Last season, the Loyola baseball team took 27 games to win five games.
This season, the ‘Pack won its first five games. After taking two of three games in the Global Bullion Trading Group Shootout at Segnette Field over the weekend and beating Jackson State 14-10 on Wednesday, the Wolfpack is 6-1.
“Those teams (in the shootout) are good teams, nationally ranked teams,” head coach Gregg Mucerino said. “For us right now, we are playing the best ball this school has seen in a while.”
Mississippi College is ranked 18th in Collegiate Baseball’s National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III poll.
With no field crew to maintain the field throughout the rainy weekend, players spent all weekend moving tarp on and off the field to ensure the tournament could continue. So losing their final game 8-3 on Sunday could have been because Mississippi College was the better team on the field or it could have been that Mississippi College was facing a team with no sleep and rest.
“Although we don’t have a grounds crew, and we were tired, there are no excuses. They played well, and we just didn’t have the right stuff that day,” Mucerino said.
Because Friday’s game was rained out, the Wolfpack started the tournament against Texas Wesleyan on Saturday. Political science freshman James Blakeman pitched five innings, giving up two runs one earned, on six hits for his first collegiate victory as Loyola defeated Texas Wesleyan 7-2.
“I was impressed by his performance,” Mucerino said. “The biggest thing is that his first three pitches are always strikes. He’s a freshman, but he pitches like he’s been in college for a while.”
General business junior Brad Rodrigue led the Wolfpack, going two-for-three with a two-run home run and a double. His homer came in the fourth inning and gave Loyola a 4-2 lead.
Brad Siller got the loss for Texas Wesleyan. He pitched four innings and gave up four runs on four hits and struck out two. Travis Clifford was two-for-three with one RBI to lead the Rams.
Loyola picked up its fifth win by defeating Thomas College 4-3 on Sunday. Economics/business sophomore David Lauricella’s single with two outs in the bottom of the last inning scored communications senior Ryan Moity to give the Wolfpack the winning run.
Communications sophomore Brian Sullivan got the win in relief. He was one of four Wolfpack pitchers in the game and pitched one third of an inning, giving up a hit and walking a batter. Starter Brian McCaulley, physics junior, pitched five innings. He surrendered one run on three hits and struck out four. Moity was three-for-four with two runs scored and one RBI. Lauricella was two-for four with a double and three RBI. Communications junior Kevin Kalina also had two hits for the Wolfpack.
Josh Clements got the loss for the Night Hawks.
Loyola’s five-game winning streak came to an end with an 8-3 loss to Mississippi College Sunday night. Flint Roberts (1-0) got the victory pitching five innings and giving up two runs on two hits.
He did not give up a hit until one out in the bottom of the fifth inning, when general business senior David Sudyka tripled.
Loyola begins Gulf Coast Athletic Conference play at home this weekend against Mobile. Friday’s game is at 6 p.m., and Saturday’s doubleheader starts at 1 p.m.
