Box Score

HOUSTON -- The University of Hawai`i Rainbow baseball team (14-27, 3-12) fell to the No. 4 Rice Owls (35-8, 17-1) 7-6 in front of 2,653 fans at Reckling Park Saturday. Bryan Lee (2-2) got the loss while David Aardsma (6-1) got the win.

Rice opened up the scoring when Mike Lorsbach drove in a run to put them up 1-0. The Rainbows then took over the lead with Scooter Martines drove in a two-run single to take the lead. Brent Cook then extended the team's lead to 3-1 with a sacrafice fly to center field.

Starter Ricky Bauer dodged a major bullet in the bottom of the fifth inning, when the Owls left two runners on base. Rice again stranded a runner, this time on third base, when the Rainbows turned a 1-4-3 doubleplay to end the sixth inning.

Cook drove in another run in the top of the seventh inning to extend the lead to 4-1.

Rice started to cut the lead in the bottom of the seventh inning as Vincent Sinisi and Hunter Brown drove in a run each before Bauer was taken out of the game. Pribble then came into the game and shut down the rally, keeping the Rainbows ahead at 4-3.

The Owls kept the lead at three when Eric Arnold made a diving stop to force the third out at second base in the top of the eighth, stranding three Hawai`i runners. And that proved costly as Rice got an RBI double from Arnold to tie the game at 4-4.

The 'Bows again stranded two runners in the top of the ninth, sending the game into extra innings. Hawai`i then got two runs in the top of the tenth on a passed ball and a Cook RBI single. But the Owls came right back in the bottom of the tenth, scoring two runs of their own to tie the game at six.

Rice then won the game with a Brown RBI double in the bottom of the 11th.

Cook led the way for UH with a 3-for-4 day with three RBI and a run scored. Scooter Martines added a 3-for-6 performance with two RBI while Brian Bock, Julian Russell, Gregg Omori and Lane Nogawa also had two hits each. Bauer pitched well for Hawai`i, going 6.1 innings, giving up just two earned runs.

The Rainbows now head home after this 11-day road trip and will host the Fresno State Bulldogs for a three-game series starting April 26.