Led by an impressive performance by senior RHP Joey Phelps ’19 on the mound, Loyola Varsity Baseball took home the 2019 Santa Ana Elks Century Baseball Classic Championship with a 6-5 victory over Palos Verdes on Wednesday (Apr. 3) on the campus of Century HS in Santa Ana.
The Cubs, playing their seventh game in a span of just nine days, went undefeated in the tournament with a 4-0 record to claim the Larry Arason Division crown. It took a pair of comebacks for the Cubs to reach the championship game, going ahead in the seventh-inning in both an 8-7 victory over Villa Park on Monday (Apr. 1) and a 5-4 win over Village Christian on Tuesday (Apr. 2) to set up last night’s matchup with the Sea Kings.
Phelps was the star for Loyola, going 5.0 innings and giving up just three hits while striking out a whopping 13 batters and walking none. Backing up Phelps in relief was junior Geoffrey Belden ’20, who went 2.0 innings and recorded the save with his four Ks.
On the offensive side of things, seniors Jackson Savant ’19 and Connor Roggero ’19 led the team with three hits each, while the Cubs recorded 11 as a team. Senior Colin Livingston ’19 added two RBIs while junior Max Nuckols ’20 scored one.
Loyola is now on a five-game winning streak and has won 6 of the last 7, improving its overall record to 15-7 on the year.
Now, the Cubs gear up for a three-game series (Tues/Weds/Fri) with Chaminade, beginning on Apr. 9th on the road against the Eagles. The second game will be played at Hernandez Field before Loyola returns to West Hills for Game 3. First pitch for all three outings is set for 3:30 p.m.
Follow Loyola Baseball all season long here on REPu and on Twitter (@LoyolaBSB/@LoyolaAthletics).