Loyola sweeps twinbill Sunday over Indiana University Kokomo

SHREVEPORT, La. – The 12th-ranked Loyola Wolf Pack baseball team made a schedule change this weekend, and the team took the adjustment in stride en route to two wins Sunday.

Instead of playing four games at Houston-Victoria this weekend, the Wolf Pack traveled to Shreveport to play three games against two opponents on Sunday and Monday. First, Loyola played a doubleheader against Indiana University Kokomo on Sunday, sweeping the two games against the Cougars 5-1 and 8-7.

The Pack (5-1) will now take on No. 10 LSU Shreveport (5-1) at noon on Monday.

#12 Loyola 5, IU Kokomo 1 (7)

Powered by Cameron Trosclair’s second home run of the season and Brenden Taravella on the mound, the Wolf Pack got the day started on a good note with the win. Trosclair’s solo shot put Loyola ahead for good in the fourth inning, and Taravella limited the Cougars to just one run in six strong innings. The senior did allow seven hits but he walked none while stranding four runners in scoring position throughout his outing.

IU Kokomo took the 1-0 lead in the first inning, but the Wolf Pack answered in the bottom half of the inning. After Allen Dennis walked with two outs, Ross Selvaggi came through with an RBI double to tie the game. It wasn’t until the fourth inning when Trosclair put the Pack ahead, 2-1, with his home run.

The Loyola offense added three more runs in the fifth inning thanks to three straight walks and a wild pitch. Aaron Davis got the rally going with a one out single, then Jake Mills, Payton Alexander and Allen Dennis all walked to plate the first run, 3-1. Mills came home on a wild pitch, which advanced all of the runners, and Selvaggi picked up his second RBI of the game with a sacrifice fly, 5-1.

Reid Perkins pitched the final frame for the Wolf Pack, and the sophomore got the first Cougar batter to ground out before recording back-to-back strikeouts to seal the win.

#12 Loyola 8, IU Kokomo 7 (8)

The Pack needed one extra inning in the originally-scheduled seven-inning contest Sunday afternoon, as Trosclair once again, put Loyola ahead for good in the bottom of the eighth. With Alexander at second base and one out, Trosclair delivered the walk-off single to complete the doubleheader sweep.

Loyola led for most of the game, taking a 5-1 lead into the sixth inning. The Cougars, however, were able to put a six-spot on the scoreboard in the top half of the inning to take the 7-5 lead with six outs to go. In the bottom of the sixth, Mills and Alexander reached base via a walk and a single, then the two both moved into scoring position after a wild pitch. Two batters later with two outs, Selvaggi came up big with the two-RBI single to tie the game.

Loyola scored the first run of the game in the second inning after Garrett Beadle hit into a groundout with the bases loaded, then Alexander made it 2-0 in the third after a wild pitch by the IU Kokomo pitcher. The Pack scored three runs in the next frame, as Alexander walked in a run and Dennis plated two with a single to center.

Brett Fisackerly earned the win in relief, the second of the season for the senior. He threw the final inning, allowing a single while another reached base on an error before back-to-back strikeouts ended the game.

PACK FACTS

– Cameron Trosclair is the only Wolf Pack player who’s notched a home run so far this season, and the freshman picked up his second of the season Saturday in Game 1 of the doubleheader.

– Gabriel Trastoy threw out a would-be base stealer in the early game, and he’s now 2-for-2 this season in the runners-caught-stealing category.

– Senior Brenden Taravella earned his 13th career win on the mound in the first game Sunday, moving him into a tie for eighth all-time in the program’s record book.

– Also, Taravella’s three strikeouts gave him 170 for his career, moving him up to sixth all-time in that category.

– With a walk in the first game and three hits in the second, Payton Alexander has extended his on-base streak to 31 games, dating back to last season.

– Alexander also recorded a stolen base in Game 2, the 57th of his career. He’s now tied for fourth all-time for career stolen bases.

– Allen Dennis notched two hits on Sunday, and he’s now eighth all-time with 186 in his Wolf Pack career.

– Jake Mills, Ross Selvaggi, Dennis, and Alexander have all reached base in all six games so far this season.

You can keep up with the Pack by following Wolf Pack Athletics on Facebook at Facebook.com/LoyolaWolfPack, Twitter and Instagram @LoyolaWolfPack, and by checking out our website at LoyolaWolfPack.com.