Poets and Athenas split weekend series

CLAREMONT, Calif. - The Whittier College softball team earned a split in its Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference double-header this past weekend, March 28, against Claremont-Mudd-Scripps. The Poets won Game 1, 7-4, but lost the second game, 5-2.

WC (18-12, 5-9 SCIAC) totaled 14 hits in the first game as they were led by the bats of Molly Yriarte and Brendan Thompson who each had three hits.

Mary Pacheco added a 2-for-5 effort with a homerun.

Whittier scored a run in the top of the first inning but CMS (17-6, 7-3 SCIAC) answered with three runs in the bottom half of the inning. The Poets tied the game with two runs in the fourth inning and took the lead, 5-3, with a pair of run s in the fifth.

Amanda Webster went the distance for WC as he allowed four runs on 10 hits with four strike outs.

The second game saw three Poets collect two hits. Pacheco, Yriarte and Collen Munday led the way for WC.

CMS broke open a scoreless tie in the bottom of the third with three runs. WC climbed within one-run at 3-2 after its half of the sixth inning but the Athenas added two runs in the sixth to clinch the win.

Nikole Gandara went 5.2 innings and allowed five runs on nine hits.

The Poets return to action on Friday, April 10, as they host California Lutheran at 2 and 4 p.m. Cal Lu swept WC earlier this year.