The Loyola baseball team returned to New Orleans down but not out this past Saturday, from a seven game stint on the road during the course of a week.The ‘Pack opened up with a double header against Centenary College at Shehee Stadium in Shreveport, falling 7-10 in the first game and 1-8 in the second. The Gents took advantage of extra base hits in game one to score 10 in the first six innings off the Loyola pitching staff, while the ‘Pack’s hitters had their hands full with starter Nick Waak, who previously threw a six-nothing shutout against Division I powerhouse Texas Arlington.Tory Western, accounting junior, started the game for the Wolfpack, giving up six runs.”They (the players) proved a lot to me in those two games,” said head coach Don Moreau. “We didn’t beat ourselves, and we played tough ball.”Later that week, the ‘Pack traveled to Marshall, Texas to play a doubleheader against East Texas Baptist University, losing the first game 1-12 and topping the Tigers 16-0 in the second. The upset of the Division III ETBU Tigers in the second game is what team co-captain Doug Neill, computer science senior, refers to as a “complete game.””To win in baseball you must beat the team you’re facing every inning,” Neill said. “Score more runs than them in every inning, and you win.”Last Thursday, the ‘Pack played in the Mid-South Orthopedic Tournament in Pineville, La.The ‘Pack’s first challenger in the four team tournament, host team Louisiana College, looked to right-hander Jeremy Johnson (1-0) for five shutout innings of relief.Johnson gave up three hits, but struck out five at the plate against Loyola.Despite Johnson’s pitching, the ‘Pack still hit solid, taking the game into extra innings. Neill led Loyola going 2 for 5.The game ended with a 5-4 victory for the Wildcats. Dirk Dantin, general studies junior, (0-1) got the loss in relief. On Friday the ‘Pack came out strong against the Howard Payne University Yellow Jackets. Brad Showalter, communications junior, (1-1) pitched six innings for the victory. Showalter did not give up a hit through four innings. He surrendered four runs, three earned, while giving up only two hits and striking out two.The ‘Pack’s hitting spree, led by Ryan Moity, communications sophomore, who went three for four with two RBIs and a run scored, began early on in the game.Neill hit a two-run bomb in the bottom of the fourth to give the ‘Pack an 8-0 lead propelling the team on to a 9-4 win over the Division III Yellow Jackets.On Saturday, the final day of the tournament, Loyola battled Division II school Arkansas-Monticello up until the bottom of the seventh, when the Boll Weevils scored three runs to defeat Loyola 6-5.Neill led the ‘Pack, going two for four with one RBI and a run scored. Dantin (0-2) got the loss in relief for Loyola.The ‘Pack is 2-5, but according to Moreau and the rest of the squad, the team could just as easily be 5-2 right now. While a 2-5 record may not reflect it, the ‘Pack’s opponents are only outscoring them 45-41. “If a team is better than you, they’re probably going to beat you,” said Mike Scaglione, political science senior and team co-captain. “But let them beat you, don’t beat yourself.”

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