Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount (May 15, 2010) 
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Pepperdine scored nine runs between the fifth and sixth innings en route to a 12-5 win over Loyola Marymount Saturday afternoon at George C. Page Stadium to even its series with the Lions at a game apiece.
The Waves' key shots included a two-out, pinch hit RBI double for junior Floyd Given (Rohnert Park, Calif./Rancho Cotate HS) that broke a 2-2 tie in the fifth, and a two-run home run off the bat of sophomore Nate Johnson (Camarillo, Calif./Camarillo HS) that boosted Pepperdine's lead to 7-3.
Given finished 3-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored despite not entering the game as the designated hitter until the fifth.
Johnson's home run sailed beyond the 406-foot mark in left-center field and was his team-leading seventh of the season. Later that inning, senior Ryan Heroy (Henderson, Nev./Green Valley HS) pushed Pepperdine's run total past 10 with his bases-loaded RBI double to straightaway center field.
The win raised Pepperdine's record to 19-26 and evened its West Coast Conference mark to 7-7, while the Lions fell to 21-25 and 4-10 vs. the league. Pepperdine will look to win Sunday's rubber game with hopes of capturing its fourth-straight series over its arch rivals.
The run support was more than enough for redshirt sophomore and starter Cole Cook (Los Angeles, Calif./Palisades Charter HS), who, while not pitching his greatest game today (five runs on 10 hits), still ate up 7.2 innings and compiled eight strikeouts on 121 pitches.
Cook has pitched past the sixth inning in all 19 of his collegiate career starts, including 11 times this season in improving to 4-5.
Freshman Alex Najera (Anaheim Hills, Calif./Canyon HS) finished the game in relief of Cole with 1.2 innings pitched and a strikeout.
LMU struck first with two first-inning runs on three hits and an RBI groundout. Matt Lowenstein's double over the head of left-fielder Miles Silverstein (Bell Canyon, Calif./Calabasas HS) brought home the game's first run and Matt Koch's one-out grounder scored Ryan Hawthorne to give the Lions' a 2-0 lead.
Pepperdine got one back in the third on senior Colin Rooney's (Yorba Linda, Calif./Esperanza HS) second home run of the year. Rooney's shot appeared destined to bounce off the Mikos Blue Monster in left field but instead sailed over the top of the 37-foot wall.
The Waves tied the game at 2-2 in unusual fashion in the fourth with right fielder Ryan Van Amburg (Campbell, Calif./St. Francis HS) scoring on Heroy's RBI hit by pitch. Van Amburg singled with two outs and moved to third following consecutive walks issued by starter John Lally.
Elsewhere in the Waves' box score, sophomore center fielder Brian Humphries (El Cajon, Calif./Granite Hills HS) reached base four times and singled in the sixth to extended his career-best hitting streak to 10 games, and freshman Joe Sever (San Jose, Calif./Bellarmine College Preparatory) pushed his streak to a 13th game with a single and two runs scored.
In the eighth, Rooney reached base for the third time via walk and tied Johnson's season high with nine total bases in the process. Rooney's three free passes were the most by an individual Wave in one game since David Harris drew four last year in a game at Northridge.
Pepperdine and Loyola Marymount conclude their three-game series Sunday at 1 p.m. Senior Robert Dickmann (Woodland Hills, Calif./Notre Dame HS) will take the hill in search of his team-best seventh victory.
Pepperdine 12, LMU 5 (May 15, 2010 at Los Angeles, Calif.)
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Pepperdine.......... 001 136 010 - 12 14 0 (19-26, 7-7)
LMU................. 200 010 200 - 5 11 4 (21-25, 4-10)
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Pitchers: Pepperdine - Cook, Cole; NAJERA, Alex(8) and Johnson, Nate. LMU - LALLY, J.;
GRIFFIN, A.(5); ESQUIVEL, X.(6); MEYERS, G.(8) and PLAIA, C..
Win-COOK, Cole(4-5) Loss-LALLY, J.(3-4) T-3:26 A-221
HR PEP - Rooney, Colin (2); Johnson, Nate (7).
Weather: 63 degrees, overcast
