AZUSA — Pedro Aldape (Sherman Oaks) hit a pair of home runs, went 4 for 8 from the plate with six RBIs, and the Occidental College baseball team split a double header with La Verne at Azusa Pacific on Saturday.

Oxy (9-5, 4-2 SCIAC) totaled 28 hits against the Leopards (9-4, 5-1 SCIAC), but finishes with just one win to show for them.

"We swung the bats very well in Game 2 and in Game 1, we just didn't capitalize," Occidental baseball coach Luke Wetmore said. "They took advantage of their opportunities in the first game and the exact same thing happened in reverse in second." 

Recaps 

Game 1: La Verne 9, Occidental 4

The Tigers hit the ball well, they just didn't have timely hitting.

Eight different Oxy players combined for 11 hits — three of them with multi-hit games — but La Verne made more with its 12 knocks, beating Oxy 9-4 in Game 1.

The game was even at 4-4 until the Leopards put together a five-run bottom of the eighth inning. Oxy walked in two runs, and Zach Canfield and Jason Moralez singled in three, putting the game out of reach.

The tough part to swallow for Oxy was not just the big inning for the Leopards, but  its own squandered opportunity to jump out to a big lead in the top half of the same inning.

"The key to the Game 1 is we went first and second in eighth inning and we don't score," said Wetmore, frustrated that Oxy didn't come through with multiple runs. "We missed a bunt execution, missed a sign and then they score five to put it out of reach."

For most of the morning Oxy led though.

Dan Kelley (Kirkland, Wash.) and Logan Allen (Atascadero) both had RBI singles in the bottom of the fourth, giving the Tigers a 4-2 edge they held until ULV tied the game with a pair of runs in the sixth.

Pedro Aldape (Sherman Oaks) hit his team-best fourth home run of the season, a solo shot over the left field wall in the top of the fifth.

Allen, Johnathan Brooks (Huntington Beach), A.J. Libunao (Huntington) each had a pair of hits for the Tigers.

Game 2: Occidental 14, La Verne 3 (7 innings)

Aldape and the Tigers exploded for a 10-run sixth inning, making what was otherwise a close game, a 14-3 blowout that was called after seven innings.

In the inning, Aldape drove in two runs with a single, Anthony Salsedo (Tracy) singled in a pair, and Brent Wunner (Temple City), Kevin Ozaki (Los Angeles), and Riley Smith (Bellevue, Wash.) had RBIs.

Oxy totaled six hits, but also had the inning extended with a pair ULV of errors.

Aldape, who hit his fifth bomb of the year, finished the game 3 for 3 with five RBIs.

Allen was 2 for 4 with two stolen bases and Salsedo was 2 for 4 with three RBIs.

Matt Malott (San Diego) earned the win for the Tigers, striking out seven in 6.1 innings.

"He had absolute command of all of his pitches today," Wetmore said.

Oxy opens a three-game series with first-place Pomona-Pitzer at Anderson Field on March 2.