The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Baseball Opens Weekend Series With Rice Friday Night
4/21/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 21, 2011
Game Notes 
| Friday Gametracker | Watch Live
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The UAB baseball team welcomes nationally-ranked Rice to town this weekend for a three-game Conference USA series over two days at Young Memorial Field.
This weekend's schedule features a single game Friday at 6:30 p.m. CT and a Saturday doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. CT. The Owls (27-14, 8-4 C-USA), ranked No. 19 in the latest NCBWA poll, are tied for first in the league standings, while the Blazers (21-16, 6-6 C-USA) are just two games back.
This Weekend's Schedule
Game 1 -- Friday (6:30 p.m. CT)
Pitching Probables: RHP Dillon Napoleon (UAB) vs. RHP Austin Kubitza (Rice)
Game 2 -- Saturday (1:00 p.m. CT)
Pitching Probables: TBA (UAB) vs. TBA (Rice)
Game 3 -- Saturday (45 minutes after first game ends)
Pitching Probables: TBA (UAB) vs. TBA (Rice)
Live Coverage
Fans can follow the action this weekend through Gametracker live stats (free) and All-Access streaming video (premium) at uabsports.com. Both games of Saturday's doubleheader will air live in Birmingham on WJOX-AM 690.
About UAB
UAB rebounded nicely from its three losses to Memphis last weekend by posting an 8-1 road win Tuesday over a Troy team that just one week earlier was ranked as high as No. 18 in the country. The Blazers have won three of their previous four Conference USA series this season and sit just two games back of first place entering the weekend.
UAB has four players who are hitting .290 or better, including Patrick Palmeiro who homered and drove in four runs at Troy and leads the Blazers with five home runs and 26 RBI on the season. Jamal Austin's .349 batting average and 18 stolen bases continue to rank among the league leaders. Defensively, the Blazers played another error-free game at Troy to maintain their .974 team fielding percentage, including a .986 mark over the past 17 games.
The Blazer pitching continues to be a top storyline with UAB's 3.41 team ERA on pace for one of the best in school history. Dillon Napoleon and Ryan Woolley each rank in the top 10 in C-USA in ERA, wins, strikeouts and innings pitched, while Ryan Nance's seven saves on the back end of games are the second-most in the league. Napoleon (5-1, 1.87 ERA) is scheduled to start Friday's series opener.
UAB is coached by Brian Shoop, who owns a career record of 823-441-1 in his 22nd year as a head coach and a 131-134 mark in his fifth year with the Blazers.
Scouting Rice
Rice enters the weekend ranked as high as No. 19 in the country in the NCBWA poll. After a 10-9 start, the Owls have rattled off 17 wins in their past 22 games. Rice lost its first series in conference play to UCF but has since posted three straight series victories.
Two-time C-USA Player of the Year Anthony Rendon leads the Owls with a .348 batting average and has been walked 59 times, more than player in the country. Rendon also leads the team with 11 doubles, while Michael Ratteree's four home runs and 31 RBI are tops among the Owls, which are hitting .277 as a team.
Rice's team ERA of 3.18 ranks second in the league, while Friday starter Austin Kubitza (3-3, 1.33 ERA) has the second-best individual ERA in the conference. Matthew Reckling has a 2.17 ERA and has also been a mainstay in the rotation, while Tony Cingrani has closed games out with five saves.
Rice is coached by Wayne Graham, who owns a 1,472-467 record in his 30th season as a head coach and an 897-354 mark in his 20th year with the Owls.
All-Time Versus Rice
UAB trails 14-4 in the all-time series against Rice with all 18 meetings coming since the Owls joined Conference USA in 2006. The Blazers, however, have won four of the past eight meetings, including a 2-1 series victory the last time the teams met in Birmingham in 2009. Those wins against the then-No. 4 Owls marked the highest ranked opponent UAB has ever defeated in a game or a series. The Blazers lost the first two games of last year's series in Houston by scores of 5-2 and 9-2 before closing with an 8-5 win in the final game of the regular season.
The Last Time Out
Patrick Palmeiro drove in a season-high four runs Tuesday and came up a triple shy of the cycle in UAB's 8-1 victory on the road at Troy. Chase Mallard allowed just one run in six innings, and the Blazers opened up a close game with six runs over the final four frames to snap a three-game losing skid. Coy Arrowood joined Palmeiro with three hits in the game for UAB.
Mallard turned in the longest outing of his freshman campaign as he earned his first career win. The right-hander allowed five hits, struck out two and walked just one. The trio of Jacob German, Trey Waltman and Mark McKinley combined to hold Troy scoreless over the final three innings to close out the win. Palmeiro drove in UAB's first run of the day and the final three, including two on his fifth home run of the season.
