COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs softball team picked up their first two wins of the season on Sunday afternoon as they swept the series opening doubleheader against University of Nebraska-Kearney with an 8-7 walk-off win in game one and a 7-1 win in game two.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final Game One: UCCS 8, UNK 7 | Final Game Two: UCCS 7, UNK 1
Records: UCCS (2-5, 0-0 RMAC), UNK (3-3, 0-0 MIAA)
Location: Mountain Lion Field | Colorado Springs, Colo.
All-Time Series: The Mountain Lions improve to 27-52 all-time against the Lopers.
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME ONE
- The Lopers jumped ahead to a quick lead in the top of the first inning against UCCS starting pitcher Lexi Rayburn as an error and a pair of walks loaded the bases for Leah Jurgens, who cleared the bases with a double to give UNK a 3-0 lead.
- Redshirt junior Morgan Hernandez-Belew would bring the Mountain Lions within a run in the bottom half of the third inning as she lined a two-RBI single up the middle, making it a 3-2 game.
- UNK would respond in the top half of the fourth inning with a solo home run from Avery Wood that extended their cushion to 4-2, and then went on to add two more runs in the top of the fifth inning as Lyndsey Roth cracked a two-run home run of her own to push the Loper's lead to six. Nebraska-Kearney would add yet another run in the top of the sixth inning on a sacrifice fly from Mary Chvatal to push the advantage to 7-2 after five and a half innings.
- The Mountain Lions would begin their comeback in the bottom half of the sixth inning as a hit by pitch and a walk put a pair of runners on base for shortstop Solana Martinez. The senior would drive the ball out over the center field fence for a three-run home run that cut the UCCS deficit to just two runs, 7-5.
- Following a scoreless top of the seventh inning by freshman Autumn Kunze, sophomore Paige White came through in the clutch with a two-out, two-run home run that tied the game at seven runs apiece. After game-tying home run, a single by Courtnie Heller, a walk from Lexi Wagner, and an infield single by Maddie Unrein set up Martinez to draw the walk-off walk in an 8-7 win for the Mountain Lions.
STATS FROM THE GAME | GAME ONE
- The Mountain Lions outhit the Lopers 10-6 and saw eight different players record at least one hit.
- Martinez led the team with four RBIs as she went 2-for-3 with a home run and a walk. White also put together a multi-hit game, going 2-for-4 with a double, a home run, and two RBIs.
- Hernandez-Belew also contributed to the UCCS offensive effort with a pair of RBIs while going 1-for-4 in the game.
- Rayburn threw 4.1 innings as the starting pitcher and went on to allow six runs (five earned) on four hits and four walks with four strikeouts.
- Kunze (1-1) picked up her first collegiate win as she pitched the final 2.2 innings of the ballgame, allowing just one earned run and striking out four hitters.
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME TWO
- After a pair of scoreless innings to begin the second game of the doubleheader, the UCCS offense came to life in the bottom of the third inning to score five runs on four hits and two walks. Back-to-back RBI singles from Wagner and Martinez would give UCCS a two-run lead before two more runs would come across on wild pitches. Unrein would cap the inning with another RBI single to make it a 5-0 advantage for the Mountain Lions.
- In the bottom of the fourth inning, White would pop her second home run of the day, a solo shot to left field, to extend the UCCS lead to six runs.
- After Nebraska-Kearney got on the board for the first time in the top of the fifth on a sacrifice fly from Sydney Thomason, Cassidy Hubner would respond with an RBI single in the bottom of the inning to bring the lead back to six, 7-1.
- UCCS starting pitcher Braelyne Crenshaw would continue to pitch well down the stretch as she held the Lopers scoreless in the sixth and seventh innings to secure the 7-1 win and notch her first complete game of the season.
STATS FROM THE GAME | GAME TWO
- UCCS notched 11 hits in game two of the doubleheader, led by White (2-for-4) and Unrein (2-for-3).
- With her second home run of the game, White marked one of five players in the game to record a single RBI as Wagner, Martinez, Unrein, and Hubner also drove in one run each.
- Crenshaw (1-2) was excellent inside the circle, tossing a complete game while allowing just one earned run and striking out seven batters to earn her first win of the season. Crenshaw also limited the Lopers to just five hits and two walks across her seven innings pitched.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- With her double in the fifth inning of game two, Frey recorded her first hit at the collegiate level.
- Crenshaw's seven strikeouts gives her 312 in her career, putting her just ten away from tying Becca Smith for the third-most all-time in program history.
UP NEXT
- The Mountain Lions will wrap up their four-game series against the Lopers tomorrow morning with another doubleheader beginning at 11 a.m. from Mountain Lion Field.
SOCIAL
Twitter – @GoMountainLions
Instagram – @gomountainlions
Facebook – GoMountainLions
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.
