The day before, LMU had gone ahead early behind a third-inning two-run shot by Peters, and led from that point on. They added three in their fifth and another in the sixth, while USF managed single runs in the fifth (catcher Larry Pasero singled home first baseman Cass Fegan) and sixth (Larry Watkins scored on a Hernandez single). A two-run Dons' rally in the ninth made things interesting - Watkins' bloop single scored Nakamura, and Clark plated Taclas - but the drive fell short, and freshman starter Rich Igou's record dropped to 5-3 despite a seven-inning, ten-strikeout performance.
McDaniels' fielder's choice scored right fielder Laurence Watkins in the ninth. That was it for the Dons: a 9-5 final, with three more errors, three runners left aboard in both the seventh and the ninth, and Jason Chandler's third loss of the season.Â
The Lions won the series opener on Friday, March 24, by rallying late. USF led going into the final three innings, fueled by a first-inning Hernandez RBI that scored Taclas, a third-inning Hernandez triple that scored McDaniels, and a three-run sixth in which Frizzi drew a bases-loaded walk and Pasero singled home Watkins and Zapata.
The shadows were growing long on the field as the sun dipped behind Gillson Hall and the trees to the west of the diamond when the Dons finally got on the scoreboard. In the fifth, team batting leader Daryl Hernandez (.448) singled, advancing on Laurence Watkins' ground-out to third. Pinch- hitter Steve Berringer walked, and both base runners scored when Pasero hit a screaming double down the third-base line (TheFoghorn).
