ATHLETICS | LMU’s baseball team returned to their winning ways this past Tuesday afternoon, taking control in the third inning, fighting through a USC rally in the sixth, and adding to their lead late to beat the Trojans, 14-5. LMU then won the weekend series over Louisiana Lafayette. On Saturday, LMU got on the board early and benefited from a superb performance from junior Josh Agnew on the mound and walked away with a tough, 4-1, victory over Louisiana Lafayette on Saturday afternoon. In the rubber match, the Lions took the final contest of their three-game series against Louisiana Lafayette 7-3 behind Nick Frasso’s dominant performance on the hill and timely hitting throughout the game.
The Lions ended their season-long seven game road trip on a positive note and now head into West Coast Conference play next weekend with a home series against Santa Clara. The Lions next nine games will be played at Page Stadium, equaling their longest home stand of the season. The Lions and Broncos kick off the three-game series on Friday, March 15 with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m.
The men’s and women’s basketball teams each received a number of accolades from the conference last week. On the men’s side, James Batemon has been named to the West Coast Conference’s All-Conference First Team. LMU’s Mattias Markusson and Dameane Douglas received recognition as members of the All-WCC Honorable Mention team and All-Freshman team, respectively. For the women, Chelsey Gipson has been named to the West Coast Conference All-Conference First Team, while Bree Alford was named honorable mention, announced by the conference on Tuesday.
At the WCC Championships, the women cruised past the University of San Francisco in its first game, beating the Dons, 66-45, advancing to the quarter-finals to take on Saint Mary’s, before eventually falling short. The men’s team lost by a possession to Pepperdine in their tournament game, ending their run.
The softball team’s busy month on campus continues throughout March. The Lions beat South Dakota on Thursday morning, 5-2, in a game that had been rescheduled due to weather. Friday began the annual LMU Tournament, which the Lions began by honoring former Lion Sam Fischer. Fischer was inducted into the 2019 LMU Hall of Fame in February. The Hall of Famer played for LMU from 2009-12 and was the First Team All-PCSC selection and the first All-American in program history. The USA National Team member threw out the first pitch at Smith Field after an unveiling of her number, 52, which has been retired.
On Saturday, Hannah Bandimere pitched a five-inning no-hitter, the first of her career, picking up her eighth win of the season and leading the Lions to their third shutout of the season with an 8-0 win over New Mexico. The team closed out the first weekend of the LMU Tournament with a 6-2 win over New Mexico Sunday afternoon, giving LMU a 2-2 split on the weekend. The Lions are on the diamond all week with a pair of games on Tuesday at Smith Field against Boston University, and tournament action all day Thursday through Sunday.
The Loyola Marymount women’s tennis team remains unbeaten at home with an impressive 4-3 win over UC Santa Barbara on Sunday afternoon, and a 4-0 victory over Marquette on Monday morning.
The Loyola Marymount doubles tandem of Nick Borchenko and Diego Nava received a No. 41 doubles ranking by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association. Borchenko and Nava’s ranking is the highest in LMU men’s tennis history for doubles play. The tandem is undefeated, 5-0, while Nava has an undefeated, 6-0 record, as he paired up with Ethan Prost in the Lions’ match against UNC Wilmington. Lukas Moenter holds down the No. 1 spot in singles play and is ranked No. 125. In Sunday’s loss at UCSB, the senior picked up another win over a top-50 opponent, as he beat No. 39 Joseph Guillin on court one after three sets, 6-7, 7-6, 1-0 (10-6), closing the match down 5-2. LMU is back on the road to Texas this week with matches on Thursday and Saturday.
The No. 12-ranked women’s water polo team is in action at Burns this week for the first time all season as the Lions host the annual LMU Invitational. The 2019 field includes eight teams and 16 games played over Friday and Saturday. The Lions will play at both 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. on both dates.
Despite Loyola Marymount’s beach volleyball team falling in both of its games Wednesday afternoon, to No. 15 Stetson, 4-1, and to No. 8 Long Beach State, 3-2, respectively, Sara Kovac and Jessie Prichard picked up their seventh consecutive win of the season after beating their opponents 22-20, 21-17 at the No. 4 spot. The Lions will be in Malibu on Wednesday for a pair of games before hosting competition on Saturday in Santa Monica.
The men’s golf team is currently in competition at University of San Francisco’s Olympic Club Intercollegiate. The Lions will play three rounds over Monday and Tuesday of this week.
LMU’s rowing team will run a scrimmage against Gonzaga on Thursday morning in Chula Vista before competing against UCLA in Marina del Rey on Saturday at 8 a.m.
The track season continues Saturday with the UC Irvine Spring Break Classic.
