COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – One day after charting their first ever win against Dixie State University, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs softball team repeated today after taking game one, 7-1, before falling to the Trailblazers in the series finale, 6-2.
The series split moves UCCS to 10-13 on the season and 6-6 in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference games. DSU moves to 19-7 overall and 7-5 in the RMAC.
Sunday's doubleheader featured eight home runs by both teams, four of which came in Sunday's first game by the Mountain Lions.
Dixie State's Hannah Hughbanks took the very first pitch of the day and went yard for a 1-0 DSU lead. UCCS answered in the bottom half of the inning when leadoff batter
Brianna Santos took five pitches before sending her third home run of the season over the fence. The next batter,
Saleen Quinonez singled to left field to reach base. The third batter up to the plate,
Alex Cook, gave UCCS a 3-1 lead when she homered for the third time this season.
UCCS' defense and pitcher
Braelyne Crenshaw held DSU to three-up, three-down in the second inning. The Mountain Lions plated their fourth run of the game in second inning on their third home run of the outing which came by way of Santos' second home run of the game.
After a scoreless third inning,
Peyton Reisman joined in the home run fest with her team-leading fifth homer of the season. She brought home pinch runner
Morgan Hernandez-Belew for a 6-1 UCCS lead.
Santos notched her third RBI of the game in the sixth inning to add an insurance run for the Mountain lions. Her double to right field scored Reisman for the final run of the game.
Santos finished the game going 3-for-4 with two runs scored and three RBI.
Meghan Waidler chipped in two hits. Reisman tallied two hits, two RBI and two runs scored while making 10 putouts at first base.
Crenshaw held DSU to six hits and fanned four batters.
In the series finale, the Trailblazers claimed a 2-0 lead in the third inning from a double that scored Hughbanks and Kaylan Walker.
Reisman went yard again for the second time on Sunday when she blasted a two-run home run in the fifth inning that also scored Hernandez-Belew, knotting the game at 2-2.
DSU broke the tie in the sixth inning with two runs and added two more in the seventh inning to take a 6-2 lead they would not relinquish.
The Mountain Lions were held to four hits as Reisman was responsible for both runs.
Cami Duffey started in the circle for UCCS and allowed two earned runs on four hits.
Lexi Rayburn relieved Duffey in the fourth inning, surrendering three runs on four hits before
Gabrielle Cronin finished the game in the seventh inning, allowing one run and one hit.
UCCS will begin a three-week road trip March 14-15 when they travel to Pueblo, Colo. for a four-game series against Colorado State-Pueblo.
