SportsSoftball

Dark clouds dampen softball game

Sophomore Laurie Grey makes the third out at second base in a doubleheader game last Saturday against CMS. The Leos lost the first game, 4-3, and came back with a decisive 3-1 win in the second. / photo by Melissa A. Collett
Sophomore Laurie Grey makes the third out at second base in a doubleheader game last Saturday against CMS. The Leos lost the first game, 4-3, and came back with a decisive 3-1 win in the second. / photo by Melissa A. Collett

by Christie Reed
Staff Writer

ULV softball suffered its first setback of the season, losing the first game of a doubleheader, 4-3, against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Saturday afternoon.

With overcast skies, there was not a single ray of light shining down on the softball diamond or on the Leopards, as they struggled to stay on top of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC). La Verne was undefeated in conference coming into the contest with the Athenas.

Batting 6 for 23 for an average of .260 in the first game, the Leopards were not getting on base consistently, and with four errors in the field they were not stopping Claremont either. Although they out-hit Claremont, who went 5 for 27 as a team, the Leos made four errors. This allowed the Athenas to stay on base for the additional run. Yet, the Leopards’ lack of defense and failure to remain on base were not all they had to blame for their marginal loss.

“It was mental errors that cost us, not strictly performance,” said Head Coach Julie Kline. “We beat ourselves.”

Sophomore shortstop Laurie Grey believes that the loss was a result of their lack of confidence as a young team.

“I don’t think we give ourselves enough credit as a team,” said Grey. “Everyone else knows we’re a good team, we just need to prove it to ourselves.”

In game two, La Verne appeared to feel the pressure and regain their winning attitude at the same time. With Assistant Coach Lynne Fujimoto yelling “play with some intensity!” from the third baseline, the players took it to heart.

After an initial run by CMS, and an inning of rough pitching by Sharnae Lancaster, the Leopards kept Clare­mont’s lead to 1-0 after the first inning.

The Leopards, ready to take control of the game by the second inning, demonstrated a lively offense and CMS’s defense began to falter. ULV’s Jamie Hesler managed a single with a long hit down the third baseline that got by both Claremont’s third baseman and rightfielder. A bunt by Amber Hall died at home plate, catching CMS by surprise and moving Hesler into scoring position. A strikeout by catcher Carmen Diaz left Hesler hanging.

In the third inning, Claremont’s scoring opportunities were negated by tough Leopard defense. La Verne stopped a potential run by salvaging a smashed ball that went out of reach of the rightfielder and to the outfield fence. The drive was picked up in the outfield, thrown to the cutoff and gunned to third base, catching the runner for the second out in the scoreless inning.

The Leo offense remained alive in the fourth inning. With one out and the bases loaded and Stephanie Kiser hit a line drive through the gap, picking up two RBIs as Grey and Hesler scored the only two runs of the inning, pushing the Leopards into the lead with a score of 2-1. “I became much more intense by the second game,” said Kiser, which was apparent in her success at bat.

In the midst of her batting, Grey stepped to the side to bandage a bleeding cut on her leg; the white tape seemed to seal her spectacular performance in the bottom of the sixth. After a base hit up the middle, she was then sent to second on a sacrifice bunt by Hesler. She safely slid into third as a result of a wild pitch by an indecisive pitcher. Diaz drove Grey home on the final hit of the inning.

With an excitement-driven team entering the seventh inning, ULV stopped CMS before they even got started. A pop fly and a ground out led to a dramatic ending. A hot smash towards center was caught by a diving Grey. She was left with enough time to make the long throw to first for the final out of the game, leaving the Leopards with the winning score 3-1.

“We refocused nicely in the second game,” said Kline, reflecting upon the team’s win.

This seemed like a modest response to an excellent performance on part of the Leopards in the second game.

Freshman Kiser admitted, “I didn’t give 110 percent in the first game, but I gave more than that in the second one.”

This along with “a couple key hits,” according to CMS Head Coach Vicki Brault, led to the Leopards victory.

CMS Assistant Coach Lori Bennett felt the Athenas “remained defensively consistent but their hitting slacked off in the second game; in addition we were missing a couple players.” Bennett’s words were true to par, because although Claremont’s batting increased to .259, La Verne’s nearly flawless defense got them off the bases just as quickly as they got on.

The Leopards will try to continue their winning ways when they travel to Cal Lutheran today for a 2 p.m. doubleheader against the Regals.

Tomorrow, La Verne plays host to Pt. Loma College beginning at noon.

“We play to the best of our abilities every time because every game is a conference game,” said Kline “You have to take it one game at a time; you can never pre-judge your opponents.”

Christie Reed, Editor in Chief
Christie Reed
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Melissa A. Collett, Photography Editor
Melissa A. Collett
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