LA VERNE, Calif. — Occidental College fell to the University of La Verne in both games of a doubleheader with a final score of 20-6 in game one and 13-3 in game two on Saturday at Ben Hines Field.
In the first game of the doubleheader Occidental scored four runs in the fifth inning, but La Verne's early seven-run first inning set the tone.
Occidental faced a challenging match against La Verne, with the game opening in dramatic fashion. In the first inning, La Verne jumped to an early lead, scoring seven runs. Key plays included Nathan Perry's RBI double and Alek Bautista's RBI single, ending the inning with La Verne ahead 7-0.
Occidental responded in the third inning.
Anthony Sereno singled up the middle, followed by
Thomas Munch's single, setting up
Evann Smith to drive in Sereno with a single.
Benjamin Fitzgerald's single brought home Munch, narrowing the gap. La Verne, however, tallied five runs in the bottom of the inning, highlighted by Alek Bautista's two-RBI single, extending its lead to 12-2.
In the fifth inning, Occidental's offense rallied. Munch and Smith both reached base, and Fitzgerald singled to bring in Munch. A fielding error allowed Smith to score, and a wild pitch plus a passed ball resulted in two more unearned runs, bringing Occidental's total to four runs in the inning. La Verne continued to capitalize on opportunities, adding seven more runs, culminating in a 20-6 advantage over Occidental.
The game concluded with La Verne maintaining its lead, resulting in a final score of 20-6.
Munch scored two runs and collected two hits in the game, making a strong impact at the plate. Smith posted three hits, including a double, while contributing one run and one RBI. Fitzgerald drove in two runs and scored once, adding two hits to his performance.
In game two, Occidental opened the game with a strong start, as
Thomas Munch singled to third base and was later driven in by a triple from
Benjamin Fitzgerald.
Griffen Rogers followed with a single through the right side, bringing home Fitzgerald for the second run of the inning. Occidental led 2–0 going into the bottom of the first. However, La Verne responded with four runs in their half, taking a 4–2 lead after the first inning.
In the top of the second,
Jackson Short homered to right field, bringing Occidental within one run. Despite this effort, La Verne extended its lead in the bottom half with five additional runs, highlighted by a three-run home run from Isaiah Figueroa. At the end of the second inning, La Verne led 9–3.
The middle innings saw no scoring from either team, as both pitching staffs settled in. Occidental managed to get runners on base but could not capitalize, as the score remained 9–3 through the sixth inning.
La Verne added two runs in the seventh, with Aaron Whobrey scoring on a wild pitch and Alek Bautista coming home on a sacrifice fly. The score increased to 11–3 in favor of La Verne.
In the eighth, La Verne added two more runs. Nathan Perry scored on a hit-by-pitch with the bases loaded, and Isaiah Figueroa crossed home on a single to center field by Ryan Vosika. La Verne closed out the game with a 13–3 victory over the Tigers.
Rogers collected four hits, including a double, and added an RBI while also stealing a base. Fitzgerald scored a run and recorded an RBI with his triple. Short hit a home run, contributing one run and one RBI.
The Tigers will be back in action next Friday when they travel to Whittier to take on the Poets on April 24th at 3:00pm.
