Temple University Athletics
POWELL PUTS OUT FIRE AND WILDCATS AS OWLS WIN, 7-6
5.1.02 | Baseball
Following some sloppy play in yesterday's Drexel game, The Skipper pulled his team together and handed down a good pep talk prior to the game against the 'Cats.
Obviously the team listened and responded, as the Owls jumped on Wildcat starter and eventual loser Dan Farino for three first-inning runs.
A Mike Weckenman (Newtown, Pa/Council Rock) double with one out was followed by a walk to Jeff Roma (Endicott, NY/Union-Endicott). Following the second out of the inning, Sam Sabolchick (Hazleton, PA/Hazleton Area) doubled in one run and Al Roach (Medford, NJ/Shawnee) plated two runs witha double to left, giving the Owls an early 3-0 lead.
Freshman Bryan Stamm(Mifflinburg,PA/Mifflinburg) breezed through the first inning but was touched up for to runs in the second and one in the third to knot the game at three.
The Owls regained the lead by scoring a pair of runs in the fourth. Al Roach picked up his second hit of the day, a single to start the uprisig. Following two flyouts, Jerome Lopez (Laureldale, Pa/Muhlenberg) singled to left as Roach moved over to third. A pass ball scored Roach and Fred Hilliard (Upper Darby, PA/Upper Darby) singled in Lopez.
The Owls added a run in the fifth on some sloppy Villanova fielding to open up a 6-3 lead but the Wildcats came right back in the bottom of the inning.
With one out, Adrin Mannix walked and following a flyout, Greg Fatek and Brian Trotta followed with singles to load the bases. Mark Cardillo grounded to third, but an error by Lopez scored one run. Matt Powell was then brought in to relieve Stamm and Chris Graziano hit a seeing-eye single off shortstop Mike Weckenman's glove to score another run as the bases remained loaded. Powell then escaped any further damage by striking out pinch hitter Mike Crammer.
The Owls scored their final run of the game in the sixth as Gene Burpoe (Arlington, Va/Wakefield) doubled, moved to third on a flyout by Lopez and then scored a a perfectly executed sqeeze bunt by Hilliard.
The relievers, Matt Powell, Tom Kandybowicz and Bob Grzenda then settled in and held each team scoreless over the next three innings.
Powell, who picked up his fifth win of the season, got himself into a jam in the ninth. Brendan Mannix doubled to left and following a groundout, Brendan Trainor singled in Mannix. Greg Fater then hit an infield single to put runners on first and second. Powell then got Brian Trotta to hit into an around-the-horn (5-4-3) double play to end the game.
The Owls were led by Jeff Roma who had three hits and played some outstanding defense behind the plate and Al Roach who had a pair of hits and RBI's.
The Owls are now off until their pivotal weekend series up in Kingston, Rhode Island against the Rhode Island Rams, who they are in a virtual flat-footed tie with in second place (8-10) in the eastern division of the Atlantic 10 Conference.
