LA VERNE, CA — The University of La Verne softball team finished the day with 24 hits and routed the visiting Cal Lutheran Regals in a pair of run-rule wins Saturday afternoon.

Season Impact

The Leopards improve to 10-4 overall and 4-2 in SCIAC play. The Regals fall to 5-7 overall and 2-4 in the conference.

POSTGAME: La Verne softball dominated Cal Lutheran in a pair of wins #d3sb #GoLeos pic.twitter.com/Qun8KhouxF

— La Verne Leopards (@ULVAthletics) March 8, 2020

Game One: La Verne 8, Cal Lutheran 0

Katheryn Navarro left the yard, Rachel Rubio threw a gem, and Niyah Brown finished with three hits as the Leopards shut out the Regals in game one.

Navarro hit her second home run of the season in the fourth inning to break a 0-0 tie. The senior hit a shot clear over the left-center fence to bring in Justice Borden and put La Verne up 2-0.

It was Borden who sparked a five-run inning for the Leopards in their next at bats when she singled in Brown followed by a bases-loaded walk by Navarro that the score at 4-0.

Taylor Gray added the highlight of the inning when she sent Sarah Chavez and Jiana Rojo to the plate when she singled to shallow center. Gray charged for second but was run back to first before a Regal overthrow allowed Haley Jacobo to score.

Rubio earned the complete-game win allowing just three hits while striking out a pair of batters. Brown ended the game in sixth when she hit an RBI single to score Shelby Tevis. 

Game Two: La Verne 11, Cal Lutheran 3

Natalia Aguilera hit a career-high four RBIs and Brown hit another walk-off as the Leopards completed the sweep.

With two outs in the fourth inning, the Leopards exploded for six runs to surge ahead of the Regals. Aguilera added two of the runs in the inning when she singled to center do bring in Gray and Navarro.

Gray had her best game as a Leopards, totaling three hits, three runs and an RBI in the win.

Jiana Rojo had another all-around stellar game. The dual-threat player struck out five batters on the way to her SCIAC-leading seventh win of the season. Offensively, Rojo finished 3-4 at the plate, brought in a pair of runs, both during the impactful sixth inning, and scored a run. 

Rojo and Rubio have cemented themselves as two of the top pitchers in the SCIAC. Rubio leads the SCIAC with a 1.57 ERA and Rojo ranks third with a 2.14 ERA.

Brown again ended the for the Leopards, this time hitting a double that landed just inside the right-field line to send Ashley Soto and Aguilera home. Brown has hit four walk-offs this season.

Navarro continued to show off her power hitting, a pair of doubles and an RBI.

Next Game

The Leopards take a break from SCIAC action on Monday, March 9 when they host WPI in a doubleheader beginning at noon.

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Pair of wins for our Leos! #d3sb

A post shared by La Verne Leopards (@ulvathletics) on Mar 7, 2020 at 5:12pm PST