LOS ANGELES — The University of La Verne softball team took a pair of games in a three-game series over Occidental this weekend.
Game One: La Verne 10, Occidental 7
Cassandra Zapata led the Leopards with three RBIs in the series-opening win for the Leopards.
Zapata and Julia Miramontes both hit two-run singles down the middle to give the Leopards an early 4-0 lead at the end of the second.
The Leopards surged again in the sixth, scoring five runs to take a 10-3 lead. The Tigers threatened a late-game comeback, scoring four in the last two innings, but that's as close as it would get.
La Verne needed just three hits for their big sixth inning, taking advantage of four walks and one hit by pitch.
Taylor Gray and Miramontes each finished with two RBIs and two runs. Angelina Alderete added one RBI and two runs. Mia Pintado finished with one RBI and one run.
Alayna Munoz picked up the win, pitching three innings of relief. Kirstin Sanchez pitched three innings in her start and struck out three. Jaidyn Alvarez picked up the save.
Baserunning played a huge role in the win. The Leopards swiped eight bags. Alderete, Gray, and Rodriguez each stole two bases.
Game Two: Occidental 6, La Verne 5 (8 Innings)
The Leopards jumped out to a 5-1 first-inning lead, but Occidental rallied to force extra innings and won with a walk-off double to right.
Ashley Rodriguez started the scoring with a two-run double to left, and Erika Garcia followed it up with a two-run single up the middle. Angelina Alderete added an RBI for the Leopards to complete the first-inning surge.
But it was all Oxy from there. The Tigers scored one in the third and plated three more runs in the fourth to even the game.
Game Three: La Verne 5, Occidental 2
Kirstin Sanchez led the Leopards in the series-deciding win, pitching a complete game, striking out three, and scattering four hits. The outing marked her four complete-game win of the season.
La Verne took an early 1-0 lead in the first when graduate student Taylor Gray drove in Angelina Alderete with an RBI ground out to second.
Center fielder Ashley Rodriguez added to the lead in the fourth when she reached on a single, stole second, took third on a fly out, and scored on a wild pitch.
The Tigers clawed back with a two-run home run to right field to even the score 2-2 in the fifth.
The Leopards responded with a three-run rally in the sixth, generated off three hits and four stolen bases. A double steal with runners on the corners highlighted the inning. Cassandra Zapata stole second, and Gray raced home, beating the throw for the difference-making run.
Rodriguez drove in Zapata on a sacrifice fly, and Sanchez helped her cause with an RBI single that brought in Sydney Diaz for added insurance.
Next Game
The Leopards will finish their series against Cal Lutheran, a rescheduled game due to weather, on Tuesday, April 9th at 4 p.m.
