LA VERNE, Calif. –
Jake Hoskins hit his second Linfield home run and the Wildcats outhit La Verne, but the Leopards took the three-game series with a 4-2 win Saturday at Ben Hines Field.
The second batter of the game, Hoskins cranked a solo shot to left field to give the Wildcats an early lead. But the Leopards scored four straight runs to go up 4-1 after six innings.
Two-way player Benny Vogel put La Verne on the board in the third inning with an RBI single up the middle. Noah Garcia gave the Leopards the lead for good with a homer to right-center.
The home team sent two more runs across the plate in the sixth inning. Vogel scored on an RBI single by Anthony Salcedo. Later in the inning, Garcia got caught stealing but stayed in a rundown long enough for Salcedo to score from third.
The Wildcats got a run back in the seventh inning when Hoskins came around to score on an RBI double by
Bodey Smith. Hoskins went 2 for 3 with two walks. The breakout newcomer is batting .458 with a .536 on-base percentage and a .708 slugging percentage. He leads the team with 11 hits, including two home runs, and 17 total bases. The transfer from Linn-Benton Community College has already recorded five two-hit games this season.
Nick Holm also collected a pair of hits, going 2 for 4 with a walk. Four other Wildcats registered hits.
Andrew Del Biaggio allowed four runs, three earned, on five hits. He struck out four batters before being chased out of the game in the sixth inning. The Linfield bullpen held the Leopards scoreless from that point on.
Pitching shined for La Verne. Starter Gerald Terry improved to 1-1 on the season, allowing one run on four hits while walking two and striking out six. Vogel went the rest of the way to earn his first save of the year.
NEXT
Northwest Conference play opens next week. The 'Cats (2-4) will begin their regular-season title defense when they take on cross-county rival George Fox on Feb. 18-19 in Newberg.
