The University of La Verne baseball team topped the California Institute of Technology 10-4 in its SCIAC opener on Friday afternoon at Pasadena.

The Leopards got out to an early lead scoring three runs in the bottom of the second inning. Albert Ramos led off the inning with a double to right field. He advanced to third when Jason Moralez singled down the left line. Ross Hebert then walked to load the bases. An error by the right fielder allowed Zach Canfield to reach first while also allowing the Leos to score their first run. The score was 2-0 when Moralez scored on a pass ball. The final run of the inning came on an RBI single by Dylan Leong.

The Beavers answered back, scoring a run in the top of the third inning. Blaine Matulevich walked and then stole second. An RBI single by Brian Penserini would put Caltech on the board.

La Verne would tally three more runs in the fifth inning to grab a 6-1 advantage. The Beavers would close to gap to two runs when Eric Shropps hit a three-run homer in the top of the sixth.

The Leos were up 6-4 before padding their lead with three more runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. After Canfield and George Hanna led off with back-to-back singles,  Jacob Ludvik's deep ball to center resulted in a Caltech error which allowed three runs to score. La Verne would end with the victory and a final score of 10-4.

Hanna went 3-5 with an RBI and a run scored. Ramos went 2-4 with 2 runs scored. The victory went to Nathan Rollon who pitched 6 innings in the victory.

La Verne is now 2-1 overall and 1-0 in conference action. The squad will continue its three-game series Saturday with a doubleheader against the Beavers. The first game will start at 11:00 am in Pasadena.