March 18, 2005

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

Briefly...
The 2004 West Coast Conference Coast Division Champions open league play this weekend at Page Stadium, hosting the University of San Diego for a three-game series. The action begins Friday at 2:00 p.m., and fans can follow it all on the Lions' Audio Network and Gametracker, both at www.LMULions.com.

San Diego's Situation...
The Toreros enter the three-game series with the Lions already having played 38 games this season and currently hold a record of 16-11-1. Jamie Hesselgesser leads the Toreros with a .347 average. Friday's projected starter Justin Blaine entered the week in the WCC's top five ERAs with a 1.82 ERA over 59.1 innings of work. USD won two of three last weekend with San Diego State.

The LMU-USD All-Time Series...
LMU holds a 61-45 all-time advantage over the Toreros. The teams met six times in 2004, with the Lions winning five of six WCC contests. The two teams finished both of their 2004 three-game series with each other last March, and have not met since then. LMU swept the first three-game series with USD in 2004.

Frazee Tops WCC...
Joe Frazee sits atop the WCC in batting average for the third straight week, entering this weekend's action hitting .426. The senior has received All-WCC recognition each of his three seasons with the Lions, and hit .364 in WCC play in 2004. The Lions' center fielder enters the 2005 WCC season on a six-game hitting streak.

It's In the Innings...
The Lions have outscored opponents 21-11 in the seventh inning, highlighted by their six-run seventh Tuesday against CSUN. But it has been a different story in the first inning, as opponents have outscored LMU 24-12 in the first. The Lions are 4-0 when leading after the seventh.

White's Pinch-Hit Single Gets Win at UCSB...
With the Lions trailing 1-0, Matt White broke open the game with his pinch-hit, bases-loaded, two-RBI single up the middle in the top of the seventh to give LMU baseball the 2-1 lead over UC Santa Barbara. Brad Meyers allowed just one run in seven innings, as LMU evened the three-game series at one with the 4-2 win. Joe Frazee followed White in the seventh, bringing in two more insurance runs on a single to right center to make it 4-1 LMU. A solo home run by Gaucho right fielder Matt Wilkerson in the bottom of the fourth accounted for the only run of the game until the Lions' rally in the seventh inning.Meyers had another strong outing for the Lions, working seven innings and allowing just one run on seven hits. The freshman right-hander retired the side in the fifth, striking out Alden Carrithers and getting Matt Kalafatis and Matt Emerick to fly out. In the early pitchers' dual, Meyers faced off against UCSB's Steve Morlock, who gave up just one hit over his 6.1 innings of work. Blake Feaser earned his first save of 2005 after facing the final batter in the ninth.

Long Ball, Long Shot...
The Lions, who now have eight home runs on the season, have hit four of them in the first inning. While a team would typically be encouraged to see any extra base hit early in the game, LMU has been outscored 36-9 in games where a Lion hits a home run in the first.

Oller Moves Up The Charts...
After connecting for a double in at UC Santa Barbara, utility player Jon Oller has tallied 48 career doubles. The senior sits in sole possession of ninth place on the Lions' all-time leaders list, passing LMU standout Joe Ciccarella's (1989-91) 46 career doubles. Ciccarella was a fourth round draft pick of the Boston Red Sox in 1991, after leading the 1991 squad with a .435 batting average. Oller was featured in the March 8 issue of the South Bay Daily Breeze for being "Mr. Everything" - starting at three different positions in the young 2005 season.

Hot Game One in Houston...
The Lions broke open a 4-4 tie game at the University of Houston when freshman Josh Bradbury's one-out, bases-loaded RBI single through the right side scored James Cooper to start a three-run seventh inning. LMU baseball took game one of its first road series 7-4. Frazee continued to be hot at the plate, going a perfect 3-for-3 in the game one outing.

Frazee Helpful In Houston...
LMU's Joe Frazee hit .500 over the last week, with a 6-for-12 effort at the plate. The senior started all four games, and had a run scored and a RBI as the Lions' leadoff batter. He added a double and went 2-for-2 in stolen bases, along with two walks. In the Lions' win over Houston on Friday, the center fielder went a perfect 3-for-3 with a sacrifice bunt and a walk. Sunday, he prevented Houston from scoring a run in the fifth, throwing their shortstop out at home plate from center field.

