SportsScope : Slumping Loyola Tries for Comeback in WCAC, Will Host San Diego for 3

Loyola Marymount University, trying to climb back into the baseball race in the West Coast Athletic Conference, plays host to the University of San Diego for a three-game series Friday and Saturday, then is at home for a 2:30 p.m. non-conference game Tuesday against Cal State Fullerton. Friday’s game against San Diego begins at 2:30, while Saturday’s double-header starts at noon. The Lions entered the week at 19-11 overall, 2-6 in the WCAC.

The Lions are hitting .320 as a team but fall to .278 in conference games. The pitching staff has an earned-run average of 4.78, but that rises to 5.88 with no saves in WCAC games. Catcher Jim McAnany leads the batters with a .355 average and has 6 home runs and 22 runs batted in. Outfielder Don Sparks is next at .353. Third baseman Chris Donnels, hitting .340, continues to lead in the power categories with 11 doubles, 9 homers, 34 RBI and a .708 slugging percentage. Catcher-utility man Mark Graffitti has 5 home runs and 18 RBI in only 19 games.

Reliever Darryl Scott has been the top pitcher with a 4-3 record, a 3.83 ERA and two saves in 17 games. Freshman Steve Surico is 2-1 in five starts. Kalani Bush is 4-1 but has a 6.49 ERA.

Cal State Dominguez Hills gets into the thick of the California Collegiate Athletic Assn. baseball race, playing 12 straight league games starting today with a 2:30 p.m. home contest against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. The Toros play Cal Poly at home at 2:30 Friday, then travel to Chapman College for a 1 p.m. game Saturday. The Toros, who play 11 of their next 13 games at home, play host to Cal State Northridge at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday. The Toros entered the week 17-8 overall and 3-2 in the CCAA, tied with Northridge for second two games behind Cal Poly Pomona. Three of the Toros’ five conference games have gone into extra innings and four have been decided by one run.

Senior outfielder Fred Hanker, who got his seventh game-winning RBI in the 11th inning last week against Northridge (a 6-5 victory), entered the week with 32 RBI for the season and 165 for his career, 5 short of the school record. Hanker is batting .311 with 5 homers. The Toros’ newest power hitter is catcher Chris Plank, who went without a home run for the first 59 games of his career but has hit three in his last four games. The team’s leading hitter is infielder Mike Perryman at .364, followed by outfielder Jon Beuder at .355. Both have driven in 16 runs. First baseman Jeff Sears has driven in 17.

The Toros continue to get solid pitching from the bullpen. Junior Chris Haslock is 4-2 with four saves and a 1.96 earned-run average, and senior Dennis Brady is 1-1 with two saves. Mike Apsrey is the top starter at 3-2 with a 3.29 ERA and two complete games.

The L.A. Heat opens its Western Soccer Alliance home schedule Saturday at El Camino College with a 7:30 p.m. game against the San Diego Nomads. The Heat, coached by Cal State Dominguez Hills Coach Marine Cano, features four amateurs from the U.S. national team. The Nomads have another national team member as well as four players from the junior national team (19 and under).

The Loyola Marymount men’s volleyball team is in Western Intercollegiate Volleyball Assn. action Friday at Cal State Northridge and Tuesday at top-rated UCLA. Both matches begin at 7:30 p.m. The Lions, in last place in the nation’s premier conference, entered the week 0-11 in WIVA matches but 13-14 overall.

The Cal State Dominguez Hills women’s softball team will take part in the 14-team Pioneer Invitational at Cal State Hayward starting Friday. The Lady Toros, who entered the week at 6-14 overall and 4-6 in the California Collegiate Athletic Assn., will open against Oregon on Friday afternoon and Cal State Northridge on Friday evening. On Saturday they face Cal State Hayward in the morning and Sonoma State after noon. Teams with the best two-day records will play Sunday for the title. Sophomore pitcher Denise Biller leads the Lady Toros with a 4-5 record and a 1.59 ERA.

The Dominguez Hills golf team faces a crucial test Monday and Tuesday in a Division II regional tournament at La Contenta Golf Club in Valley Springs. The Toros are coming off a poor showing in last week’s Stanislaus Invitational, finishing fourth out of four Division II teams in a tournament that is weighed heavily in NCAA tournament consideration. The Toros need to do well in the 54-hole La Contenta contest as well as in a Division II regional in May. Senior Brian Carson leads the team with a 77.1 average.