STOCKTON, Calif. - The Loyola Marymount University Lions (20-33-1, 14-13 WCC) will move to the elimination bracket of the 2022 West Coast Conference Baseball Championships, following Thursday's 16-2 loss to top-seeded #12 Gonzaga.
 
The Bulldogs took the early lead on an unearned run in the opening frame and held the lead throughout the game. Gonzaga scored runs in five of their eight innings of at-bats to keep adding to that initial lead.

Despite falling behind early, Jimmy Galicia stayed in for the Lions and ate up six innings of work to protect the LMU bullpen for the remainder of the tournament. Following Wednesday night's win, the WCC Championships reset as a double-elimination tournament.
 
The Lions plated two in the eighth inning. Benny Casillas earned a four-pitch walk before Diego Baqueiro bounced a ball over the fence for a ground-rule double. Grant Weiss brought Casillas home with a sac fly to center. Robbie Ayers added an RBI single as the next batter to bring home Baqueiro and bring the score to 15-2.
 
The two runs in the eighth inning helped LMU extend the program's streak to 45 games without being shutout.
 
Mason Kokodynski recorded outs against the two Gonzaga batters he faced after replacing Connor Kershaw in the bottom of the eighth.
 
With the result, LMU will play at noon on Friday against the loser of the evening game between San Diego and Portland.