COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs baseball team closed their three-game series against University of Northern Colorado on Sunday afternoon with a tight 8-7 victory that was capped by a walk-off double from freshman
Ronan Hella.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: UCCS 8, UNC 7 (10 Innings)
Records: UCCS (3-9, 0-0 RMAC) | UNC (2-1, 0-0 Summit)
Facility | Location: Mountain Lion Park | Colorado Springs, Colo.
All-Time Series: The Mountain Lions secure their first victory over the NCAA Division I Bears and move to 1-3 all-time in the series between the two teams.
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME ONE
- Freshman Marko Sipila got the nod on the mound for the Mountain Lions in the final game of the series against Northern Colorado and struggled with his control early in the ballgame as he hit two of the first three batters he faced to put a pair of runners on base just one out into his start. After a fly ball to right field put runners on the corners, Sipila would unleash a wild pitch that allowed the first run of the game to cross the plate as UNC took a 1-0 lead.
- After the Bears extended their lead to 3-0 with a pair of runs in the top of the second inning, the UCCS offense came to life in the bottom half of the inning as Kit Wigington led off the frame with a double and was joined on the basepaths by Hayden Iverson who drew a walk in his first plate appearance of the afternoon. The next batter to the plate, redshirt sophomore Evan Steinberger, would promptly clear the bases with a no-doubt home run over the right field fence that brought the game even at three runs apiece.
- UNC would find their power stroke in the top half of the third inning as catcher Craig Kenny lifted a deep fly ball over the left center field wall for a two-run home run that helped the Bears regain a 5-3 advantage.
- Following the first scoreless frame of the day from UNC in the top of the fourth inning, UCCS mounted a rally in the bottom half of the inning as a walk from Wigington and a single from Iverson put a pair of runners on base with nobody out. After a strikeout from Steinberger, second baseman Macully Sehr lined a single into left field to bring in a run and cut the Mountain Lion deficit to just 5-4. A subsequent walk of Ronan Hella would load the bases for Mason Pastorello with just one out as the Mountain Lions searched for their first lead of the afternoon, but a ground ball to shortstop off the bat of Pastorello would turn into an inning-ending double play that kept the UNC lead at one run.
- After the Bears extended their lead back to two runs in the top of the fifth inning, the Mountain Lions manufactured a run in the bottom half of the sixth as Iverson led off the frame with a single and, after a stolen base and wild pitch moved him to third base, was brought in to score on an RBI ground out by Steinberger to make it 6-5 game in favor of the Bears.
- Still trailing by one run in the bottom of the seventh inning, the exceptional Mountain Lion duo of Caleb Stubbings and Brad Madison went to work as Stubbings reached base on an error by the UNC third baseman and was brought in to score on a double down the left field line by Madison to even the game at six.
- With the game still tied in the top of the ninth inning, a two-out single from Kenny set the stage for UNC to regain a lead. Zain Zinicola would enter the game for Kenny as a pinch-runner on the basepaths and went on to steal second base before eventually coming around to score on a pair of wild pitches that gave the Bears a late 7-6 advantage.
- Now needing at least one run to extend the ballgame, UCCS started the bottom of the ninth on a strong note as Hella led off the frame with a single to left field. After a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt by Pastorello moved Hella to second base and a ground ball from Aaron Brakel moved the runner to third, Stubbings came through with the two-out single to third base that brought the game even at seven and forced the game to extra innings.
- Redshirt junior Christopher Bryant would enter the game in the top of the tenth inning and went on to pitch a clean inning, setting the table for the UCCS offense to potentially win the game in the bottom half of the inning. After Iverson recorded the first out in the home half of the tenth inning on a fly ball to center field, the Mountain Lions got the potential winning run on base as Steinberger drew a walk against UNC pitcher Murphy Gienger. A stolen base and a passed ball would quickly move Steinberger to third base, and after a walk of Macully Sehr, Hella came through with a walk-off double into left center field to help the Mountain Lions salvage the last game of the series and defeat their Division I counterparts, 8-7.
GAME STATISTICS | GAME ONE
- The Mountain Lions outhit the Bears 11-8 in the series finale with each of the nine starters in the lineup recording at least one hit.
- Steinberger had an excellent game as the starter behind the dish, going 1-for-2 with a home run and three RBIs.
- Hella also had a strong game as he posted a 2-for-4 line at the plate, including the game-winning RBI double in the tenth inning.
- Iverson joined Hella in posting a multi-hit game, going 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs scored.
- Sipila pitched well in streaks during his third start of the season, but he finished the day having allowed six earned runs across 4.2 innings pitched with three strikeouts.
- Redshirt sophomore John Hoffman followed Sipila out of the bullpen and tossed a masterful 3.1 innings as he held the Bears without a run with four strikeouts.
- Bryant (1-0) picked up his first win of the season as he retired all three batters he faced in the tenth inning before the Mountain Lions ended the game with their walk-off hit.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The walk-off win was the first of the season for the Mountain Lions and the first for the team since Aaron Faragallah's walk-off grand slam against MSU Denver last season on March 27, 2022.
- Hoffman was effective on the mound for UCCS this week as he allowed just two earned runs and struck out eight batters in eight innings across his two outings against CSUP and UNC.
- The Mountain Lions will complete their season series against the Bears with a single midweek game on Tuesday, March 28 with first pitch set for 2 p.m. from Jackson Field in Greeley, Colo.
UP NEXT
- The Mountain Lions will continue their homestand next weekend with a four-game non-conference series against University of Sioux Falls with the first game of the set scheduled to begin on Friday, Feb. 24 at 2 p.m from Mountain Lion Park.
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.