LMU in Nation's Top Five for NCAA Academic Rate...
LMU Athletics ranked fifth in the nation among all NCAA Division I schools in the first Academic Progress Rates (APR) report, issued by the NCAA on Feb. 28 for its 326 Division I schools. The APR measures an institutions success in retaining scholarship athletes and keeping them eligible in each sport. The Lions earned an APR score of 991, placing them in a tie for fifth with Villanova among all 326 Division I institutions. Rounding out the top-5 are Yale (999), Princeton (994), Penn (993) and William & Mary (992). LMU also ranks number one among all scores in the state of California, number one among all Jesuit institutions and best in the West Coast Conference (WCC). The average APR among the eight schools in the WCC sits at 964. The national average among all Division I schools is 948. Specifically, LMU baseball earned 988 points, placing the program second among all California baseball schools. The APR data is from the 2003-04 academic year and evaluates the institution's overall APR as well as each NCAA championship sport a school sponsors. LMU had 11 of the 16 sports earn a perfect score of 1000 and every sport earned a rate above a 967.

Lions Win In Grand Fashion...
Two five-run innings and a season-high 18 hits gave LMU baseball a big 17-8 win over Utah Sunday at Page Stadium. Junior James Cooper hit the Lions' first grand slam of the season in the fifth inning to break open the final contest of the three-game series. LMU totaled 18 hits, equaling its season-high from last year, when the Lions recorded 18 hits at Cal State Northridge on May 18, 2004. The Lions' 17 runs were the most for the program since 2003.

Cooper Highlights Homestand...
Right fielder James Cooper started the season with a great February, going 11-for-27 (.407) with eight RBI, two home runs, two triples, and nine runs scored in his eight starts. The Lions' junior also posted a slugging percentage of .778 and an on-base percentage of .543 after tallying 21 total bases. Entering the Lions' first road swing, the Los Angeles, Calif. native remains perfect in stolen bases (1-for-1) and fielding percentage.

TV Game Added to Lions' Schedule...
LMU baseball will have its first scheduled televised game this season when the Lions take on WCC opponent San Diego Saturday, May 14, in San Diego. CSTV will televise the conference action, which begins at 1:00 p.m. PST.

White-Hot...
Senior Matt White led the LMU offense in the opening weekend against Cal Feb. 12-13, going 7-for-11 (.636) with four runs scored. Though he was never at the plate with a runner in scoring position as the Lions' lead-off batter, White did his job, recording an on base percentage of .692 and a slugging percentage of .909. He had three doubles and 10 total bases in the Lions' three games, after previously totaling just three doubles in his entire two-year LMU career. White's success made a great comeback story for the fifth-year senior, who had had the game-winning double for the Lions on Opening Day 2004, but was sidelined the rest of the season with an injury. He returned just in time for a successful opening weekend 2005.

LMU Short On Shortstops...
The Lions knew it would be difficult to replace middle infielders Billy Lockin and Clint McGill from the Class of 2004. Both were All-WCC honorees and have now begun their professional baseball careers. But the Lions were not counting on starting the 2005 season without either of their options at shortstop. Projected season starter Eric Farris has been out with a fractured hamate bone in his left hand. Michael Glomb, who did get the start at shortstop on Opening Day, has been out with an injured right thumb. In their absence, the Lions' coaching staff has been forced to get creative with the defensive lineup; most noteably, moving usual third baseman Kyle Mura to shortstop early in the season. Both Farris and Glomb are now listed as day-to-day

LMU Gets 4-3 Win Over #4 Chapman...
Joe Frazee brought in the go-ahead run with a record-setting triple in the bottom of the fifth, as LMU baseball handed Chapman its first loss of the 2005 season. Frazee, went 3-for-4 with one RBI and one run scored in the 4-3 win at Page Stadium. In an attempt to makeup for last weekend's rained out series, the Lions scheduled Wednesday's game with Chapman, who entered the game 6-0 as the fourth-ranked team in Division III. The Panthers scored three runs in the first inning, but were held scoreless the rest of the game by a combination of five Lion pitchers. Trailing 3-2 in the bottom of the fifth, senior designated hitter Matt White led-off with a single to right and advanced to third when junior Chris Pettit followed with a double. White then scored on a passed ball off the glove of Chapman catcher John Alexander. Later in the inning, junior Kyle Mura reached on a fielder's choice and advanced to second to set up Frazee's game-winning triple.

Frazee's 2-Run Shot Lifts LMU in Exhibition Win...
Joe Frazee's two-run home run in the bottom of the seventh lifted LMU over the University of British Columbia 7-6 in Wednesday afternoon's exhibition game. The Lions trailed 6-2 after five and half innings, but scored three runs in the sixth to pull within one and set-up Frazee's game-winner.

Opening Day Comeback Vs. Cal...
James Cooper went two-for-two with two runs scored and a key seventh-inning RBI that helped jump start LMU's Opening Day comeback against Cal on Saturday. Kyle Mura's three-run homerun over the Mikos Blue Monster got LMU (1-0) on the scoreboard, but it was the Lions' five-run seventh inning that gave them the 9-8 comeback win in front of a sellout crowd. The Lions, who trailed 8-3 in the sixth, held the Golden Bears (1-4) scoreless through the final three innings, while they chipped away at the lead until they had secured their second straight Opening Day win.

