LOS ANGELES, Calif. (Feb. 6, 2001) - The Loyola Marymount University baseball team, winners of their first five games of the 2001 season, couldn’t pull out their sixth contest of the early season, a 10-6 loss to UCLA at Jackie Robinson Stadium on Tuesday.

A four-run bottom of the sixth inning by the Bruins (3-2) broke a 6-6 tie that wound up being the difference, as UCLA finished with 13 hits coming off seven LMU pitchers, compared to the Lions 11 hits. Freshman Joshua Muecke picked up the loss in relief, allowing two runs on two hits in an inning of work. Wade Clark earned the win for the Bruins, pitching five innings of relieve, allowing three tuns on five hits.

The Lions jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead thanks to a two-run first and a one run third. In the first, freshamn Billy Lockin led the game with a single, but was caught stealing on the next pitch. Back-to-back walks allowed by Bruin starter Mike Davern to Robert Hirsh and C.J. Wilson, and a single by Kris Zacuto loaded the bases for Jeff Walker. The junior came through with a one-out double down the leftfield line to put the Lions up two.

LMU padded the lead when Joshua Whitesell hit a sacrifice line drive to centerfield to score Hirsh, who led the inning with a single.

That would result in the Lions’ final lead, as the Bruins exploded to three runs of their own in the bottom of the third. In the inning, UCLA got doubles from Matt Pearl and Brian Baron to tie the game at 3-3.

LMU would fail to score in the top half of the fourth, while the Bruins responded with another three-run inning. The damage would once again come from UCLA’s top of the order, as the top three hitters of Pearl, Ben Francisco and Baron would all score. The top of the order (1-3) finished the game a combined 7-of-12, with Baron hitting 4-of-4 with three runs scored and three RBI.

The Lions would respond with three in the top of the fifth to tie the game at six. The rally was led by doubles by Zacuto and Whitesell and a sacrifice fly by Walker. Zacuto finished the game 3-for-5 with a run scored and Walker finished 1-for-3 with three RBI.

In the final three innings, the Lions were held to only one hit.