulldogs by blocking field goals, catching interceptions, and allowing only 93 yards passing.

Before this matchup, Fresno State and Rice have met six times with the Bulldogs leading the series 6 – 0.

This is the second time Fresno State has played in the Hawaii Bowl in three years. Two years ago, the Bulldogs lost to the SMU Mustangs 43 – 10.

The Owls have been in three consecutive bowl games, winning twice. Their bowl record going back to 1938 is now 7 – 5.

Rice downs Incarnate Word 72-57; Kuster moves to third on all-time scoring list

By Robert H Kelly

Photo by Robert Franklin/rlfphoto

Copyright 2014 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (January 5, 2014) Leading by as much as 21 points at one point in the game, the Rice Owls went on to defeat the Incarnate Word Cardinals by the score of 72-57 in women’s basketball action in front of 393 fans at Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston, Texas on Friday evening, January 3, 2014. 
 

The Owls had three players in double figures; Christal Porter with 17 points, followed by Jasmine Goodwine with 16 points and Jessica Kuster with 13 points.

With her 13 points, Kuster (shown right) moved into third place in team career points with 1,712.

She is now only 79 points away from second place on the list, which is currently held by Holly Jones, who played for Rice from 1984 to 1988, and scored 1,791 points during her tenure.

The Owls were never really threatened by the Cardinals, who were ahead by two points 30 seconds into the game.

After that, Rice did not relinquish the lead the rest of the game.

Kuster also tallied 13 rebounds to lead all players.

The Owls shot 45% (29-of-64) from the field and 93% (14-of-15) from the free throw line.

For the Cardinals, Rose Whitehead scored 20 points, followed by Joslinn Douglas with 17 and Ifunanya Mora with 11.

Kosisio Mora led the Cardinals with eight rebounds.

With the win, the Owls moved to 7-6 for the season and will begin Conference USA play on January 8 when they travel to Miami to take in Florida International with a 6 p.m. ET start.

They return to Tutor Fieldhouse on January 15 where they will face Louisiana Tech in a 7 p.m. CT matchup.

2014 Houston College Classic set for February 28-March 1

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2013 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (December 24, 2013) The Houston Astros have announced the field for the 2014 Houston College Classic to be held at Minute Maid Park on February 28-March 2, 2014 in Houston, Texas.

The Houston Cougars and the Rice Owls will join four other teams from Texas in only the second time tournament history that all the teams competing will be from Texas.

Houston, who finished in second place in Conference USA in 2013 with a 36-22 record, will face Texas Tech at 12:05 p.m. on Friday, February 28, Texas at 3:35 p.m. on Saturday March 1, and TCU at 5:05 p.m. on Sunday, March 2.

The 2013 Conference USA champion and Super Regional finalist Rice Owls, will play Texas at 7:05 p.m. on February 28, TCU at 7:05 p.m. on March 1, and Texas Tech at 1:35 p.m. on March 2.

The Texas Longhorns, who are ranked number 20 in the 2014 Collegiate Baseball Preseason Poll, finished with a 27-24 overall record in 2013, with a 7-17 record in the Big 12 Conference.

Texas Tech tallied a 26-30 overall record in 2013, finished in eighth place in Big 12 action, while TCU finished in seventh place with a 29-28 overall record and a 12-12 mark in the Big 12.

Sam Houston State University will round out the tournament field, playing TCU at 3:35 p.m. on February 28, Texas Tech at 12:05 p.m. on March 1, and Texas at 10:05 a.m. on March 2.

Houston and Rice have played every year since the tournaments inception in 2001, with the Texas Tech Red Raiders participating eight times.

Beadle scores 30 as Sam Houston downs Rice in overtime

Angela Beadle scored a career high
30 points against Rice.
Photo by Darla Tamulitis
Copyright 2013 La Vita Loca Photography

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2013 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 28, 2013) Paced by Angela Beadle’s 30 points, the Sam Houston Bearkats downed the Rice Owls by the score of 79-74 in non-conference women’s basketball action at Tutor Fieldhouse in Houston, Texas on Tuesday, November 26, 2013.

Beadle tallied eight of her points in overtime to give the Bearkats their third win of the season and dropped Rice to 3-3 with the loss.

Sam Houston looked to take a 66-63 win at the end of regulation to the locker room, when Rice’s  Breion Allen connected for three with six seconds remaining to send the game to overtime.

The Bearkats lead by a nine points at the 15:41 mark in the second half, as Rice began the comeback and tied it at the end of the second half.

