Had the same problem in my old van, along with a miss. Compression check showed a dead hole, air pressure blew into the crankcase. Head gasket was iffy, but turned out to be broken rings (about 20 pieces). Only reason I caught it was I noticed some roughness on the edge of the piston where some small pieces left home. Cylinder wall was good. I swore that if I had to do it again, the engine is coming out!