LA VERNE, CA — In a top-10 showdown packed with intensity, the No. 2 University of La Verne baseball team split Saturday's doubleheader against No. 10 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at Ben Hines Field. The Leopards rallied for a dramatic 6-5 walk-off win in a back-and-forth opener filled with emotion and tension, before falling flat in game two, 11-3, in a game that carried an entirely different tone.

Game One: La Verne 6, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 5

The top-10 showdown lived up to the hype in game one, delivering nine innings of intensity, momentum swings, and emotion — both on the field and in the stands.
Claremont-Mudd-Scripps struck first with a solo homer by Andrew Mazzone in the opening frame, but La Verne answered in the fourth with a game-tying blast of their own. Senior Jason Givens ignited the Leopard faithful with a two-run home run to right center, giving La Verne a 2-1 lead and shifting the energy in the ballpark.

After CMS responded with a four-run fifth to retake the lead, the Leopards again showed resilience. Timely hitting and an RBI single by Noah Garcia brought La Verne within one, while Aidan Salcedo came through with a clutch game-tying RBI single in the sixth.

Tension mounted late as both teams traded scoreless frames and emotions ran high — even in the crowd — as fan engagement reached a boiling point. But it was La Verne who delivered the final blow. With the score still tied in the ninth, Salcedo singled and later came around to score on a deep sacrifice fly to right by Jake Ledford, securing the dramatic 6-5 walk-off win.

Austin Klopfenstein earned the win in relief, tossing two shutout innings to move to 3-0. Salcedo led the way at the plate, going 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored.

Game Two: Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 11, La Verne 3

The second half of the doubleheader was a stark contrast in both energy and execution, as La Verne struggled to recapture the fire from game one.

CMS jumped on top early with two runs in the second and poured it on with a five-run third inning, capped by another homer from Andrew Mazzone — his second of the day. The Leopards couldn't match the pace, managing just three runs and showing little of the spark that defined the opener.

Matt Rice drove in a run in the second, and Ryan Vosika doubled and scored in the seventh, but La Verne's offense was otherwise stifled. Defensively, the Leopards committed a pair of errors and struggled to contain the Stags' relentless attack.

La Verne used nine different pitchers in the loss, with starter Lucas Quintana (2-1) taking the defeat. Offensively, Logan Reese provided a bright spot, going 2-for-4 with a run scored.

Up Next

The Leopards (19-3, 7-2 SCIAC) return to action on Friday, April 4, when they open a three-game SCIAC series against Pomona-Pitzer. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Ben Hines Field.