Greyhounds

Reigning national champion Loyola's showdown with top-ranked Denver this Saturday at Ridley Athletic Complex will probably be the first of two meetings between these Eastern College Athletic Conference rivals and potentially the first of three contests. The No. 8 Greyhounds (9-2 overall and 5-0 in the league) and the Pioneers (9-2, 4-0) are vying for the top seed in the conference tournament, and a loss for either team will likely mean a No. 2 seed. But coach Charley Toomey said a victory would enhance Loyola's RPI, which is ranked 10th in the first list released by the NCAA.

The senior shortstop-outfielder led the Greyhounds (12-4) to a 4-1 record last week. Tilley came through offensively and defensively late in a dramatic 9-8 win over No. 14 Mount St. Joseph in the President's Cup semifinal game Saturday. He hit a two-run home run in the top of the seventh inning to give the Greyhounds the lead and then helped end the game in the bottom of the frame when he turned a double play at shortstop. Tilley batted .436 in the five games, including two home runs, two doubles, eight RBIs, eight runs scored, two stolen bases and a sacrifice fly. Gilman also had wins over Georgetown Prep, McDonogh and St. Paul's early in the week before losing to Archbishop Spalding.

  With the game tied at 10 with 20:27 to play, the Loyola offense sputtered when it was needed most as Georgetown (8-2, 3-0 Big East) ended the game on a 4-1 run to pull out a 14-11 win in women's lacrosse Saturday. Annie Thomas paced the Greyhounds (5-6, 2-1) with four goals. Sophia Thomas led Georgetown with four. No. 4 Florida 19, No. 19 Johns Hopkins 9: Kitty Cullen scored five goals as the host Gators (14-1, 2-1 American Lacrosse Conference) beat the Blue Jays (7-5, 1-2)

There are myriad reasons for Loyola's five-game winning streak. The defense is surrendering an average of 5.8 goals, the offense unearthed an explosive attackman in freshman Zach Herreweyers while senior attackman and 2012 Tewaaraton Award finalist Mike Sawyer sat out two games, and the transition game was bolstered by the return of senior short-stick defensive midfielder Josh Hawkins. Junior attackman Justin Ward pointed to another factor: practice. “After that Duke game [a 9-8 loss on March 8]

When Nick Liddil scored with nine seconds left in Ohio State's 9-4 loss to Loyola in an Eastern College Athletic Conference men's lacrosse showdown Saturday, it was a footnote in a contest that had been decided much earlier. Try telling that to the Greyhounds. As they walked off the field at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, several defensive players were unhappy about Liddil's goal and shared their displeasure with teammates. "A big thing we've been talking about all year is finishing the game on the offensive side and defensive side," junior defenseman Joe Fletcher said.

After the Loyola women lost to James Madison two weeks ago, Greyhounds coach Jen Adams did not mince words. With their second straight loss to an unranked team - the 9-8 overtime loss to the Dukes coming three days after a stunning 10-9 loss at Delaware - the Greyhounds were out of the running for an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, she said. That meant they would have to win the Big East Conference tournament to get back to the NCAAs for the third straight year and they needed to turn the corner in a big hurry.

Reigning national champion Loyola has won seven of its first nine contests this season, but both of the team's losses have occurred against ranked opponents. The No. 15 Greyhounds (7-2 overall and 3-0 in the Eastern College Athletic Conference) get a chance to change that trend when they pay a visit to No. 8 and league rival Ohio State (6-2, 1-1) this Saturday. The showdown with the Buckeyes will kick off a three-game stretch in which Loyola will meet conference foes in Ohio State, Fairfield (6-3, 2-0)

After starting the season 2-5, the Loyola women's lacrosse team has begun what it hopes is a big turnaround with three straight wins, including Wednesday night's 13-7 victory over a UMBC team off to its best start in 27 years. The No. 17 Greyhounds, who defeated Big East Conference foes Louisville and Cincinnati over the weekend, dominated the second-half draws against the Retrievers and thwarted any attempt at a comeback by maintaining possession for the final 10:41 of the game at UMBC Stadium.

A 10-3 thrashing of Michigan on Saturday helped Loyola improve to 7-2 overall and 3-0 in the Eastern College Athletic Conference this season. But the No. 15 Greyhounds are in this position despite not having played with a full deck of cards. The reigning national champion played the first seven games of the season without senior short-stick defensive midfielder Josh Hawkins, who served a suspension for violating an unspecified team rule. Undisclosed injuries forced Loyola to play without senior attackman and 2012 Tewaaraton Award finalist Mike Sawyer for two contests, senior midfielder Davis Butts in Wednesday's 13-8 victory over Georgetown, and senior midfielder Chris Layne and senior defenseman Reid Acton on Saturday.

Loyola's first game in the CollegeInsider.com tournament required a substantial second-half comeback against Boston University. Nothing of the sort was required in Sunday's second round. The Greyhounds never trailed en route to a workmanlike 73-59 defeat of Kent State before 747 at Reitz Arena to clinch a spot in the CIT quarterfinals. Erik Etherly had 27 points and 11 rebounds and Dylon Cormier added 18 points as Loyola (23-11) advanced to face East Carolina (20-12) in Greenville, N.C., on Tuesday.