Kahn Named Preseason All-American...
Stephen Kahn was named a preseason All-American by Baseball America. Earlier this fall, Baseball America also predicted that Kahn, the 2004 WCC Pitcher of the Year, would be a top-25 pick in June's MLB Draft. Different from other preseason squads, Baseball America asked major league scouting directors to make the selections based on performance, talent and major league potential. Kahn, named to the third-team, was the only player from the WCC selected to the squad. Honored as the 2004 WCC Pitcher of the Year after leading LMU to the Coast Division title and the program's third WCC Championship Series appearance in six seasons, Kahn continued a great year, earning a gold medal at the World University Championships with the USA Baseball National Team. Kahn posted a 7-3 record in 2004, while registering a 3.61 ERA. He struck out 80 batters in 82.1 innings of work, en route to earning two WCC/Rawlings Pitcher of the Week selections and the Player of the Month honor for April. Kahn was the only Division I pitcher in the nation to make at least 12 starts and not allow a home run. He brought the WCC Pitcher of the Year selection to LMU for the second time in four seasons, as Billy Traber (Cleveland Indians) won the conference award in 2000.

Cruz Named International Coach Of The Year...
LMU Head Coach Frank Cruz was named 2004 International Coach of the Year by the International Baseball Federation (IBAF). The IBAF awarded Cruz with its Mizuno Award for his success as manager of the gold-medal winning USA Baseball National Team this summer. The IBAF selected Cruz as Coach of the Year from managers from all 112 participating member countries and all team levels. The award is a special honor in a year of Olympic competition, as Cruz was chosen from a pool that included all nations' Olympic baseball coaches. Cruz became just the fourth American coach to receive the selection, and the first since 1995. He is the only Team USA coach to win the award in an Olympic year.

Cruz Named USA Baseball National Coach of the Year...
Frank Cruz has been named USA Baseball National Development Coach of the Year, USA Baseball announced. In his second overall coaching stint with USA Baseball and first as a head coach, Cruz led the 2004 USA Baseball National Team of collegiate players to the program's first gold medal at the FISU World University Championships in Tainan, Taiwan this past summer. In 20 years of national team competition, USA Baseball has now won five gold medals. In his two stints with the national team, Cruz has played a role in two of those five gold medals. He is now one of just three coaches to be a part of multiple gold-medal-winning squads. Cruz and Team USA went a perfect 6-0 in round robin pool play and then defeated Chinese Taipei (5-2) and Japan (4-2) to capture the gold medal. The Americans entered the championship with a 10-7 record, but then won eight straight in Taiwan and 12 of their last 14 under Cruz. His team, the 2004 National Team, was also named USA Baseball Team of the Year. The Americans finished summer 2004 with an overall record of 18-7 and became the first National Team to ever record a no-hitter, as five pitchers combined to pull off the feat in a game against Canada. LMU right-handed junior Stephen Kahn joined Cruz on the award-winning national team this summer.

LMU Picked to Win WCC in 2005...
LMU has been selected as the favorite to win the 2005 WCC baseball championship in the WCC preseason poll, as selected by the conference coaches. LMU, the 2004 WCC Coast Division champions, earned three of the possible eight first place votes for a total of 44 points.

Six Members of Class of 2004 Begin Pro Careers...
Following the 2004 season Will Quaglieri (New York Mets), Billy Lockin (Arizona Diamondbacks), Kevin Jenson (San Francisco Giants), Jonathan Higashi (Texas Rangers), Clint McGill (Houston Astros), and Brady Koch (Houston Astros) all began professional careers.

Pride Park Dedicated as part of Leadoff Sunday...
Family, friends, and fans gathered Sunday, January 30, for the program's annual Leadoff Day. But this year, the Lions added a special celebration with the dedication of Pride Park, the new entrance to George C. Page Stadium. The park, resembling a scaled down baseball infield, recognizes players and friends of LMU baseball and provides fans with a gathering point for any athletic event at LMU. Pride Park consists of a brick infield with concrete benches surrounding the area. LMU baseball's WCC Championship teams, NCAA tournament appearances, WCC Players and Pitchers of the Year, Academic All-Americans, and those players who have had their jersey numbers retired are recognized on the benches. LMU fans sponsored the bricks that form the infield. Inspired by the death of Cruz's mother, Narcisa Cruz, Pride Park is the latest baseball facility improvement spearheaded by Cruz.

-GO LIONS-