Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 Photo by: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com
WHITTIER, Calif. – The Whittier College softball team proved to be a tough test at home for the Athena's of Claremont-M-S Friday despite dropping the doubleheader 5-4 and 5-2.
With the two losses the Poets now drop to 22-12, 12-10 SCIAC and now move into 5th place in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) standings a game behind Chapman University.
Game 1 (L, 5-4)
CMS got runners on second and third in the first inning and brought around one following a Savard double. Whittier had an opportunity in the bottom half of the inning to tie the game up in the sixth but a single from Mercedez Cundiff up the middle was not enough to bring Emi Shimamoto around from second as she would be stranded.
The Poets saw another opportunity squandered in the bottom of the fourth when Mickala Gonzales reached third with just one out, but a Jordan Learn fly out to left and a Courtney DeLano pop up would end the threat.
The Athenas would add four in the sixth following three singles to go in front 5-1 but a Poet rally in the bottom half of the inning sparked a two run shot from Mercedez Cundiff to left that moved the score to 5-3. Learn would double in the ensuing at bat to center and reached third but for the third time was stranded there following a Samantha Blum strikeout and a groundout from Alex Algandar.
The Purple & Gold weren't done there as they would add another two runs in the seventh behind a two run blast from Samantha Mellano, her first of the year that brought in Alexandra Flores to pull the WC within one 5-4 but Cundiff would line into the 43 double play that ended the Poet comeback.
DeLano was tagged with the loss going a complete game giving up five runs (four earned) on seven hits, but came away with a career high 11 strikeouts. Her counterpart Haley Schultz picked up the win going 7.0 innings giving up two earned runs on 11 hits.
Gonzales finished 3-4 with a run scored, while Cundiff and Shimamoto were 2-3.
Game 2 (L, 5-2)
Claremont-M-S went ahead 2-0 after three innings of play but saw the game become tied in the fifth after a costly error by the left fielder brought in Flores before Mellano drove in Shimamoto.
But in the sixth CMS would regain the lead with a solo shot from O'Ne, one they would not relinquish as they would add another two in the seventh en route to the 5-2 victory.
Blum picked up the loss going 6.0 innings giving up three runs on seven hits. K. Mi collected her seventh win on the season going a complete game giving up two unearned runs on six hits.
Ashlyn Canchola took over the designated player role in game two and went 2-3 her best single game performance in her collegiate career and the lone Poet to pick up two hits in the game.
Whittier returns to the diamond tomorrow at Palmer field as they host Pomona-Pitzer during their annual Strike out cancer Event with game times set for 12:00pm and 2:00pm.
