LOS ANGELES – The Loyola Marymount University Lions (6-4, 0-0 WCC), in the middle of a seven game road trip, heads north to Berkeley, California this weekend for a four-game set against the Cal Bears. The Lions matchup against the Bears will mark the end of their 14 straight games against Pac-12 members to begin the year.
 
LMU and Cal renew their series for the first time since the 2008 season. The two teams will play at 5:00 p.m. on Friday followed by a doubleheader on Saturday starting at 2:00 p.m. then conclude the four-game set at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday. There will be no live stream available for the series but the action can be followed via live stats with links on the baseball schedule page at lmulions.com.
 
The Lions enter the weekend winners of two straight series against the Pac-12, having swept Utah and taking two-of-three from Washington last weekend.
 
LMU's pitching has been solid throughout the first 10 games of the season with starting right handed pitcher Matt McClure responsible for two wins and an ERA of 1.88. In addition to McClure, the Lions CJ Fernandezees boasts an ERA of 2.30 to go along with a win in his three starts in 2021.
 
Holden Christian and Diego Barrera have provided stellar pitching coming out of the Lions bullpen. Over the weekend against the Huskies Christian put on a show. He posted a season-high seven strikeouts in three innings of relief work to preserve the Lions 2-1 win in the series opener. Barrera has appeared in four games for the Lions and has nine strikeouts opposed to one walk and a save in nine innings pitched on the year.
 
The combination of strong starting efforts and lockdown showings in relief have the Lions team ERA at 3.36 which currently is the best in the West Coast Conference in 2021.
 
Heading into the series the Lions Julian Bury and Kenny Oyama have both been constants on the base paths. The pair leads the team in hits with 14 each while Bury has scored six runs to Oyama's four. In addition to constantly being on base, Oyama also puts pressure on the defense with his five stolen bases which currently leads the WCC.
 
Diego Baqueiro continues to be an offensive threat whenever he steps into the batter's box for the Lions. Baqueiro, leads the team in slugging percentage at .575 in addition to being the pace setter for LMU in doubles with four and triples at one.
 
Following the four-game set against the Bears LMU will return home to open up WCC play when the BYU Cougars pay a visit March 18-20.
 
For more information on LMU baseball, follow the program on Twitter, like the Lions on Facebook, and join them on Instagram by searching for "lmulionsbsb."