May 20, 2010
LOS ANGELES, Calif. -
Complete Release in PDF Format 
BRIEFLY...
After earning a midweek victory over No. 9 Cal State Fullerton on Tuesday of this week, LMU (22-26, 4-11) will travel to Spokane, Wash. for a three-game West Coast Conference series with Gonzaga (17-32, 5-10) this weekend. The trip will be the final weekend road trip for the Lions this year. The Lions and Bulldogs met last year in the 2009 WCC Championship Series.
YOU CAN'T RAIN ON MY PARADE...
The April 20 rain-out versus Cal State Bakersfield has been rescheduled for May 26 at 3 p.m. at LMU's Page Stadium.
LION TRACKS...
LMU (22-26) scored 10 runs in the fifth inning and held on to defeat No. 9 Cal State Fullerton (34-15) by a count of 11-10 on Tuesday on the road. The victory snapped a seven-game winning streak for the Titans and ran LMU's record to 3-0 against Cal State Fullerton under Head Coach Jason Gill. With the win, LMU swept the season series with the Titans. Four Lion players finished with two hits, but it was Shon Roe's 1-for-5 day that did the most damage. The sophomore collected four RBI, including three on a bases-clearing double with the bags full in the 10-run fifth. Roe also posted his team-best eighth sacrifice fly in the inning. Sophomore Matt Koch finished 2-for-4 with a home run and two runs scored, as the round-tripper was his team-best 15th of the year. He is now tied for eighth in the LMU single-season record books for homers. LMU was hit by five pitches on Tuesday, including a pair for Evan Simonitsch and Jonathan Johnson. Freshman Aaron Griffin got the start for LMU and allowed five runs on eight hits and four walks in four innings of work before not factoring in the decision. Senior Xavier Esquivel was first out of the bullpen for the Lions, allowing three runs in three and a third innings en route to improving to 2-2. Junior Chris Eusebio entered with two on in the eighth inning, dealing the final inning and two-thirds and surrendering two runs on four hits. The Titans received multiple hits from four different players on Tuesday, including a 3-for-5 day with a run scored from Corey Jones. Christian Colon, Richie Pedroza and Austin Kingsolver each collected two runs scored, as Pedroza also drove-in two. Colin O'Connell was charged with the loss after tossing the first four and two-thirds innings and allowing eight runs (six earned) on nine hits. The Titans committed a pair of costly errors, as the Lions benefitted from five unearned runs in the game.
HOW SWEEP IT IS...AND IS NOT...
With an 11-10 victory over No. 9 Cal State Fullerton on the road on May 18, LMU took both games against the Titans this year, first claiming a victory on March 23 at home by a count of 4-2. LMU has now won all three games against the Titans under second-year head coach Jason Gill, an alumnus of Cal State Fullerton. The two wins this season are the most by the Lions over Fullerton since the 2000 squad took two of three from the Titans. The last time LMU swept a season-series against the Titans was 1991, earning a pair of victories in the only two meetings between the two teams. Further showing success over a perennially powerful team, LMU also took both games this year against Long Beach State. The Lions earned a 6-5 victory over Long Beach State on the road on April 13 and at home on March 16 by a count of 6-4. The season-series sweep marks the first time the Lions have taken all games against Long Beach State in a season since 1988. The Lions actually swept the Dirtbags in 1986, 1987 and 1988. The last time the Lions recorded two victories over Long Beach State in a season was 1992, when the Lions won two of the three meetings. After earning the sweep of the Dirtbags, LMU was swept by Portland in a three-game WCC series. That sweep marked the first time in program history that the Lions had dropped every game of at least a two-game series to the Pilots in a given year. Prior to this year, the last time the Lions lost a season-series to the Pilots was 2004 (1-2), while the last time they lost three or more games was 1999 (1-5).
TALK ABOUT A TOUGH OUT...
Sophomore Ryan Hawthorne entered this week ranked 29th in the nation in toughest to strikeout, averaging one strikeout per every 16.1 at bats. The native of Granada Hills, Calif. has now struck out 11 times in 182 at bats this year, an average of one strikeout per 16.55 at bats.