Beadle, whose 30 points was a career high, also pulled down 16 rebounds with 12 on the defensive end of the court, to lead all players.

The All Southland Conference selection in 2013, shot 13-of-25 from the floor and was 4-of-5 from the line while plying 35 minutes.

Jessica Kuster scored 22 points
pulled down 15 rebounds for Rice.
Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2013 All Rights Reserved

For the Owls, Jessica Kuster (shown right) was 7-of-21 from the floor, including 3-of-5 from three-point range and 5-of-7 from the line, for 22 points.

Sam Houston shot 39% for the game, including 57% in overtime and was 67% from the line.

In addition to Beadle’s offensive performance, the Bearkats’ Jasmine Johnson accounted for 21 points and Taylor Dorsey tallied 12.

Rice also had two players, in addition to Kuster in double figures; Megan Palmer with 10 points and Allen with 10.

The Bearkats will next travel to Kansas City Missouri to face the University of Missouri at Kansas City in the first round of the UMKC Thanksgiving Tournament on Friday, November 29.

The Owls will also be on the road for their next contest as they head to Boulder, Colorado to play in the Omni Hotels Classic on November 29, facing Samford with a 6 p.m. CT start.

Houston Cougars retain Bayou Bucket Trophy; beat Rice Owls 31-26

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright  2013 TexSport Publications

HOUSTON, TEXAS (September 22, 2013) The Houston Cougars were trailing four minutes into game and rebounded with 24 points to down the Rice Owls by the score of 31-26 to retain possession of the Bayou Bucket on Saturday, Sept, 21, 2013 at Houston’s Reliant Stadium.

Rice jumped out to an early lead on a Luke Turner pass to Turne Petersen to take the score 6-0 at the 12:34 mark.
The Cougars responded two-minutes later when sophomore Ryan Jackson capped off a 75 yard drive with a one-yard run to make the score 7-6.
Rice followed up at the 6:51 mark with Charles Ross scoring on a one-yard run to take the score to 13-7 in favor of Rice.
The Cougars then rattled off 24 unanswered points to make the score 31-13 seven second into the fourth quarter.
It seemed to many fans in Reliant Stadium that the Cougars were on the way to an easy victory when Rice mounted a comeback with less than 11 minutes remaining in the game.
The Owls scored a touchdown off a nine play, 65 yard drive that lasted four minutes, cutting the Houston lead to 31-20.
A blocked Houston punt at their own 38 yard line led to a Taylor McHargue touchdown to further cut the Houston lead to six.
Rice recovered the on-side kick at the 2:19 mark in the fourth quarter but was unable to capitalize.
Houston’s John O’Korn and Greg Ward shared quarterback responsibilities during the game with O’Korn completing 15-of-303 passes for 281 yards and three touchdowns.
Ward, on the other hand, achieved his offensive punch on the ground, keeping the ball nine times for 80 yards, while completing three passes for 48 yards.
Ryan Jackson carried the ball 19 times for 88 yards and one touchdown.
In the air, Doentay Greenberry caught six passes for 146 yards and one touchdown while Daniel Spencer and Jackson both caught four passes for 76 and 57 yards, respectively and one touchdown each.

Photo by Darla Tamulitis-La Vita Loca Photography

Houston head coach Tony Levine stated he was very pleased with his two freshmen quarterbacks (O’Korn and Ward) when interviewed by members of the media in the post-game press conference;

"Greg Ward got his first game action and rushed the ball nine times for 80 yards. I’m really proud of him, and he and John O’Korn are both in the same mold of they seem older in terms of the way they carry themselves. I was proud of John as he made a couple of freshman mistakes, but is still learning. He’s getting better, and he’s a competitor. He took some pretty big hits out there, and got back in the game and threw three touchdown passes."

Greenberry was asked in the press conference how he felt about being the main option as a receiver for the quarterbacks;

"We had two true freshmen who were able to get in today, and they both did an excellent job. It’s just going out there and making plays for the quarterbacks. You just have to go out there and execute and trust that your quarterback will get it there."

Defensively, linebacker Steven Taylor had 11 total tackles for Houston, with three of them solo; while strong safety Adrian McDonald tallied five solo and five assisted tackles.
With the win, the Cougars raise their season record to 3-0 as they prepare to hit the road next Saturday to face Texas-San Antonio at the Alamodome in San Antonio with a 3:00 p.m. CT kickoff.