The Loyola Academy Ramblers baseball team took the field Wed, May 3 in a CCL matchup against the 12-5 Lions of St. Viator. This matchup had all the makings to be a thriller, but soon after the opening pitch fans realized that wasn’t the case.

The Lions came into Wednesday’s matchup looking for revenge after suffering a gut-wrenching loss at the hands of the 0-12 St. Patrick Shamrocks the night before. Similarly, the Ramblers entered the game trying to avenge a loss as well coming from a much more respectable St. Laurence squad. Loyola’s .500 record is something the Ramblers hope to surpass in the coming games, but with performances like Wednesday’s, this could be a tough ask. 

By first pitch the temperature had dropped to 48°F, but because of the elevation at the Hill wind chills made the game much colder than anticipated. Marco Arroyo started at the bump for the Ramblers, but he wasn’t able to stop the Zan Van Goff show for Viator. Van Goff went 5-5 at the plate with two home runs, two singles, and a double. Van Goff’s performance is a major reason for the Rambler’s loss, as from the get-go, his bat kept the Lions ahead of Loyola.

The game ended with a final score of 8-1 with Loyola’s only score coming off an R.B.I. single from Caleb Corbett that allowed senior Justin Trott to run it in. Late hits by Corbett and senior George Haracz added some excitement for a dull Loyola dugout, but in the end, their efforts were not enough. Viator was able to capitalize on all the Rambler’s mistakes, ultimately making the game uncatchable.

“Their pitcher kept us off balance with the off-speed (pitches),” senior Connor Lasch said. This was evident all night as St. Viator seemed to have their way with Loyola batters.

“I thought we played hard, but we got the short end of the stick all night,” Trott added.

“We played scared, that’s it. The guys we faced tonight aren’t better than us, and we know it. Mentally we have to prepare for Laurence tomorrow,” Josh Howard, head coach, said. 

“Underwhelming, the boys did not come out to play today,” former player and senior Kyan Gibbs stated. The game was a hard watch for many fans, and the pre-game buildup was far from the reality fans were given. 

Loyola will have many more chances to get some wins under their belt as they inch closer to playoffs, but a loss here hurts as the team is going into Thursday’s matchup off a two-game losing streak. Loyola heads into Burbank in a rematch against the St. Laurence Vikings, where the Ramblers hope to avenge their loss from earlier in the week.

“Obviously we will be building off this loss, and we are looking forward to a good game tomorrow against Laurence” Justin Trott said.

All eyes are on St. Laurence after the loss. It seems like the Ramblers want to erase this game from their memory as soon as possible.