SO MUCH FOR A POWER OUTAGE...
LMU hit 42 home runs in 2009, and of those 42, just eight came from the bats of players who are still on the roster in 2010...that is a mere 19 percent of the home runs from a year ago. Taking that into consideration, LMU was expected to experience a "power-outage" in 2010. So far, LMU has avoided the `curse' to an extent. The Lions enter the weekend with 44 home runs through 48 games. That equates to an average of 0.92 home runs per game. At the current rate, LMU is on pace to hit right about 51 home runs this year. Sophomore Matt Koch leads the way with 15 home runs, followed by sophomore Alex Guthrie and senior Brad Bauer with six apiece.
IT'S JUST A NUMBER...
LMU perennially squares-off against quality teams not only on the weekends, but also in midweek contests, competing in the baseball-rich landscape of Southern California. 2009 was no different...and it proved to be a major contributor to LMU's success last season. Unfortunately for the Lions, 2010 has not shown the same success. This season, LMU is 1-3 against ranked opponents, dropping each of the first three games of the season to then-No. 7 UC Irvine before defeating No. 9 Cal State Fullerton on May 18. Last year, LMU finished 9-2 against ranked opponents. The only two losses came at the hands of UC Irvine (March 31 and April 13). LMU took down then-No. 5 UC Irvine on March 3, swept then-No. 24 Fresno State in a four-game series from March 20-24, beat then-No. 6 Cal State Fullerton on April 7, and finally swept USD in conference play from May 1-3. In games against ranked opponents last season, LMU batted .332 (126-for-379) with 82 runs scored, 28 doubles, five triples, five home runs and 72 RBI. The team slugged .474 and reached base at a .407 clip. This year the Lions have once again been pretty impressive at the plate against ranked opponents, batting .311 (47-for-151) with nine doubles, five home runs and 23 RBI. The Lions have slugged .470 and reached base at a .376 clip. The pitching staff has accumulated a 10.59 ERA (40 er/34.0 ip), walked 15 batters and hit four more over those four games against ranked foes. Opposing hitters have batted .353 and reached base at a .424 clip. Sophomore Matt Koch has the most success against ranked foes, batting .625 with five runs scored, five doubles, two home runs and five RBI in the four games. He has slugged 1.313 and reached at a .632 clip.
GOOD IN A PINCH...
LMU as a team is hitting .370 in pinch-hit situations this year, led by Jason Barmasse, Chris Eusebio and Evan Simonitsch who are batting 1.000. Simonitsch has had the most success, batting 2-for-2 with a pair of doubles. Sophomore Case Miyahira has also been outstanding, batting 2-for-3 with two doubles and four RBI in the pinch. Overall, Miyahira has reached in each of his last four pinch-hit appearances, posting a double and two-RBI on March 13 and March 27, and drawing walks on March 19 and April 9. Senior Brad Bauer has also shown an ability to hit in a pinch, batting 3-for-5 with a double and four RBI off the bench.
JOHNSON IS A TRIPLES MACHINE...
Junior Jonathan Johnson went 4-for-4 with four runs scored, two triples, a double, a walk, a sacrifice fly and three RBI in LMU's 14-9 loss to Saint Mary's on April 30 at LMU's Page Stadium. The second baseman nearly completed the cycle as his first triple hit off the top of the wall in straight-away centerfield in the third inning. For Johnson, the triples were his fifth and sixth of the season and 12th and 13th of his career. The leadoff hitter has since collected one more triple, running his totals to 14 in his career and seven in 2010. He is now tied for fourth in the single season record book for triples, while the 14 career three-baggers place tied for third all-time.
HAWTHORNE IS A SERIAL STREAKER...
Sophomore Ryan Hawthorne had his team-best 19-game hitting streak snapped after a 0-for-4 day on April 13 at Long Beach State. Hawthorne batted .390 (30-for-70) with 10 runs scored, six doubles, a home run, six walks and 13 RBI over his 19-game streak. He collected multiple hits in nine of the 19 games, including three straight from March 19-20, and then again from March 28-31. Despite not recording a hit on March 7, April 13, April 27 or May 2, Hawthorne did reach in all four games via a walk or hit-by-pitch, and thus reached base safely in 36 straight games from March 5 through May 12. The streak came to an end when Hawthorne went 0-for-4 against Pepperdine on May 14. Despite not reaching base in that game, he has hit safely in 33 of his last 37 games. No stranger to hitting streaks, Hawthorne hit safely in 16 games last year from March 27-April 1.
