Temple University Athletics
#15 LSU SWEEPS BASEBALL, 9-0 AND 14-4
2.26.06 | Baseball
BATON ROUGE, LA -- Temple gave #15 LSU all it could handle on Friday night before losing 4-1. Sunday was a different story as the Owls struggled in a doubleheader at Alex Box Stadium, losing the opener, 9-0, and falling 14-4 in the nightcap. TU returns to action on Saturday as it begins a seven-game series at Hawaii-Hilo.
Sophomore transfer Arshwin Asjes started for the Cherry and White in game one and couldn't find the consistency that made him a 34th round draft pick last June. Asjes (0-1) was tagged with the loss after giving up six hits and allowing three earned runs in four innings. He did pitch out of jams in the first and third innings and a two-run homer to right field from Jordan Mayer in the second provided for most of the damage.
The Tigers (10-1) scored six runs in the middle innings to put the game away. LSU's Derik Olvey, a Notre Dame transfer, stymied the Temple offense and improved to 3-0 on the season. He twirled eight shutout innings, scattering five hits, and striking out six. Sophomore Devon Swope had two hits, including a double, for Temple.
Senior Justin Mendek got the start in the nightcap after missing the majority of last season due to injury. The crafty southpaw battled against the potent LSU offense, but gave up four earned runs in three innings to take the loss. The Tigers scored runs in the first six innings to take a 10-3 lead after the bottom of the sixth.
Temple (0-3) put up season-highs in runs (four) and hits (eight). Freshman Pat Riley, starting for the first time at first base, went 2-for-3, while sophomore Frank Nunan added two more hits to his tally for the weekend. The leftfielder finished the series batting .600 (6-for-10). Junior Dan Brady also had a pair of hits for the Owls.
The visitors tied the game up at two in the third. Freshman Casey Sellen drew a lead-off walk and advanced to third on a failed pick-off attempt. After a walk to Swope and a strikeout, Sellen scored on a wild pitch for the first run of the day for the Owls. Nunan then singled in Swope to tie the game at 2-2.
Temple added single tallies in the sixth and eighth frames. Riley singled to start the inning and later scored as LSU 2B Jason Ogata couldn't handle a grounder by sophomore Tom Dolan. In the eighth, an RBI single by Swope scored Brady (single).
The game, which started at 9:30 a.m., was the earliest start of a regular season game in the history of Alex Box Stadium. A SEC Tournament game in 1991 started at 9 a.m.
