Clearwater, Fla. (3/1/14) – The Owls dropped another pair of games Saturday losing to both Loyola Marymount and Central Arkansas 2-1 and 11-3 respectively in the USF Under Armour Invitational.
Workhorse SP Kelsey Dominik once again was on the mound for Temple squaring off against LMU ace Sydney Gouveia. Gouveia was stellar as a freshman for the Lions last year going (18-4) with a 1.84 ERA. She won the Pitcher of the Year for her conference.
After Gouveia mowed down Temple hitters in the first, leadoff hitter Hannah Montalban reached with a single then moved to second on a balk by Dominik. CF Ander Lopez knocked her in with a RBI double as the Owls once again trailed early in the game. Dominik would walk the next Lions’ hitter but would get out of the first inning jam getting two outs via ground out and a strikeout to end the inning.
Hitting was an afterthought for the Owls on the game as Gouveia was allowed only one hit in her first six innings. Lacey McKeon was the only Temple hitter to reach base via hit until the seventh.
LMU SS Sterling Shuster singled home DH Alex Finie who led off the sixth with a double. Temple’s lone run came in the top of the seventh on a Leah Lucas HR to cut the lead in half. With a runner on first and two down, Gouveia struck out 1B Kaylin Zierke to end the Temple threat and close the door on a 2-1 LMU win.
SP Kelsey Dominik (1-3) picked up the tough loss for the Owls pitching a complete game while letting up two runs on seven hits. LMU starter Sydney Gouveia pitched a complete game shutout with 12 strikeouts and just two hits given up. She improves to (6-1) on the season.
Temple played the Central Arkansas Bears in another tournament battle shortly following their loss.
The Owls were held scoreless in their first two frames. UCA diminished the Owls’ hopes early as 3B Sam Forrest blasted a grand slam following a hit by pitch administered by Temple SP Brooklin White. Down five, Temple, with an already anemic offense, would be hard pressed to tie the game. 3B Devynne Nelons, hitting a paltry .095 heading into the contest, crushed a solo shot to cut the lead to four in the third.
Temple called on SP Amanda Gatt to pitch the fourth. She should have stuck to strictly starting.
SS Hayley Parker led off the inning with the double but the Temple free fall was just beginning. PH Bailey Reynolds and C Jessie Taylor knocked in two runs with RBI singles and Gatt walked RF Briana Whisenhunt to push the lead to seven. 1B Tylor Dodson drove in another with a RBI groundout as Gatt left the inning letting up four in only an inning of work.
DH Julia Kastner broke a 1-11 slump with a two run HR in the fifth off UCA starter Kylee Studioso. The Bears would tack on a run in the fifth and sixth as Temple endured the mercy rule in the sixth losing 11-3.
Temple SP Brooklin White (0-2) went 3.0 innings giving up five runs on six hits and three strikeouts. UCA Starter Kylee Studioso (4-3) picked up the easy win going a complete game letting up only one earned run and had nine strikeouts.
The Owls (2-7) look to pick up their first win against a team other than Western Michigan Sunday as they take on Mount Saint Mary’s in their last game of the USF Under Armour Invitational.
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