The most accurate word to describe the play of Loyola baseball the last couple of weeks is “inconsistent.”
The Loyola baseball team played conference opponent Faulkner University in Montgomery, Ala.
Faulkner is currently ranked sixth place in the country, made it to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics World Series last season and produced three Major League Baseball draft picks last season. The Wolfpack was not able to contend with the cur- rent powerhouse. They were swept in the three-game series, getting outscored 26-2 with two shutouts by Faulkner in the first and final games.
The trip continued on April 3 in Baton Rouge against NCAA Division I-AA opponent Southern University. Southern won the game 9-5. The Wolfpack only allowed two runs after giving up seven in the first inning leading, but the five runs they posted were not enough in this game.
Three days later, the Wolfpack made a return to their home at Segnette Field to start a three- game series against another con- ference opponent Spring Hill Col- lege on April 6. They continued their losing streak getting swept once again with the scores of 1-10, 0-4 and 2-3. The last game fea- tured a 7.1 inning, two earned run performances from the team’s best pitcher, management senior Trey Campeaux.
The team then went back on the road to play Tougaloo College on April 10. Earlier in the season during the team’s 5-0 start, they outscored Tougaloo 27-0 in a two-game series and posted their highest run total in a single game this season at 21. This two-game series had the same results of two wins for Loyola, but the scores were closer. Loyola won 6-0 and 6-5 with the second game having Tougaloo come within one run of Loyola in the seventh inning be- fore a scoreless eighth inning by marketing junior Jared Belmonte to end the game.
The Wolfpack played a three game series last weekend against Southern Wesleyan University, an- other conference opponent. This presented Loyola the opportunity to move from the bottom of the conference standings. The first game went into extra innings with Loyola batting in three runs at the top of the tenth inning to take the lead and seal a 15-12 win. They would go on to lose the second game 4-8 and win the last 10-9.
Etefia Umana can be reach at [email protected]
