Well into the season, the Pomona-Pitzer (P-P) softball team is still struggling to put together a string of wins. In a doubleheader against the La Verne Leopards on Saturday, Apr. 3, the Sagehens lost both matches with disappointing scores of 10-0 and 11-2.
The P-P softball team has yet to generate consistent play. So far, the only doubleheader swept by the team was against Menlo on Mar. 13. Single wins against Whittier on Mar. 14 and Cal Lutheran on Mar. 27 have brought the Hens’ SCIAC record to 4-12 and overall record to 8-14.
The problem plaguing the Sagehens is not being able to get fired up early enough in the game. Unfortunately, La Verne could teach them a thing or two.
In the first inning of Saturday’s early game, La Verne’s cleanup hitter heated things up with a two-run homerun. La Verne 2, P-P 0.
P-P’s first inning did not go as well. A promising double by leadoff hitter Alexis Garcia PI ‘11 failed to yield any results. Two strike outs and a fly to left field made P-P cede the inning to La Verne.
Coach JoAnne Ferguson recognizes this weak spot. “Our offense never had a chance to get going,” she said. “We had some sporadic hits, but weren’t able to string enough consistent hits together.Our offense is the strongest part of our team and our bats were silent on Saturday. La Verne maintained the offensive momentum of both games.”
This lack of offense cost P-P dearly when, in the third inning, the Sagehens could not bring in any runs despite loading the bases. The Leopards showed no mercy and hit the Hens hard, scoring four runs in the fifth inning on three solid hits, including a home run to center field.
In an eventful sixth inning, La Verne proved that the previous inning was no fluke. Their lineup showed its worth with two strong hits and another home run, bringing the total score up to 10-0.
This was La Verne’s weekend. In the second game of the doubleheader, they had five hits in the first two innings to go up 4-2. La Verne sealed the deal in the fourth with an impressive five more runs and managed to sweeten the win with a final home run. The final score was 11-2.
Garcia, however, remains hopeful.
“Our team is very talented and we have the ability to make it to playoffs, but we haven’t shown our talent in SCIAC yet,” she said. “It’s frustrating to lose with talent such as ours, but we are a strong team and I think we can make playoffs if we continue to work hard and play to our full abilities.”
P-P’s last home games are against Chapman on Apr. 17th at 12 p.m. and 2 p.m.