COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs baseball team are the 2021 RMAC Baseball Tournament Champions. The Mountain Lions down No. 1 nationally ranked Colorado Mesa University 18-9 on Saturday night to notch the program's first ever conference championship as UCCS also punches their ticket to the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP:
Final: UCCS 18, #1 CMU 9
Records: UCCS (30-11, 22-10 RMAC), Colorado Mesa (41-5, 34-2 RMAC)
Location: Suplizio Field | Grand Junction, Colo.
All-Time Series: UCCS trails the all-time series 6-14 against CMU
HOW IT HAPPENED
• Saturday's deciding game had a different look from the teams' two previous meetings in the RMAC Tournament as the bats came alive for the Mountain Lions.
• UCCS jumped out on top of the Mavericks early on with four quick runs in the top of the first inning. The extra base hits came in fast and furious as UCCS recorded three doubles in the inning with
Jaeden Hegmann notching the first double and both
Aaron Faragallah and
Matt Berg registering an RBI double.
Evan Richards' big day at the plate started with an RBI single as
Michael Bennin added his first RBI of the game with a single for the 4-0 advantage.
• CMU then turned the tides by scoring eight unanswered runs through the first three innings to take their only lead of the game, 8-4.
• Down four runs in the top of the fifth, UCCS flipped the script to develop an incredible comeback by posting eight runs in the inning and batting around in the lineup.
Jake Anderson found the left center gap for an RBI double as Bennin sent a base hit through the left side to cut the deficit down to two runs. The Mountain Lions later worked the bases loaded where
Walker Rumsey drew a walk to bag an easy RBI to bring the score to 8-7. With the bases still loaded,
Matt McDermott came up next to send a ball back up the middle for two RBI as UCCS nabbed their second lead of the game. Then with his second at-bat of the inning, Richards dotted the left field line with a double to clear the bases and give UCCS the commanding 12-8 lead over the Mavericks.
• After UCCS reliever
Hayden Salverda threw a scoreless fifth inning, Mountain Lion ace
Daniel Silva came in to make a rare relief appearance as he dialed in on the Mavericks lineup to throw a scoreless sixth inning.
• In the next three innings, the Mountain Lions did not settle as they plated four insurance runs. A squeeze bunt by Anderson brought one across in the seventh as McDermott notched his third RBI of the game in the eighth. In the ninth, it was
Nate Heflebower who took advantage of a wild pitch to score as Rumsey laced an opposite field single for two RBI.
• As the UCCS offense hit the ball around the yard, Silva took care of business on the mound by only giving up one run off two hits. And in the bottom of the ninth, Silva finished off the number one team in the country by retiring the Mavericks in order to lift the Mountain Lions to a 18-9 conference championship win.
• "I'm so proud of what these young men have accomplished this year," state Head Coach
Dave Hajek. "This team continues to step up regardless of the challenges their facing. This is a big day for our program and all of our staff, players and families that have contributed and helped us get to this point."
STATS FROM THE GAME
•
Hayden Salverda comes back to record the win in game two after going 1.1 IP with no runs and no hits allowed.
•
Daniel Silva came in to throw four complete innings where gave up only one run off two hits as he notched his first save of the season.
• Freshmen
Dylan Grierson and
Garrett Shriver each threw an inning with Grierson starting on the bump where he four runs, three earned, off just one hit and three walks. Shriver pitched effectively as allowed one run off two hits.
•
Braden Barker was the third UCCS pitch of the game as the redshirt freshman gave up three runs off five hits while fanning two Mavericks.
• The Mountain Lions outhit the Mavericks 16-10 as every Mountain Lion in the lineup reached base safely.
• Designated Hitter
Aaron Faragallah turns in a game high four hits after going 4-for-6 with an RBI and two doubles.
•
Evan Richards comes away with a game high four RBI by posting a 2-for-4 day with a double and two walks.
•
Matt McDermott and
Walker Rumsey each notched three RBI in the championship win. McDermott went 1-for-6 with two runs scored as Rumsey finished 1-for-3 with three walks.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
• Five Mountain Lions were named to the RMAC All-Tournament team after the program's historical weekend as
Jaeden Hegmann,
Matt McDermott,
Jonathan Cowles,
Evan Richards, and
Jake Anderson were all named to all-tournament team. Richards stellar play also earned him RMAC Tournament MVP.
• UCCS' first ever RMAC Baseball Tournament Championship gives the Mountain Lions an automatic bid into the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament, giving them their first regional tournament appearance in program history.
• The NCAA DII Baseball Selection Show will air this Sunday evening at 10 p.m. ET and 8 p.m. MT where the Mountain Lions will receive their seeding for the tournament. A link to view the selection show will be made available on the front page of
ncaa.com.
UP NEXT:
UCCS will head to San Angelo, Texas for the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament starting Thursday, May 27- Sunday, May 30. The Mountain Lions will await their tournament seeding, game time, and opponent this Sunday evening at 8 p.m. in the NCAA DII Baseball Selection Show.
SOCIAL:
Twitter - @GoMountainLions
Instagram - @gomountainlions
Facebook – Go Mountain Lions
As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 16 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
