Moller's Complete Game Masterpiece Sparks Owls To 3-1 Victory Over Dayton

Friday, May 4

Ambler, Pa.

3:00 p.m.

Temple University

21-25, 10-6

Dayton

17-28, 5-11

Dayton

Temple

Senior Dan Moller now owns the only career complete game on the Owls' staff

Moller's Complete Game Masterpiece Sparks Owls To 3-1 Victory Over Dayton

5.4.12 | Baseball

Box Score

Temple has won four of its last five A-10 games; Series continues Saturday at 1:00 p.m.

AMBLER, Pa. – Less than two hours and 100 pitches, senior left-handed pitcher Dan Moller faced just three batters over the minimum and pitched Temple's first complete game of the year and his first win in over three years, as the Owls defeated Dayton, 3-1, in the weekend series opener at Skip Wilson Field on Friday afternoon.

With its fourth Atlantic 10 Conference win in the last five tries, the Owls have five on the year, giving first-year skipper Ryan Wheeler and his players more league victories than what was gathered a season ago.

It was certainly a pitching duel on Friday, as Dayton (21-25, 10-6) starter senior Mike Hauschild and Moller both allowed their relievers to have a day off by throwing complete games. Moller's nine innings of work not only surpasses his career-high frames of work, which he set a week ago, but also makes him the only pitcher on the entire Temple pitching staff to have a complete game in his career.

Moller was sensational from the get go. Through the first 3.2 innings, he faced the minimum of batters, as he retired 10 of the first 11 hitters he faced.

After surrendering his first hit with two outs in the bottom of the third inning to Kuris Dugan, senior catcher Taylor Juran picked him off first base on a quick throw down to redshirt senior Matt Elko at first base.

In the fourth, the Flyers started to find their way with Moller. With two outs, Brian Blasik hit a ball out into center field. C.J. Gillman was the next batter and hit a ground ball to freshman Nick Lustrino at short stop. Having trouble scooping up the ball, he threw the ball over Elko at first allowing Blasik to run all the way home from first to put Dayton ahead first.

From that point on, Moller's stuff was unhittable, as he went on to set down nine of the next 10 batters he faced. The only one to reach base in that span—Mel Skochdopole—was due to a pitch that hit him.

Temple would retaliate in their at-bat of the fourth inning, gathering all the offense it would need to win its second straight A-10 weekend series opener.

Senior center fielder Jabair Khan got it all started for the Owls. A ball hit to short stop looked to be a routine out, but throw from Blasik pulled Flyers' first baseman A.J. Ryan off the bag, allowing Khan to reach on the error.

Elko, who had few mishaps making plays down the right field foul line, redeemed himself and was the catalyst for the Owls at the dish on Friday afternoon, as he smacked a two-base hit all the way out to center field, allowing Khan to charge home on the play to knot the ballgame at one.

Junior Allen Stiles, who was making his sixth straight start in the lineup and in the field, once again came up with a timely hit. A base knock that looped into right field was enough to get Elko to race around the bags to give Temple a 2-1 lead.

All three runs in the inning between the two teams went down as unearned for Moller and Hauschild.

In the eighth and just after surpassing his career-long outing of 7.1 innings, which he set at UMass last Friday, ran into some trouble with two outs.

Skochdopole hit a pitch into right center field to keep the inning alive. With Josh Jeffery in to pinch hit, Skochdopole snagged second base and was in scoring position, representing the tying run. Moller continued to jam hitters and got Jeffery to fly out to Khan to end the inning.

Just 3-9 in one-run games and with Wheeler looking to send Moller back out in the top of the ninth, the Owls needed to pick up some insurance.

Junior David Hall picked up his second hit of the day to lead off the inning. Juran moved Hall over on the sacrifice bunt before Elko came to the plate with two outs and punched one through the right side, allowing Hall to make his way all the way to give the Owls a more comfortable two-run lead—which they are 3-3 in games when they lead by at least that many.

Elko reached base three times on the day, going 2-for-3 with a walk. Stiles and Hall also finished with multi-hit games for the Owls.

In the ninth, looking to close it out, Dayton leadoff hitter Bobby Glover skied a pitch deep into left field but died right inside the warning track, where Stile lunged himself into the wall—shaking the aluminum NCAA College World Series banners—to make the catch and keep the bases clear for Moller, who then stood just two outs from the complete game.

Moller went on to get Robby Sunderman to pop out to Khan and Blasik to fly out to Hall out in center to end the ballgame having thrown 96 pitches in one hour and 56 minutes, marking the quickest nine-inning game for the Owls this season.

The Owls and Flyers will be right back at it on Saturday, as the middle game of the series is set to take place at 1:00 p.m. Owl Access will have all the action live for those interested in subscribing to view. On the hill for Temple will be sophomore right-hander Matt Hockenberry, while Dayton has elected righty Tim Bury to go out there for the Flyers.