BOCA RATON, Fla. – Loyola (0-2) dropped a pair of close contests Friday in its season-opening doubleheader at FAU's Paradise Classic. The Ramblers fell 3-1 against Iowa in the opener, before nearly knocking off No. 23 Mississippi State in a 5-4 setback in Game 2.
 
GAME 1 // IOWA 3, LOYOLA 1
Loyola's Abbie Gregus recorded her first collegiate hit in timely fashion, as the freshman delivered a clutch two-out RBI double to right center in the top of the sixth inning, pulling the Ramblers within a run at 2-1. Amelia Thomas led off the inning with a base hit as the Ramblers earned a run back after Iowa went ahead 2-0 in the bottom of the fifth.
 
Starter Peyton Pepkowski tossed a complete game for the Ramblers, striking out two with nine hits and three walks allowed. The right-hander worked herself out of a jam in the second inning, shutting down the Hawkeyes threat after a leadoff home run by Denali Loecker put Iowa ahead 1-0.
 
In the next at-bat, the Ramblers worked the bases loaded in the third, but couldn't take advantage. Sophia Remsik recorded a one-out single, followed by a pair of walks drawn by Madison Ebeling and Hannah Nalley. Iowa Starter Breanna Vasquez would retire the next seven batters she faced before Thomas led off the sixth with her base knock.
 
Vasquez (ER, 4 H, 4 K, 3 BB) earned the win after tossing six innings, before Loecker picked up the save by retiring the side in the seventh.
 
Thomas, Gregus, Remsik and Ava Bieneman each recorded a hit for Loyola.
 
GAME 2 // NO. 23 MISSISSIPPI STATE 5, LOYOLA 4
Trailing by a run and down to its final out, Loyola moved the tying run into scoring position as Nalley singled to right field and advanced on an error. However, the Ramblers couldn't pull off the upset after climbing back from a 3-0 deficit in the second inning.
 
With one out in the third, the Ramblers poured two runs across to get within a run at 3-2, when Thomas sent a bases-loaded single back up the middle and Jocelyn Currie crossed on a wild pitch.
 
The teams traded runs again when MSU recorded a two-out run-scoring single in the fourth, but Loyola countered with two more in the fifth. Currie drew a full-count walk to start the rally, before Ebeling reached via error. Then Thomas delivered again with an RBI single to left field, followed by a clutch two-out, pinch-hit infield single by Sydney Barnett to tie the game at 4-4.
 
The momentum swung back to the Bulldogs when Matalasi Faapito homered in the bottom of the fifth for the go-ahead run.
 
Andie Broniewicz went the distance in the circle, finishing with four earned runs allowed on eight hits, three walks and one strikeout. Faapito started the game for MSU but lasted just 2.1 innings before Reis Beuerlein came on for the win in relief.
 
Thomas went 2 for 4 with a pair of RBIs. Freshmen Bella DeZeeuw and Sierra Sass both earned their first collegiate hit as the Ramblers tallied seven total.
 
UP NEXT
Loyola will play Florida Atlantic (6 p.m. CT) and Bethune-Cookman (8:30 p.m. CT) Saturday night, before closing the weekend against Stony Brook on Sunday (10:30 a.m. CT).