Bleu Devils Fall to Loyola in Season Opener

NEW ORLEANS– Loyola University exploded for 10 runs over the first two innings and never looked back, rolling past Dillard University 12–1 Tuesday night (Feb. 3, 2026).

Loyola set the tone immediately in the bottom of the first, striking for five runs on a string of hard contact and productive outs. Jordan McKenzie opened the scoring with an RBI single, Javon Swasey delivered a run-scoring double, and Ayden Authement brought home another run on a groundout. Drew Lee then capped the inning with a two-run single to make it 5–0.

The Wolf Pack were even more relentless in the second, adding five more. Nathan McDonald drove in a run with a single, Swasey followed with a two-run single, Jed Combre knocked in another with a base hit, and Loyola tacked on an additional run when Reed Dutu's lineout brought Combre home, pushing the lead to 10–0.

After the early barrage, Dillard's bullpen settled things down. Carey Simon Jr. (2.0 scoreless), Aidan Nickles (1.0 scoreless), and Yahir Alejandro-Pagan (1.0 scoreless) combined to keep Loyola off the board from the third through the fifth, giving the Bleu Devils a chance to regroup.

Loyola added two more in the sixth—one on a Lee sacrifice fly and another when Swasey scored after Ben Harris was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded—stretching the margin to 12–0.

Dillard avoided the shutout in the top of the seventh. Mikey Lewis reached and later scored when Ronaldo Rivera ripped an RBI double to left, accounting for Dillard's lone run in the 12–1 final.

Key performers:
Loyola University
- Javon Swasey: 2-for-2 with a double, 3 RBI, 3 runs, plus a walk (middle-of-the-order engine all night)
- Drew Lee: 1-for-3 with 3 RBI and a sac fly; also drew a walk
- JJ Garcia: 2-for-3 with a triple, 2 runs
- Jordan McKenzie: 2-for-3 with an RBI, 2 runs
- Loyola finished with 11 hits, 8 walks, and produced RBIs from throughout the lineup.

Dillard University
- Ronaldo Rivera: 1-for-3 with an RBI double (Dillard's run-producing hit)
- Christopher Owens Jr. and Noah Riley added the other hits as Dillard went 3-for-24 at the plate.

 Pitching summary:
- James Guidry (Loyola) earned the win (1-0), throwing 4.0 shutout innings with 4 strikeouts, allowing just 2 hits.
- Domenech closed it out with 3.0 innings, allowing 1 run on 1 hit.

For Dillard, the game turned during the opening frame:
- Dontre' Henry took the loss (0-1), allowing 10 runs (9 earned) in 1.0 inning as Loyola's first two innings decided the outcome.
- Dillard relievers posted several scoreless innings afterward, but the early deficit was too large to overcome.

 By the numbers:
- Loyola: 12 runs, 11 hits, 8 walks
- Dillard: 1 run, 3 hits, 2 walks

-Bleu Devils-