Temple University Athletics
Photo by: Mitchell Leff
Baseball Begins Seven-Game Homestand Hosting La Salle
4.7.11 | Baseball
Owls' contest on Friday postponed, series to start Saturday
PHILADELPHIA - The Temple baseball team has struggled as of late after getting off to a rough start in conference play, but the Owls are looking to bounce back as they put their perfect home record on the line hosting seven-straight games at Skip Wilson Field beginning with La Salle on Saturday. Friday's game has been postponed due to rain. The Owls, 15-11 overall, 2-4 in Atlantic 10 play, welcome an Explorers' team that is 15-13, 2-4 in league play. Live stats will be offered all weekend, with Saturday's contest being streamed live.
Still boasting one of the nation's best team batting averages (.356, 355-996), Temple has been led by the hot bat of senior shortstop Adrian Perez. Perez, leading the team batting .402 (49-122, 12 2B), ranks fifth in the country and first in the conference with 49 hits on the year. Fellow senior Byron McKoy has been on fire as well, hitting .383 (44-115) and now owning 224 career hits - a mark that ranks fourth all-time in Temple history.
On another historical note, senior Ryan Ferguson saw his school-record 26-game hitting streak end on April 3. Ferguson (.368, 42-114, 34 RBI), named Owlsports.com Athlete of the Month for March, had hit safely in the final two games of last season along with the first 24 of this year.
Senior production has been the driving force behind the Owls' success thus far, but a supporting cast of underclassmen have also stepped and gotten the job done. Redshirt-junior Steve Nikorak continues to fuel the offense, batting .385 (42-109) with 10 doubles and four homers. The Stroudsburg, Pa., native leads the team in runs scored (32), ranking 15th in the nation in runs scored per game (1.23 rspg.). Freshman Will Remillard is having a phenomenal collegiate debut, ranking second on the team batting .400 (32-80) in 20 starts this season.
A pair of juniors have been giving Temple a boost as well, in the form of Taylor Juran and Jabair Khan. Juran is batting .385 (26-68) over 23 games played while Khan, who has made 77 consecutive starts mainly in centerfield, is hitting .347 (34-98).
On the hill for the Owls to start the series is senior Ben White (3-4, 4.94 ERA), going against senior Kevin Fuqua (2-3, 2.85 ERA) of La Salle. Junior Brant Norlander (3-1, 4.57 ERA) gets the nod in game two, facing La Salle lefty Eric Van Wyk (1-0, 2.67 ERA). For the series finale, freshman Matt Hockenberry (2-1, 6.69 ERA) has the honors of starting for Temple, with the Explorers sending junior Cody Weiss (3-4, 6.87 ERA) out to start.
Scouting La Salle...
The Explorers are led by juniors Marc Schoch and Jeff Flax at the plate. Schoch is batting a team-best .375 (36-96, 11 2B), with Flax batting .350 on a team-high 42 hits. La Salle is coming off of a loss to Villanova in the Liberty Bell Classic second round, after dropping two games to Rhode Island in the Explorers' last conference series.
Series History...
The Owls hold a commanding 88-31 all-time record against La Salle, with the squads first meeting in 1947. Temple has won four of the last six meetings over the Explorers, topping the crosstown foe 6-5 last season and sweeping the team's 2009 series with La Salle.
Up next...
After a three-game series with La Salle, the Owls host Big East foe Rutgers on Wednesday, April 13. Temple then welcomes Massachusetts to Skip Wilson Field for a three-game set beginning April 15.
Still boasting one of the nation's best team batting averages (.356, 355-996), Temple has been led by the hot bat of senior shortstop Adrian Perez. Perez, leading the team batting .402 (49-122, 12 2B), ranks fifth in the country and first in the conference with 49 hits on the year. Fellow senior Byron McKoy has been on fire as well, hitting .383 (44-115) and now owning 224 career hits - a mark that ranks fourth all-time in Temple history.
On another historical note, senior Ryan Ferguson saw his school-record 26-game hitting streak end on April 3. Ferguson (.368, 42-114, 34 RBI), named Owlsports.com Athlete of the Month for March, had hit safely in the final two games of last season along with the first 24 of this year.
Senior production has been the driving force behind the Owls' success thus far, but a supporting cast of underclassmen have also stepped and gotten the job done. Redshirt-junior Steve Nikorak continues to fuel the offense, batting .385 (42-109) with 10 doubles and four homers. The Stroudsburg, Pa., native leads the team in runs scored (32), ranking 15th in the nation in runs scored per game (1.23 rspg.). Freshman Will Remillard is having a phenomenal collegiate debut, ranking second on the team batting .400 (32-80) in 20 starts this season.
A pair of juniors have been giving Temple a boost as well, in the form of Taylor Juran and Jabair Khan. Juran is batting .385 (26-68) over 23 games played while Khan, who has made 77 consecutive starts mainly in centerfield, is hitting .347 (34-98).
On the hill for the Owls to start the series is senior Ben White (3-4, 4.94 ERA), going against senior Kevin Fuqua (2-3, 2.85 ERA) of La Salle. Junior Brant Norlander (3-1, 4.57 ERA) gets the nod in game two, facing La Salle lefty Eric Van Wyk (1-0, 2.67 ERA). For the series finale, freshman Matt Hockenberry (2-1, 6.69 ERA) has the honors of starting for Temple, with the Explorers sending junior Cody Weiss (3-4, 6.87 ERA) out to start.
Scouting La Salle...
The Explorers are led by juniors Marc Schoch and Jeff Flax at the plate. Schoch is batting a team-best .375 (36-96, 11 2B), with Flax batting .350 on a team-high 42 hits. La Salle is coming off of a loss to Villanova in the Liberty Bell Classic second round, after dropping two games to Rhode Island in the Explorers' last conference series.
Series History...
The Owls hold a commanding 88-31 all-time record against La Salle, with the squads first meeting in 1947. Temple has won four of the last six meetings over the Explorers, topping the crosstown foe 6-5 last season and sweeping the team's 2009 series with La Salle.
Up next...
After a three-game series with La Salle, the Owls host Big East foe Rutgers on Wednesday, April 13. Temple then welcomes Massachusetts to Skip Wilson Field for a three-game set beginning April 15.
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