April 21, 2002

Box Score

SPOKANE, Wash. - Gonzaga received its third straight solid performance from a starting pitcher on Sunday afternoon as the Bulldogs (23-17, 11-7 WCC) swept a weekend series from Loyola Marymount (16-25, 9-8 WCC) with a 9-1 win at August/A.R.T. Stadium. Gonzaga remains one game behind first-place Pepperdine in the WCC Coast Division race as the Bulldogs won their fifth straight game.

Brent Dayton tossed eight innings of four hit baseball to improve to 3-2 on the season. The senior right-hander allowed only one unearned run to score in the seventh inning as Billy Lockin singled to center and the ball was misplayed allowing Joe Silva to come around to score. Dayton worked the first five innings allowing only two infield singles to Carl Stoeber and Jonathan Higashi. Silva and Lockin would account for the other hits Dayton allowed while Stoeber singled in the ninth off relief pitcher Eric Dworkis.

Nate Gold provided the early offensive punch for the Bulldogs as he drove home Eric Rodland with a sacrifice fly in the first. Sam Hess' two-run single through the right side in the fourth gave Gonzaga all the breathing room it would need on the day as he pushed Gonzaga's lead to 4-0. Brian Munhall also added an RBI single in the Bulldogs three-run fourth.

Gonzaga would tack on additional runs in the fifth and sixth as Gold has an RBI single and Rodland had a sacrifice fly to score Kevin Richardson. Rodland would add to his RBI total in the eighth inning as he hit a bases loaded triple to right center giving the Bulldogs the final margin of victory.

Gold finished the day 3-for-4 at the plate while Rodland drove home four runs. Stoeber led Loyola Marymount with two hits while Lions starter Vincent Cordova (5-3) was saddled with loss after giving up five runs in four-plus innings of work.

Gonzaga travels to Lewis-Clark State on Wednesday night for a make-up game before heading to San Diego for a three-game West Coast Conference series with the Toreros.