The University of La Verne baseball team earned its first win of the season Friday, rebounding from a 2-1 loss on Thursday to Linfield by defeating Whitman in a resounding 20-6 triumph at the Arizona Desert Classic in Anthem, Arizona.

Against Whitman, the Leos earned three runs in the fifth, seventh and eighth innings.

The Leopards were led by stellar performances by Brian Tuttle, Aaron Coopman, and Matt Ashby. Tuttle went 2 for 5 with 6 RBIs, 2 home runs and 2 runs. His home runs came in the first inning and the fifth inning.

Coopman went 4 for 5 with 4 RBIs, 1 home run and 4 runs. His home run came in the third inning. Ashby went 2 for 4 with 2 RBIs, 1 double and 1 run.

La Verne junior Nathan Rollon recorded his first win this season allowing 2 earned runs and striking out 5 batters in 5 innings of work. Kevin Knight, Phil Schick, Brandon Montalvo, Sean Fasig and Anthony Cerafice all shared time on the mound to help contribute to the victory.

The Leos collected 20 runs on 15 hits with 2 errors, while Whitman had 6 runs on 11 hits with 6 errors.

On Thursday, Linfield was able to score in the first inning after Dustin Smith reached on an error. He advanced to secondon a single by Eric Evenson and then scored off a single by Zach Boskovich. The Wildcats scored again in the fourth inning giving them a 2-0 lead.

The Leopards would answer back in the seventh inning. Cody Hazel reached on fielder's choice and then moved into scoring position on a single by Coopman. Donavan Petta then hit a double to put the Leos on the scoreboard.

Coopman and Petta led La Verne with two hits each both recording a single and a double.

The winning pitcher of this game was Ryan Larson who pitched seven innings. Zach Manley recorded the save with two innings of work. The loss went to Leopard senior Matt Baudino.

La Verne will take on George Fox University on Saturday at 2:00 pm. They will finish out the Arizona Classic on Sunday with a doubleheader against Pacific Lutheran. The first game of the twinbill will start at 9:00 am.