LOS ANGELES — Nolan Henley was 2 for 5 with a pair of key hits to keep La Verne in its series opener with Occidental, including a solo home run to left.
But Oxy third baseman A.J. Libunao hit a two-run home to break a 2-2 tie and La Verne could not scrap together another run in a 4-3 loss to the Tigers at Anderson Field on Friday.
With the loss, La Verne falls behind Oxy in the SCIAC standings with a game in hand. La Verne drops to 10-8 and Oxy is now 11-8. The winner of the series at the end of the weekend will be in sole possession of fourth place.
In his final at bat with two outs in the ninth, Henley crushed a line drive to short, but Oxy's Riley Smith snagged it out of the air, securing the win for the Tigers.
Libunao finished the day 2 for 3 with 3 RBIs and a run scored to go along with the home run.
Ben White and Josh Surdo each went 2 for 3 for the Leopards.
Johnathan Brooks stayed hot at the plate for Oxy, going 3-for-3 with a double, a run scored and a walk. He is now batting .350 in conference play.
La Verne starter Phil Schick pitched all eight innings, giving up four earned and striking out four, but was charged with the loss.
Starter Joseph Kling pitched a solid game for the Tigers, going 5.1 innings without an earned run. When he checked out in the sixth, left-handed reliever C.J. Maruyama came in and sat down consecutive batters, with one out and runners on first and second, closing the book on Kling.
Maruyama earned the win, throwing 2.2 innings with the home run by Henley his only costly blemish. Scott Ericksen threw the ninth, earning the save.
La Verne took a 2-1 lead in the fifth on a pair of unearned runs. Mark Jebbia started the rally with a grounder to the left of Libunao at third that deflected off the heel of his glove for an error. Two batters later, Michael Reyes hit an RBI-single to center, scoring Jebbia and tying the game at 1-1. Henley drove in La Verne's second run, on a sharply hit fielder's choice to third, scoring Jebbia. Henley's liner was knocked down at third by A.J. Libuano and thrown to second for the second out. In the meantime, Jared Hovsepian was able to cross the dish. George Hanna lined out to Libunao in the next at-bat to end the inning.
The Tigers quickly erased the lead in the bottom half of the fifth. Brooks walked and eventually scored on a bloop-single to center by Victor Munoz.
The Tigers scored first in the bottom of the fourth. Chris Strain led off the inning with a line-drive double to left center, moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by Fudge and scored on a sacrifice fly to left from Libunao.
Up until that point, neither team could scratch through 3 ½ innings despite putting the ball in play and having base runners.
In the bottom half of the first, Brooks led off the inning with a double to left that one-hopped the wall. Munoz walked, giving the Tigers a pair on base, but they were both stranded.
Pedro Espinoza recorded La Verne's first hit in the top of the second, knocking a single to left. La Verne added a second base runner with one out when Jebbia walked. But Kling got Hovsepian to ground into a 6-4-3 to end the threat and the inning.
Oxy followed La Verne's lead and looked like it might get some offense going in the bottom half of the second. But after Libunao hit a sharp single through the left side, Henley made a diving catch in center and Jebbia followed it with a diving catch in left on a pair of soft line drives to end the inning.
During La Verne's turn at the plate in the third, Surdo tried to stretch a single into a double, but was easily caught at second on a relay that started in right with Devon DeRaad in right, to Charlie Caccamo, to Smith for the tag. Had Surdo not gotten thrown out, he may have scored on a double to left center by Henley later in the inning. Hanna flied out to left in the next at-bat to end the inning.
Brooks recorded his second hit in the bottom of the third, reaching first on a high chopper that deflected off of Schick's glove, slowing it down just enough that Hanna couldn't make the bare-handed play behind the mound. Schick recovered, sitting down Smith, Munoz and DeRaad.
In the La Verne half of the fourth, Joe Winterburn smacked a single to left. But Espinoza lined out to short and Winterburn got picked off on a botched bunt attempt to end the inning.
The Tigers and the Leopards continue their series Saturday with a doubleheader as baseball opens its new field at the new Campus West Athletic Complex. La Verne held a Grand Opening ceremony to open the facility on April 8 and played its first softball games there on Friday.
