A complete team effort by the University of La Verne resulted in a resounding doubleheader sweep over No. 11 Redlands by scores of 5-1 and 14-4 in SCIAC softball action Saturday at Wheeler Park.
The Leopards rode the arm and bat of Katherine Kibbe in the opener as the freshman held the Bulldogs hitless through six innings in addition to belting a two-run homer.
Kibbe put the Leos on top in the bottom of the first inning when she smacked her team-leading fifth homer of the season, a two-run shot over the left centerfield fence for a 2-0 lead. La Verne added three runs in the bottom of the fifth on RBI doubles from Kibbe and Danielle Vela along with a run scoring single from Raven Freret.
Leading 5-0, Kibbe retired the side in order in the sixth and entered the top of the seventh with a no-hitter. The no-no would be broken up by a leadoff single from Amanda Clark and led to two more hits and a run for the Bulldogs in the frame, but Kibbe would earn her seventh win of the season in the three-hit performance.
In the second game, the Leopard offense erupted for 14 runs and 18 hits against a Bulldog squad which entered the twinbill leading the conference in earned run average.
La Verne opened by posting five runs on seven hits in the bottom of the first inning. Breeanna De La Rosa hit an RBI single and was followed by back-to-back run scoring doubles from Freret and Kibbe for a 3-0 lead. The Leos added run scoring singles from Candice Nunez and Rachel Hong padded the advantage to 5-0.
The Leopards continued their assault, taking an 8-0 lead in the bottom of the second on a bases clearing three-run triple from Mackenzie Dutton.
Redlands closed the gap with a four run outburst in the top of the fifth on a two-run triple from Sarah Beeman and run scoring singles from Nikoli Sharp and Vicki King.
Any thought of a Redlands comeback was halted by the Leos in the bottom of the fifth, who tallied six runs in the frame to end the game. La Verne moved out to an 11-4 lead after receiving a two-run double from Freret followed by a run-scoring single from Kibbe.
The final blow was delivered by junior Candice Nunez, who hit a three-run homer over the left field fence to close out the contest by virtue of the eight-run mercy rule.
Freret went 4-4 at the plate with 3 RBI and two runs scored. Both Nunez and Kibbe went 3-4 at the dish with Nunez driving in four runs and two runs scored while Kibbe scored three times in addition to driving in two.
The Leopard defense rose to the occasion on the afternoon, yielding no errors in the twinbill after commiting 10 in the two games against Linfield on Wednesday.
The victories allowed the Leopards to improve to 15-9 overall and 9-7 in the conference. Redlands dropped to 9-5 and 15-7, respectively.
La Verne concludes its eight-game homestand with a visit from George Fox on Tuesday afternoon at Wheeler Park. The doubleheader begins at 2:00 pm.
