LA VERNE, CA — After more than a year without playing a game, it would be understandable for the University of La Verne baseball team to show some rust at the plate. But that was far from the case in Saturday's opening games.
The Leopards finished the day with 27 hits including 14 in a 12-1 seven-inning win over No. 14 Chapman in the opener.
Season Impact
The Leopards start the year 1-1 with an impressive win over the defending NCAA DIII National Champions (2019). Chapman moves to 5-2 overall and 3-2 in the SCIAC.
Game One: La Verne 12, Chapman 1
Ten different Leopards notched hits, La Verne jumped out to a 4-0 first-inning lead and never looked back in its season opener.
Cameron Slessor and Chase Siffert led the offensive surge for the Leopards. Slessor went a perfect 3-3 at the plate with a pair of RBIs, two runs, and a walk. Siffert led all players with three RBIs, added a pair of hits, scored twice, and drew a walk.
La Verne got to work early. With one out in the first, Tanner Siffert on third, and Adam Santa Cruz on second, John Bike stepped up with a hard single to right to bring the pair home. Three Batters later, Slessor doubled to right to score Matthew Dodd and Bike.
The Leopards added four more runs in the third off RBIs by Chase Siffert, Anthony Salcedo, and Brandon Shiota.
Tanner Siffert singled in a pair of runners in the fifth, and Chase Siffert and Christian Killian each brought in a run in the sixth.
The Panthers brought in their lone run of the game off a double by Drew Littwin in the third.
Starting pitcher Sean Holt was solid in his start, giving up just two hits and one earned run with two strikeouts in three innings of work. Jaylon Fong struck out a pair of batters in relief and Alfredo Frey pitched the final one and two-thirds innings, striking out one.
Game Two: Chapman 9, La Verne 6
Game two provided plenty of action as the Leopards and Panthers combined for 28 hits. Chapman rallied in the seventh, scoring five runs in the frame to pull away with the win.
Patrick Perez shined in his Leopard debut, finishing 4-5 at the plate with three RBIs, and a run. Trailing 3-0 in the third, Perez stepped up and singled through the right side to score Killian and Aaron Fong. The freshman from Colony High School came through again in the sixth, singling in Vicente Molina to give the Leopards a 5-4 advantage.
Tanner Siffert, Chase Siffert, and Aaron Fong each finished with two hits. Both Sifferts finished with an RBI. Matthew Dodd made the most of his lone plate appearance, tying the game 4-4 in the fifth when he singled in Drew Reddick.
The Leopard pitching staff finished with eight strikeouts with Brenden Bergen, Frye, and Ryan McLernon each striking out two.
Chapman was led by Henry Zeisler's three RBIs. Both Littwin and Mack Cheli added two RBIs.
Next Game
The Leopards return to action tomorrow when they travel to Chapman for a 1 p.m. showdown.
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