Box Score

RANTOUL, Ill. – One half inning into the day, and it seemed like the Purple & Gold hadn't quite turned the page on a trip to Missouri that went awry. But the immediate response proved this team had left it all in the past, and Loras soared to an impressive series sweep over Blackburn College.

Game One

The Beavers scurried out to an early lead in the bottom of the first inning off a trio of singles and an error. Right after though, the Duhawks said "enough" and the floodgates opened to the tune of eight runs, on six hits in the top of the second. This included back-to-back home runs from Justin Gutierrez and Vince Polizzi, along with four singles from the Purple & Gold.

Cody Sunny went 3-for-4, Colin Kissane blasted a three-run home run, and Alex Sandoval provided two RBI, which helped propel Loras (2-3, 0-0 A-R-C) to nineteen runs on eighteen total hits.

Adam Williamson went four innings, and struck out four batters. His work helped keep the Beavers at bay and ultimately allowed the Duhawks to capture their first win of the season by a 16-run margin, 19-3.

Game Two

Now this game was pure cinema between the two squads.

Just as the game one script had entailed, game two saw Blackburn (0-2, 0-0 SLIAC) jump out in front of Loras, putting up two runs in the bottom of the second.
However, the Duhawks had no immediate response for the encore of hits from the Beavers. Instead, the pitching staff for Blackburn stifled the Purple & Gold the first time through the order, allowing only one base runner who reached on an error.

The top of the fourth saw the Duhawk bats find their footing, pushing across three runs from Gutierrez, Trevor Segraves, and Jake Zeal.

Bode Bregar ran into some trouble in the bottom half of the same inning and was relieved by Dylan Ackermann who struck out two batters with bases loaded to retain a tie game.

One run in the bottom of the fifth demoralized the Duhawks, but everyone in attendance could only sit and wait for what would come next.

It was a nine-run outburst in the top of the sixth that blew open the contest, with Loras totaling seven hits, five of which went for extra bases. The exclamation point came with bases loaded and one out. Sophomore Vince McDowell blasted a grand slam to deep right-center field, and all the momentum was with a Loras squad that would close out the game, a 14-4 victory.

Oprah Said It Best

You get a hit, you get a hit, everyone gets a hit!

Loras tallied 30 hits from 11 different players to reach their 33 runs scored between the two games.

On Deck
The Purple & Gold will play at the same complex against the Northland College Lumberjacks on Mar. 1 at 3:30 p.m.