CHICAGO – The Ramblers gear up for their fourth non-conference tournament of the season this weekend. Loyola Chicago heads downstate to SIUE for a five-game weekend. The Ramblers will play two games Friday, two Saturday, and one Sunday.
Weekend Schedule
Friday – 12 p.m. – vs. St. Thomas
Friday – 2:30 p.m. – at SIUE
Saturday – 9:30 a.m. – vs. Creighton
Saturday – 2:30 p.m. – vs. Illinois State
Sunday – 5 p.m. – at SIUE
Quick Hits
• The Ramblers sit at 6-5 after last weekend's action.
• Loyola picked up its third shutout of the season vs. Pitt on Sunday, winning 8-0 in six innings.
• The Ramblers finished with 10 hits for their second game this year in double-figures.
•
Riley Owens went 3-for-4, while
Abbie Gregus and
Teagan Sopczak were 2-for-3.
•
Peyton Pepkowski pitched to her fourth win and struck out two.
• Sopczak is leading Loyola at the plate, batting .318 over 11 games. She has seven hits, including two doubles.
• Owens is also batting over .300 coming in at .310. She has a team-leading nine hits.
• Gregus and
Sydney Barnett have two home runs each to lead Loyola. Both have hit grand slams this season.
• Pepkowski has a team-best 2.15 ERA over 39 innings of work. So far, she has struck out 29 batters this season.
• Head coach
Alicia Abbott is in her fifth season at the helm. She has 75 career wins with the Ramblers.
Scouting St. Thomas
The Tommies are 1-14 overall after the first three weeks of action. They picked up a 5-0 shutout win over Southern Indiana back on Feb. 16. St. Thomas tied sixth in the Summit League Preseason Poll after finishing 18-35 overall in 2023.
Kaitlyn Raymond leads the Tommies at the plate, batting .281. She has nine hits, five runs, and three RBI. In the circle, Christina Crawford has made 12 appearances. She has a team-best 8.42 ERA with 17 strikeouts.
Scouting SIUE
The Cougars sit at 6-7 overall. They picked up two wins last weekend vs. DePaul (4-3) and at Memphis (5-4). The team is hitting .272 with 99 hits already tallied, including 11 doubles and five homers.
Paige Rocha leads the Cougars hitting .392. She's 20-51 at the plate with six doubles and a home run. Rocha also leads SIUE with 10 runs scored this season. Over six appearances, Sydney Baalman leads SIUE with a 1.98 ERA. She also has a team-best 19 strikeouts over 28.1 innings of work.
Scouting Creighton
The Bluejays are 8-5 heading into the weekend's action. They went 2-3 last weekend in California with wins at Pacific and vs. Stony Brook. Creighton is batting .213 this year with only three Bluejays above .250.
Cayla Nielsen leads Creighton, batting .289. She has a team-leading 13 hits, including three doubles and a home run. In the circle, Natalia Puchino is 5-1 this season with a 1.23 ERA. She's tossed a shutout, two saves, and retired 35 batters.
Scouting Illinois State
The Redbird are 2-14 going into the fourth week of action. Both wins came last weekend against UT Arlington. ISU was tabbed fourth in the MVC Preseason Poll after finishing last year 30-22 overall, 19-7 in the MVC.
