LA VERNE, Calif. — Nicholas Michaels hit a grand slam in the bottom of the sixth to put the University of La Verne baseball team up 9-8, and the Leopards held on for an 11-8 win over the visiting Williams College Ephs Wednesday afternoon.
Season Impact: The Leopards improve to 16-9 overall this season. La Verne has won seven of their last eight games. The Ephs drop to 1-8.
With the bases loaded, two outs, and the Leopards trailing 8-4 in the bottom of the sixth, designated hitter Jakob Thomas drew a walk to cut the deficit to three runs. That brought Michaels who blasted a shot clear over the right field fence, putting the Leopards up 9-4.
Michales finished the game with a pair of hits and five RBI. He currently leads the SCIAC with 30 RBI and ranks fourth with 37 hits.
Christopher Peres had a big game for the Leopards. The junior finished with two RBI, a run, a stolen base and stepped onto the mound in the ninth to pick up the save.
The Leopards took the early lead, scoring four runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to take a 4-1 advantage. But the Ephs got their bats going, scoring two runs in the second and three in the third to set up Michaels' come from behind slam.
Jacob Benson extended the Leopards' lead in the seventh when he doubled to center to score catcher Adam Santa Cruz. Benson then reached home on a wild pitch to put the score at 11-8.
Mauricio Guadarrama and Lukas Granado each finished with a pair of hits. Santa Cruz added an RBI.
Nick Byrd picked up the win for the Leopards.
Next Game: The Leopards return to SCIAC play this Friday when they travel to Occidental to face the Tigers at 3 p.m. at Anderson Field.
