Temple University Athletics
Baseball Completes A-10 Opening Sweep Of Rhode Island With 8-2 Win
3.23.08 | Baseball
March 23, 2008
KINGSTON, RI - Senior Mike Mongiardini struck out seven batters in six innings, allowing two earned runs, and Temple received a balanced offensive attack to beat Rhode Island, 8-2, on Sunday at Bill Beck Field. The Owls won their fifth straight game and completed the series sweep of URI to start the Atlantic 10 schedule with a 3-0 record. Junior Carmen Del Mastro had two hits and two RBI for TU.
Mongiardini (1-2) picked up his first win in a Temple uniform by scattering six hits in six innings. The southpaw retired 10 of 11 batters beginning in the third inning and opponents are now batting just .214 against him this season.
The Temple (10-7, 3-0 A-10) bullpen continued to impress as sophomore Matt Blackburn and senior Arshwin Asjes combined for three scoreless innings. Blackburn entered the game with runners on first and second and nobody out in the seventh and retired three straight batters to escape the jam.
In the eighth, the first two batters reached base on an error and a single, but again Blackburn retired three straight. Asjes pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning to finish the series sweep. The bullpen threw nine innings this weekend and allowed two earned runs.
While the Owls' pitching kept the Rhode Island (6-12, 0-3) bats quiet, TU's offense was balanced as eight players had at least one hit. Junior Kyle Obal had two singles and two RBI, while sophomore Matt Heltz also had a pair of singles. Obal batted .538 (7-for-13) with four RBI during the series.
Senior Stan Orzechowski led off the game with a single, moved to third on an error and scored on freshman Byron McKoy's fielder's choice. Junior Sean Barksdale, who had walked, and McKoy, scored on Obal's two-out single to give Mongiardini a 3-0 lead heading into the bottom of the first.
Barksdale manufactured another run in the third when he singled, stole second, stole third and scored when the throw sailed into left. Three straight singles by freshman Steve Nikorak, Heltz and Del Mastro loaded the bases with one out in the fourth. After a strikeout, junior Mark Ortega singled home a pair of runs to make the score, 6-2.
Del Mastro singled home two runs in the eighth to give Temple a six-run cushion and ensure the series sweep.
Nick Greenwood (2-3) suffered the loss after surrendering five earned runs in six innings. He did strike out eight batters. Oliver Palmer had two hits and an RBI for the Rams.
Temple last swept a three-game series on May 13-14, 2005 against St. Bonaventure. The last three-game sweep on the road came on March 27-28, 2004 at La Salle. The 2004 team also had the next longest winning streak at seven games from March 25-April 6.
The Owls will host city-rival La Salle (4-16) on Tuesday in the first round of the Liberty Bell Classic. The winner of the game will play host to the winner of Villanova and Lehigh on Tuesday, April 1. The final two teams will play for the LBC title on April 8 at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Philadelphia Phillies.
NOTES: Temple last swept Rhode Island on April 9-10, 1994...Barksdale stole a career-high three bases today and leads the team with 10 swipes...Obal is batting .429 with runners in scoring position, followed by Ortega (.423)...The Owls last met La Salle in the first round of the LBC in 2006 when the Explorers advanced to the semifinals with a 5-4 win.