FOLLOW THE LIONS ONLINE...
Log on to www.LMULions.com for all the latest info on the Lions, including updated schedules, rosters, player bios, and more. Don't forget to also sign up to follow the Lions on Facebook (Facebook.com/LMULions) and Twitter (Twitter.com/LMULions). All LMU baseball games, including those games on the road, will be broadcast live via Gametracker. In addition, in conjunction with Stretch Internet, all LMU baseball games will be broadcast via live audio online at www.LMULions.com. Just visit the Lion baseball page, click on schedule, and click on the links located on the right side of the schedule for that particular game. All broadcasts will be archived within 72 hours of their original airing and will include both the pre-game and post-game shows.
LMU SPORTS WEEKLY...
LMU is also proud to introduce a new weekly podcast show, LMU Sports Weekly, hosted by Jesse Kass. The show will feature radio highlights and recaps from recent games, interviews with student-athletes and coaches, and previews of upcoming events. All shows can be heard online at LMULions.com. Fans can also subscribe to the free podcast via iTunes. Just search "LMU" in the iTunes Store.
INSIDE THE LIONS...
"Inside the Lions" is a special look into LMU Athletics and its student-athletes in a 10 to 15 minute show hosted by a student-athlete, sophomore men's basketball guard Jarred DuBois. Airing roughly twice a month, the show will highlight a student-athlete and give an inside look to why LMU is such a special place. In addition, highlights from top games and other game day features will be within the show. Take a look at the newest show or past shows. It's all here thanks to Lions' All-Access.
COMING TO A GAME?...
Fans, come cheer on the Lions this year at Page Stadium. LMU will host 29 home games this season. To reserve your tickets today, please contact the LMU Ticket Office at (310) 338-LION. Tickets are also available at the Ticket Office prior to the start of the game. When traveling to the venue, please remember that the Loyola Marymount University campus is located in Westchester at One LMU Drive, approximately four miles north of the Los Angeles International Airport. Fans traveling to LMU must use the main entrance off of Lincoln Blvd. on LMU Drive. Those seeking handicap parking must also use the main entrance, where they can get directions from the guard at the front gate. Gates to Page Stadium open roughly two hours before the start of a game.
TEAM LMU THIS WEEK...
"Team LMU" was created to generate awareness and excitement for LMU sporting events on game days. Staff and students are encouraged to wear LMU gear on designated "Team LMU" days and to attend the games. To view more information about the current and future "Team LMU" events, please visit www.LMULions.com/teamlmu.
BULLDOG BANTER...
Gonzaga enters the weekend series toting a 17-32 overall record and a 5-10 mark in the WCC, having won back-to-back games, but having dropped five of their last seven and 12 of their last 15. Most recently, the Bulldogs took two-of-three from Saint Mary's on the road last weekend. Drew Heid paces the team offensively, batting .383 with 49 runs scored, 16 doubles, four triples and seven home runs. Mark Castellitto has batted .339 with a team-best 11 home runs and 45 RBI. The Gonzaga pitching staff carries a 6.88 team ERA, paced by Liam Baron at 6.75. Friday's starter, Cody Martins, owns a 4-6 record and a 7.44 ERA over 12 starts and 71.1 innings on the hill. Billy Moon receives the bulk of the save opportunities, collecting five so far this year. The Lions and Bulldogs are tied in the all-time series, 29-29. The Lions are just 1-4 over their last five and 2-8 over their last 10 against Gonzaga. The Lions and Bulldogs, led by head coach Mark Machtolf in his 20th season, last met on May 23 in the WCC Championship series, as the Bulldogs defeated the Lions, 14-3. LMU's last victory came on May 17, 2009 at Gonzaga as it defeated the Bulldogs by a count of 4-2.
