CHICAGO (February 24, 2023) – Loyola (3-7) will travel to its third different state in three weekends as the Ramblers head to Kentucky for Saturday-Sunday doubleheaders at the Velvet Milkman Invitational, hosted by Murray State. Loyola will open with Miami (OH) at 1:30 p.m. CT Saturday, before taking on the host Racers at 6 p.m. CT. Sunday's twinbill features a 10 a.m. CT matchup with Ball State, followed by the weekend finale against Miami (OH) at 12:15 p.m. CT.
Last Time Out
Loyola finished 1-4 at the Texas Classic, including a shutout win from
Peyton Pepkowski over Incarnate Word and pair of one-run losses against the Cardinals and nationally ranked Texas.
Haley Wallace and
Amelia Thomas each went 6 for 16 (.375) over the five games, with Wallace connecting on a double in the past two outings.
Madison Ebeling reached base nine times, hitting .333 (5-15) with a pair of walks.
Series Stuff
Loyola is 2-3 against Miami (OH) with three straight losses to the RedHawks, including a 10-8 decision in the last meeting which was decided in eight innings on Feb. 7, 2020, in Rosemont. Each of the three meetings prior to that matchup were decided by a run. The Ramblers won the first two meetings in Oxford, Ohio during the 1994 and 1995 campaigns.
The Ramblers played Murray State for the first time last season, going 1-2 at Racer Field. Loyola won the first matchup 4-3 in nine innings after a go-ahead RBI double from Ebeling, before falling by 8-5 and 3-2 decisions in the next two games.
Loyola holds a 1-2 ledger against Ball State, with the most recent meeting in 2012 when the two teams split a pair of neutral-site games (W, 5-4; L, 9-2) in Oxford, Ohio. The first meeting against BSU occurred in the 2006 season, another neutral-site matchup in Iowa City as the Cardinals won 3-0.
Scouting Miami (OH)
The RedHawks (3-2) have won three straight including a 12-0 shutout over Purdue Fort Wayne in their home opener Wednesday. Miami also earned victories over Campbell (10-2) and East Tennessee (3-2) in a tournament hosted by Charlotte. The RedHawks have logged 12 home runs including five from graduate student Allie Cummins (.467, 8 RBI), who went 3 for 3 with three long balls in Wednesday's victory. Grad student Brianna Pratt is 2-1 in the circle to lead the RedHawks with a 2.47 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 17.0 innings of work.
Scouting Murray State
The Racers (4-5) are coming off a 2-2 weekend at Troy where they fell twice to the host Trojans and picked up a pair of wins over Kennesaw State. Three players have 10 or more hits on the year, led by redshirt senior Gracie Osbron (.393, 3 HR, 2B, 13 RBI), who supplied six of the team's 14 runs in the wins last week and has reached base in nine consecutive games. Redshirt junior Jenna Veber (3-2) has three wins in the circle with a 3.23 ERA. Three Murray State pitchers have combined for 65 strikeouts and 14 walks surrendered.
Scouting Ball State
The Cardinals (3-3) opened this weekend's tournament with a 10-2 win in five innings over Bellarmine this morning. Ball State opened the season last weekend at UAB's Blazer Bash, earning wins over Samford and Lindenwood. Senior second baseman Haley Wynn collected two hits in the win over Bellarmine, raising her average to .529 on the season, which includes a triple and one home run. Sophomore right-hander Angelina Russo (2-0) has allowed just one earned run in 13.1 innings across three appearances this season.
Up Next
Loyola will head to Southern Illinois next weekend with games scheduled against the host Salukis, Butler & UT Martin at Charlotte West Stadium located in Carbondale.
