Mid-America Christian University

SHREVEPORT, La. – The second-seeded No. 18 MACU Baseball team faced a tough test against a highly-experienced third-seeded Loyola (La.) squad, but the Evangels were able to escape a bases-loaded jam in the top of the ninth to come away with the 3-2 win over Wolf Pack at Pilot Field on Monday afternoon in their first game of the NAIA Opening Round.
 
SCORE

• Mid-America Christian 3, Loyola 2
  • Mid-America Christian (40-13)
  • Loyola (36-18)

PITCHING DECISIONS

• Win: Ibrahim Gonzalez (11-2)
• Loss: Michael Hotard (6-3)
• Save: Liam Taft (13)

TOP PERFORMERS

• Ibrahim Gonzalez – W, 6 IP, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 H, 4 BB, 6 SO
• Gabriel Dixon – 2.2 IP, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 H, 3 BB, 1 SO
• Sammy Hallada – 3-4, 2B, RBI, R
• Nick Hill – 2-3, HR, RBI, R, BB
• Adam Hanan – 1-4, RBI
• Elijah Lee – 1-3, R, SB

SCORING SUMMARY

• TOP 3^rd – LUNO – Nathan McDonald singled to left, RBI; Myles Liggans scored – LUNO 1, MACU 0
• BTM 3^rd – MACU – Sammy Hallada singled up the middle, RBI; Elijah Lee scored – MACU 1, LUNO 1
• BTM 4^th – MACU – Nick Hill homered to center, RBI – MACU 2, LUNO 1
• BTM 8^th – MACU – Adam Hanan singled to left-center, RBI; Sammy Hallada scored – MACU 3, LUNO 1
• TOP 9^th – LUNO – Myles Liggans singled to short, RBI; Jovan Swasey scored – MACU 3, LUNO 2

GAME SUMMARY

• Loyola threatened in its half of the first as the leadoff hitter Myles Liggans hit a base hit up the middle before Drew Lee drew a two-out walk to put a runner in scoring position, but Ibrahim Gonzalez came back to strikeout JJ Garcia on a full-count pitch to leave them stranded.
• The Evangels put together a threat of their own in the bottom of the first when Jalen King and Nick Hill hit back-to-back singles to put a pair of runners on, but LUNO pitcher Michael Hotard induced a 6-4-3 double play on Adam Hanan to end the threat.
• The Wolf Pack broke through first in the top of the third. After Liggans reached on a one-out single off the back-hand attempt at short, got down to second on a wild pitch, and then third on a groundout, Nathan McDonald slapped a shallow RBI single into left to plate the run, making it a 1-0 game.
• Mid-America Christian answered right back in its half of the third. After Elijah Lee reached on a one-out single to left and stole second, Sammy Hallada drove him in by slapping a base hit right back up the middle to even the game up at 1-1.
• MACU seized the advantage in the fourth when Nick Hill blasted a leadoff solo shot that just barely got over the center field fence to make it a 2-1 ballgame.
• Loyola threatened to tie it in the top of the eighth when Liggans drew a one-out walk and McDonald was hit by a pitch to move a runner to second with two outs. However, right fielder Tuane Cope made a sensational sliding grab in foul territory to get the third out and leave the runners stranded.
• The Evangels added a massive insurance run in the eighth after being held scoreless in the previous three frames. Following Hallada's one-out double down the left field line and Hill being intentionally walked with two outs, Adam Hanan came up with the RBI single dropped into the left-center field gap to stretch the advantage to 3-1.
• The Wolf Pack didn't go down without a fight as LUNO walked the bases loaded with two outs before Liggans slapped a single up the middle that Lee could not quite get to second base on the diving stab and toss to second, allowing one run to score and make it a 3-2 game.
• However, MACU closer Liam Taft was finally able to induce the final out by getting Jaxon Buratt to fly out to Jalen King in left-center field to secure the 3-2 victory.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian scored its three runs on nine hits while Loyola tallied its two runs on four hits.
• MACU starting pitcher Ibrahim Gonzalez became the first MACU pitcher in the NAIA Era (2008-present) to reach 11 wins, as he allowed only one earned run on three hits with four walks and six strikeouts over six innings of work.
• Gabriel Dixon pitched some strong relief for MACU, allowing no runs on no hits with three walks and a strikeout while Liam Taft notched his 13^th save of the season after giving up a hit and a walk in his third of an inning.
• Sammy Hallada had a productive day at the top of MACU's batting order, as he slashed 3-for-4 with a double, an RBI, and a run scored.
• Nick Hill also reached base three times for the Evangels, wrapping up his afternoon hitting 2-for-3 with a homer, an RBI, and a run and drew the lone walk. His home run of the season marked his 22^nd of the season.
• Adam Hanan came up with MACU's other RBI on the day, which proved to be a crucial one in the bottom of the eight to wrap-up a 1-for-4 day at the plate.
• Elijah Lee scored a run after going 1-for-3 at the dish.
• The result marked the first time the Evangels won their first game of the NAIA Opening Round after falling in the first opening round contests in the two previous seasons to Milligan and Johnson.
• The Evangels also took the advantage in the all-time series against Loyola as the contest marked the first ever meeting between the two programs. It was a massive win against a Wolf Pack squad that not only advanced to the NAIA World Series last year, but came in as the Southern States Athletic Conference Tournament Champion.
• The result also means MACU has recorded its third 40-plus win season in a row after going 41-17 last year and 41-13 during the 2024 campaign.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will play the winner of the top-seeded No. 12 LSU Shreveport and fourth-seeded Oklahoma Wesleyan playing in the 6 p.m. game at Pilot Field.