NCAA West Regional : Loyola Unloads, Packs for Omaha

Loyola Marymount put on another explosive hitting display Sunday at Jackie Robinson Stadium and the result was another victory. But it wasn’t just any victory. This one, a 12-5 rout of Hawaii, gave the Lions the NCAA West Regional title.

Loyola advances to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb. The Lions will play the winner of the South I Regional (LSU or Tulane) in the opening game of the Series Friday night.

“This is what it’s all about,” said Chris Donnels, who went 4 for 5, including a two-run homer, and drove in four runs to lead the Lions’ 14-hit attack. “We’ve taken a big step. Now there’s another one to go.”

Dave Snow, who in just two years as head coach has turned the Loyola program into one of the West’s strongest, will be making his second trip to the Series. He was the pitching coach at Cal State Fullerton in 1984 when the Titans won the NCAA title.

“I’m just so happy to be able to take this team to back to Omaha,” Snow said. “It’s a great feeling. And being able to take my own club back there is especially satisfying.”

Loyola (49-13) will be making its first appearence in the College World Series. In fact, this is only the second time the Lions have ever been in the playoffs. The Lions’ other appearance was in 1973 when they lost two straight games to USC.

To win this regional Loyola had to win four straight because it lost to UC Santa Barbara Thursday in the first round of the double-elimination tournament.

And just as they did in their victories over UCLA on Friday and over Santa Barbara and Hawaii on Saturday, the Lions came from behind to beat the Rainbows in the final.

Hawaii led, 4-0, after three innings before the Loyola offense took charge. The Lions got one run back in the fourth, then pulled within one in the fifth when Donnels hit his homer.

Donnels, a sophomore third baseman who had a .354 average, 18 homers and 81 runs batted in going into the tournament, was only 3 for 16 with 2 RBIs going into Sunday’s game.

“I wasn’t seeing the ball too well,” he said. “I think I was pressing. . . . I was nervous because these were big games. But I knew that if someone wasn’t hitting, there would be somebody else who would pick you up.”

One of those who did was right fielder Jim Bruske. Bruske may have had only five hits in the tournament, but four were homers and he drove in 11 runs. His three-run homer in the eighth inning gave the Lions a 12-4 lead. He was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.

Then there was Billy Bean. The senior center fielder was Loyola’s leading hitter in the tournament, going 9 for 19 (.474) and driving in 11 runs.

“We have confidence in ourselves,” Donnels said. “There’s always a little skepticism in big games, but we played well. When we got behind, it woke us up. It was just a matter of getting tough.”

Said Snow: “I would describe our team in one word--fearless. They just don’t have any fear.”

Snow, however, admitted that he had some anxious moments early on, especially after the second inning. The Lions loaded the bases with no outs, but Hawaii starter Jeff Vierra struck out the next three batters

“We had some very bad bat discipline early,” he said. “I was concerned that the guys would get frustrated and not hit. But when we got to within 4-3 and (Tim) Layana went to the mound, it gave us a shot of Adrenalin.”

Layana (17-2), the ace of the staff, injured his right (pitching) shoulder earlier in the week and couldn’t start the tournament opener. He started the UCLA game and lasted 5 innings, yielding 9 hits and 7 earned runs.

He entered Sunday’s game in the sixth inning and allowed only one hit and an unearned run.