LUBBOCK, Texas – For a second consecutive day, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs softball team dropped a pair of games at the LCU Softball Classic in Lubbock, Texas, as they were downed by a score of 16-10 against Southern Nazarene University before dropping a 7-1 decision to No. 22 nationally ranked Washburn University.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: Game 1: UCCS 10, SNU 16 | Game 2: UCCS 1, #22 WU 7
Records: UCCS (0-4, 0-0 RMAC), SNU (2-2, 0-0 GAC), WU (2-1, 0-0 MIAA)
Location: LCHS Softball Field | Lubbock, Texas
All-Time Series: Saturday's game marked just the second meeting all-time between UCCS and SNU as the Mountain Lions fell to 0-2 against the Storm. The Mountain Lions also fell to 0-5 all-time against Washburn, although Saturday's meeting was the first between the two teams since the 2002 season.
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME ONE – SOUTHERN NAZARENE UNIVERSITY
- Similar to Friday's second game, the Mountain Lions quickly found themselves in a multi-run hole to begin their first game on Saturday against Southern Nazarene. UCCS starting pitcher Braelyne Crenshaw retired the first hitter she faced in the top of the first inning, but five of the next six SNU hitters would reach base safely, capped by a three-run home run from Macy Stewart that made it a 5-0 deficit for the Mountain Lions.
- In the bottom of the second inning, UCCS began to chip away at the lead as sophomore Lexi Wagner continued her hot streak to start the season with a solo home run to left field that cut the SNU lead to 5-1.
- With Crenshaw settling in to hold the Storm off the scoreboard in the second and third innings, the Mountain Lion offense once again went to work in the bottom half of the third inning as a single, an error, and a walk loaded the bases with two outs for clean-up hitter Courtnie Heller. The redshirt senior made the most of the situation as she took the pitch from SNU's Katelyn Woodard and drove it over the right field fence for a grand slam that brought the score even at five.
- The game would not remain tied for long, however, as Southern Nazarene shortstop Brooklyn Sullivan launched a solo home run to right center field in the top of the fourth inning to help the Storm regain a one-run lead, 6-5.
- UCCS would have another golden opportunity in the bottom of the fourth inning to secure their first lead of the ballgame as three of the first four Mountain Lion hitters reached base to begin the frame. The next batter, outfielder Mia Perez, would come through with a single to center field that scored one run, but the Storm would throw out the trail runner from second base at the plate to keep the game tied at six runs apiece.
- After the Storm got a pair of runners on base with one out in the top of the sixth on a walk and a hit batter, a pair of errors on back-to-back plays by Solana Martinez at shortstop resulted in a pair of runs for SNU, giving them an 8-6 lead. Southern Nazarene took full advantage of the defensive miscues as the very next batter launched a three-run home run to extend the UCCS deficit to five runs, 11-6.
- An RBI double by Perez in the bottom half of the sixth would get UCCS one run closer at 11-7, but the Southern Nazarene offense continued to roll in the top of the seventh inning as they strung together five hits and took advantage of two more UCCS errors to add five more runs to their tally and take a 16-7 lead.
- The Mountain Lions would put up a fight in their last at-bats in the bottom of the seventh inning as a double from Paige White and a walk by Heller set up Wagner for her second home run of the afternoon, a three-run shot that cut the SNU lead to 16-10, but the scoring would stop there with the Storm claiming the victory.
STATS FROM GAME ONE – SOUTHERN NAZARENE UNIVERSITY
- The Mountain Lions scored a season-high ten runs on the offensive side of the ball, notching nine hits, five extra-base hits, and four walks.
- Wagner continued to swing a hot bat as she had a 2-for-4 game with two home runs and four RBIs.
- Heller matched Wagner with four RBIs of her own, going 1-for-3 with a grand slam and a walk.
- Perez also put together a multi-hit game for the leadoff spot in the lineup as she went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a double.
- Inside the circle, Crenshaw took her first loss of the season as she allowed ten runs (six earned) across 5.1 innings pitched with two strikeouts.
- Freshman Autumn Kunze tossed the final 1.2 innings of the ballgame and dealt with some unfortunate defense behind her as she gave up six total runs (one earned), with two strikeouts.
- Designated player Hailey Evans put together an impressive outing for SNU, notching a 4-for-5 line at the plate while hitting a home run and recording five RBIs.
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME TWO – #22 WASHBURN UNIVERSITY
- After a pair of well-pitched innings to begin the game by UCCS starting pitcher Mackenzie Rutkoff, Washburn broke the scoreless tie in the bottom of the third inning as Jaycee Ginter roped a two-out RBI double to the left field gap to give the No. 22 ranked team in the nation a 1-0 lead.
- The Ichabods would find more two-out magic in the bottom of the fourth inning when Marrit Mead came up with a two-RBI double that extended the Washburn lead to 3-0.
- With the UCCS offense still struggling to mount any momentum, the Mountain Lions turned to senior Lexi Rayburn inside the circle to begin the bottom of the fifth inning looking to hold the deficit at three runs. Rayburn would induce a fly ball to right field, but an error would allow the WU hitter to reach base, and just two batters later catcher Kaylee Wagner sailed a home run to center field to extend the Ichabod advantage to five runs, 5-0.
- In the bottom of the sixth inning, Washburn continued to add to their lead as they used two hits and two walks to plate two more runs and push the UCCS deficit to seven runs, 7-0.
- UCCS got on the board in the top half of the seventh inning on a sacrifice fly from Maddie Unrein to avoid the shutout, but Ginter got freshman Jayden Paulsen to strike out to end the game with Washburn claiming the 7-1 win.
STATS FROM GAME TWO - #22 WASHBURN UNIVERSITY
- The Mountain Lions mustered just three hits against Ichabod pitching, with White, Heller, and Sydney King each recording one.
- Unrein tallied the lone RBI of the game on her seventh inning sacrifice fly.
- Rutkoff pitched the first four innings of the ballgame and was charged with her first loss of the season after allowing three earned runs on four hits with three strikeouts.
- Rayburn tossed the final two innings of the game as she surrendered four runs (three earned) with two strikeouts.
- For Washburn, Jaycee Ginter was exceptional inside the circle with 6.1 scoreless innings and 12 strikeouts in the game. She also contributed at the plate by going 2-for-2 with a double, walk, and hit by pitch.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- After getting limited action in her freshman season, Lexi Wagner has begun the 2023 season in impressive fashion, getting hits in six of her first 11 at-bats with three home runs and seven RBIs.
- Heller's grand slam against the Storm was the first for the Mountain Lions since White hit one against Regis University on Mar. 12, 2022.
- The Mountain Lions five defensive errors in the first game on Saturday were the most in a single game since they recorded six errors against Oklahoma Baptist University on Feb. 12, 2022.
UP NEXT
- The Mountain Lions will conclude the LCU Softball Classic tomorrow morning with a single game against Eastern New Mexico University with first pitch set at 11 a.m. (MT) from Frenship HS Softball 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.
