SCIAC athletics photo

The second-seeded Pomona-Pitzer Colleges Sagehens scored in double figures all three games, capping their first-ever SCIAC Tournament championship and NCAA automatic qualifier bid with an 11-6 victory over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges late Saturday afternoon.

Pomona-Pitzer jumped out to a three-run first-inning lead after Harry Deliyannis set the tone for the game, striking out the side. The Sagehens then got a dream start to the bottom of the inning as JC Ng and Tournament Most Outstanding Player Isaac Kim both singled to lead off and Greg Pierantoni drew a walk to load the bases with no outs. A hit-by-pitch scored one run before rookie Jack Gold smacked a two-RBI double to left field and the nearly Sagehen had a fourth, but the runner was caught at the plate on a comebacker to the mound.

Both pitchers settled in around a handful of singles over the next two frames. CMS found its response in the fourth with a two-out double from Jack Potter and two-run bomb by Adam Dapkewicz, his third of the tournament, to tie the game. The Stags briefly went ahead in the top of the fifth inning, but Pomona-Pitzer took control immediately afterward with a five-spot that included a three-run shot by Goldand two-RBI double from Ng.

CMS clawed back a run in the sixth inning but the Sagehens added three insurance tallies in the seventh to put the game out of reach, with Deliyannis whiffing seven over five innings before giving way to Wade Lawson for three and Eric Prough to shut the door in the ninth.

The Sagehens will await their NCAA Championship placement on the NCAA selection show this Monday, May 13 while the Stags and others hope to hear their names called for at-large berths.