Irvine home opener a clunker

IRVINE — The seventh inning is, traditionally, a time to stand, stretch, sing and savor.

For the Loyola Marymount Lions, however, it has become a time to pounce.

The visitors, guided by first-year baseball coach Jason Gill, a former UC Irvine assistant, extended their seventh-inning surge this season by breaking things open on their way to an 11-3 nonconference victory to spoil the Anteaters’ home opener before 846 Tuesday at Anteater Ballpark.

Some might point more to a shaky UCI bullpen than any stretch-related LMU magic, but five Lions’ runs in their favorite frame extended their advantage in the seventh inning this season to 33-5 in 10 games.

Adding fuel to those pointing a finger of blame at UCI relievers is the fact that the Lions were lethal in more than just the seventh. The West Coast Conference representatives also scored three in the sixth and two in the eighth to pull away in a game the Anteaters once led, 3-1.

Whenever the claws come out, Gill appears to have his offense in shape for more than just the late rounds, as the Lions (8-2) are off to their best start of the millennium.

Meanwhile, No, 5-ranked UCI (5-3), playing at home for the only time in its first 12 games, didn’t do much to boost season-ticket sales.

A strong start by sophomore right-hander Cory Hamilton and some timely hitting in a three-run third-inning basically summarized the highlights for the hosts.

UCI Coach Mike Gillespie also took the opportunity to “showcase” most of his roster as 21 of the 32 available Anteaters saw action. This was, Gillespie said, more a message to some struggling starters than a kind gesture toward his reserves.

“We’re going to try and force some of these freshmen in there a little bit, hopefully this weekend,” Gillespie said. “We want to give those guys a crack at it and see how it goes.”

It did not go well against LMU as the ’Eaters managed just six hits, struck out nine times and saw their team batting average drop from an already unimpressive .258 to .250.

Hamilton allowed two hits, no walks and one unearned run before exiting after four innings with a blister on his pitching hand.

“Cory did fine,” Gillespie said. “The issue with him has been strikes and he walked no one. I was happy with him.”

Otherwise, Gillespie was disgusted enough to virtually dismiss his team after an atypically brief postgame address.

“It was, ‘Hey, it’s been 3 1/2 hours of being embarrassed, so let’s go home,’ ” Gillespie said. “It’s sure disappointing. I thought the field looked beautiful, it was a nice crowd … and then to get basically beat up …”

Junior catcher Francis Larson went two for three with a run batted in for UCI. He leads the team with 10 RBIs.

Senior shortstop Ben Orloff and junior second baseman Casey Stevenson also had RBI singles for the hosts.

Gill also praised Hamilton, who followed sophomore Crosby Slaught’s 4 2/3 shutout innings in a Sunday win over UCLA to give UCI rooters looking for potential substance in the rotation beyond heralded junior starters Danny Bibona and Christian Bergman, something to be optimistic about.

The loss was, however, not the only bad news for UCI. It was learned that junior outfielder Sean Madigan is out for the season, due to a knee injury sustained Saturday against Houston.

Madigan said an MRI revealed a 90% tear of his anterior cruciate ligament, as well as a tear in the medial meniscus. He will have knee surgery and hope to return in 2010.

UCI relievers Nick Hoover, Brock Bardeen and Noel Avison allowed nine earned runs and 11 hits in 3 2/3 combined innings, before Matt Dufour got the final four outs without allowing a run.

“We didn’t walk guys [only two],” Gillespie said. “We must have been in the middle of the plate enough to where they hit it. And we didn’t hit it. I am disappointed that we didn’t put together a little more offense.”

Gill said it was successful return to his former workplace.

“I’ve had some bitter ones [at UCI], but tonight was a good one,” Gill said. “Tonight was a big deal for us, because we’re trying to earn some respect against an Irvine team that’s obviously nationally known and has been for three or four years now. Anything can happen in these midweek games. I think there is still plenty of room left on our bandwagon.”

Nonconference

LMU 11, UC Irvine 3

SCORE BY INNINGS

Carreon, McClintcik (4), Eusebio (6), Burrell (8) and Enos, Bernardy; Hamilton, Hoover (5), Bardeen (6), Avison (8), Dufour (8) and Larson. W – Carreon, 1-0. L – Hoover, 0-2. 2B – Hawthorne (LMU), Songco (LMU); Larson (UCI). 3B – Asaro (UCI).

BARRY FAULKNER may be reached at (714) 966-4615 or at barry.faulkner@latimes.com.