WHITTIER, CA. (MAR. 27, 2026)- Whittier College baseball ran into an early hole Friday afternoon in the opener of its three-game SCIAC series against Pomona-Pitzer, falling 13–3 at Mendez Stadium.

The Sagehens struck quickly in the first inning, scoring four runs on just two hits while taking advantage of four walks. Pomona-Pitzer added six more in the second, to build a 10–0 lead through two innings.

Whittier got on the board in the bottom of the second when Collin O'Driscoll (Belmont, Calif., College of San Mateo) led off the inning with a solo home run down the right-field line. The Poets added another run in the third as Matthew Mecate (Highland, Calif., CSU Dominguez Hills) homered to right-center, and trimmed the deficit to 13–3 in the fourth when Parker Eastwood-Lilles (Vancouver BC, Canada, St. George's Academy) doubled to left-center and later scored on an RBI single from O'Driscoll.

Pomona-Pitzer answered with three runs in the top of the fourth, to give the Sagehens their final margin.

O'Driscoll led the Poets offensively, going 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBI. Mecate added a solo shot, while Eastwood-Lilles finished 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored. Whittier totaled seven hits in the opener.

After the difficult start, the Poets' bullpen settled things down. Johnny Young (Redding, Calif., College of the Desert) came in and threw two innings, struck out two, and gave up 0 earned runs.  Marcus Owens (Berkeley, Calif., Berkeley) tossed a scoreless fifth inning, and Carlos Rodarte (Ontario , Calif., Chaffey) followed with two shutout frames to keep Pomona-Pitzer off the board the rest of the way.

Whittier will look to bounce back as the SCIAC series continues Saturday. The Poets will travel to Pomona to take on the Sagehens in a doubleheader starting at 11:00.

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