The University of La Verne baseball team returned to the win column after rallying from a 5-1 deficit to defeat Occidental College 12-6 in the first of a three-game SCIAC series Friday in Eagle Rock.
La Verne plated three runs in the third and ninth innings while scoring twice in each of the fifth and sixth frames en route to victory.
The Leopards (7-8, 5-5 SCIAC) got on the board in the top of the first inning on an RBI single from Victor Peinado to score Sergio Munoz to take a 1-0 lead.
Occidental answered with a five-spot in the bottom half as the first four batters in the lineup reached base, culminating in a Pedro Aldape RBI single. The Tigers continued their attack and add four more runs to seize a 5-1 advantage.
In the second, La Verne closed the gap to 5-2 on a sacrifice fly from Sergio Munoz scoring Cody Hazel. In the third, the Leos struck for three runs on three hits as Joe Buckley, Hazel and Matt Proulx collected RBI singles to knot the game at 5-5.
The Leopards added two runs in the fifth as Joe Buckley singled, stole second and advanced to third on a groundout. He eventually scored on a Tiger error. Munoz followed with a single to drive in Proulx giving La Verne a 7-5 edge. In the sixth, an RBI double from Hazel along with a run scoring single from Kent Longnecker padded the Leos' cushion to 9-5.
La Verne put the game out of reach in the ninth as Munoz doubled home Proux to increase the margin to 10-5. Jon-Michael Hattabaugh followed with a 2-run homer down the rightfield line to push the advantage to seven runs at 12-5.
Occidental added a run in the bottom of the ninth to close the scoring, but Leopard reliever Anthony Cerafice recorded the final two outs to preserve the victory for starter Matt Baudino. After a shaky first inning, Baudino settled in over the next seven innings to earn the win, striking out seven batters while walking two.
Hazel was 3-4 at the plate with 2 RBI and 2 runs scored while Munoz was 2-4 with 3 RBI and a scoring a pair of runs. Joe Buckley contributed with a 2-4 effort with 3 runs scored.
The Leopards and Tigers conclude the series Saturday with a doubleheader beginning at 11 am at Ben Hines Field.
