CLAREMONT, Calif. — Hayley Jaquess allowed only two hits as La Verne defeated Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, 3-0, in the second game of doubleheader action at Athena Field on Saturday afternoon.
Jaquess, who was coming off a no-hitter against Cal Lutheran last week, took another no-no deep into the game but lost it in the sixth inning. She finished with a shutout, going all seven innings while two strikeouts.
But the real star of the game might have been left fielder Sienna Kendricks. After Jaquess walked the first two batters of the sixth inning, she allowed a single to left that could've scored a run and brought the winning run to the plate. But Kendricks fielded the ball cleanly and threw a laser to shoot down Tara Robinson at the plate, saving the run and stopping the Athenas' momentum.
Katherine Kibbe hit a two-out single in the top of the fourth inning to get the Leopards on the board, Alexis Schiff had an RBI double and La Verne added an insurance marker on a fielding error in the seventh.
Schiff finished 2-for-4. Rachel Ogata, Kibbe, Kenricks and Tellez each had a hit.
The Athenas exploded for a six-run fifth inning to win the first game, 8-0.
Kibbe (2-1) picked up her first loss of the season while striking out three, Athena Anna Gurr (3-2) picked up her third win. The Leopards only managed four hits off Gurr.
CMS opened up the bottom of the first with a single by Tara Robinson and triple down the right field line by Carly Roleder to get on the board first. A throwing error allowed Reeve Grobecker to score and put the Athenas ahead 2-0.
The Leopards fought back at the top of the fifth with Michelle Deguzman singling to the left-center seam, followed by Carly Condon also singling to the right-center seam, but ultimately could not string any hits together.
The Leopards had a chance to make a move early as they loaded the bases with two outs in the first but a silly play cost them. CMS' catcher called a timeout and Kibbe, mistaking it for a mound visit, left her base and the Leopards finished the inning empty-handed.
