NEW ORLEANS, La. — Thomas University (8-9, 1-1) and Loyola University (La.) (13-6, 1-1) faced off in a pair of games at Segnette Field, resulting in a narrow loss followed by a decisive upset victory for the Night Hawks against the No.7 ranked Wolfpack.
Game 2: Thomas 1, Loyola 2 In the first game, Thomas narrowly fell to Loyola with a final score of 2-1. Thomas managed 11 hits, but the Wolfpack's pitching held firm after the first inning to secure the win. Thomas took an early lead in the first inning when
Lucas Dufresne singled to reach base and later scored on a single by
Jaylen Roque, making it 1-0. The Wolfpack responded in the bottom of the second inning, tying the game at 1-1 after Kash Koontz, a pinch runner, scored on a sacrifice bunt by John Lewis.
In the fourth inning, the Wolfpack edged ahead when Ben Harris scored on a single by JJ Garcia, bringing the score to 2-1. Despite multiple hits and base runners throughout the game, including a strong showing from Dufresne, who recorded three hits, Thomas was unable to score further. The game concluded with the Wolfpack maintaining its lead, resulting in a 2-1 victory over Thomas.
Ian Vickers demonstrated resilience on the mound for Thomas, pitching a complete game over 6 innings. Vickers allowed 6 hits and 2 earned runs while striking out 7 batters and issuing just 1 walk. He managed to maintain a WHIP of 1.17 across 109 pitches, with 69 strikes thrown.
Dufresne posted a strong performance with three hits and scored one run, contributing to the offensive efforts. Roque recorded three hits and drove in one run.
Nathaniel Slaughter delivered two hits and drew a walk, maintaining a perfect on-base percentage.
Game 2: Thomas 7, Loyola 0 Thomas then bounced back in the second game, securing a decisive 7-0 victory over Loyola. The Night Hawks' pitching staff dominated, holding Loyola to just three hits while striking out ten batters.
Thomas opened the scoring in the second inning when
Gabe Tafelski doubled to left center, and
Max Pickert drove him in with a single, aided by an error.
Seth Waltimyer extended the lead with a two-run single, and Roque added another run on a fielder's choice, making it 5-0 after two innings. In the seventh inning,
Tyler Marczak scored on a passed ball after reaching base on a single, increasing the lead to 6-0.
The score remained 6-0 through seven innings. Thomas added one more run in the ninth when
Drew Clayton singled and later scored on a single by Waltimyer, solidifying a 7-0 final score.
Isaac Padilla delivered a strong performance on the mound for Thomas, pitching 7 innings without allowing a run. Padilla struck out five batters, gave up only two hits, and maintained a WHIP of 0.71.
Following Padilla,
Sawyer Smith pitched 2 innings in relief, striking out five of the seven batters faced, allowing just one hit, and maintaining a WHIP of 0.50. Waltimyer recorded three RBIs and two hits. Lawhon collected three hits. Marczak scored twice and tallied two hits.
"It's amazing how good this team can be when we play to our ability. This was fun to watch!" said, Head Coach
Tom Fleenor.
Up next for the Night Hawks the rubber match against Loyola at 1 p.m. CT on Saturday, Feb. 28 at Segnette Field in New Orleans, Louisiana.
