COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs baseball team nearly completed a last inning comeback in game one after scoring seven in the ninth but just came up short losing 12-8. The Mountain Lions couldn't get much going in game two as they fell 16-5.
INSIDE THE MATCH UP
- Final Score: Game 1: UCCS 7, SCSU 12 | Game 2: UCCS 5, SCSU 16
- Records: UCCS (3-12, 0-0 RMAC) | SCSU (7-6, 4-0 RMAC)
- Facility | Location: Mountain Lions Park| Colorado Springs, Colo.
- All-Time Series: The Mountain Lions fall to 2-3 in the all-time series against St. Cloud State.
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME ONE
- Neither team could crack the score board to start this one off, but St. Cloud State soon changed that as Blaine Guthrie and Noah Dehne hit back-to-back solo shots to give the Huskies a 2-0 heading into the bottom of the second.
- UCCS starter Jason Fink navigated through heavy traffic in the top of the third as St. Cloud State loaded the bases but only came out with a single run to see them up 3-0.
- The Mountain Lions were able to get their first runner on base in the bottom of the third after catcher Tyler Richardson drew a walk, but he was stranded on third as UCCS could not drive him in. Joshua Zotto would come in for Fink for relief and threw a clean top of the fourth. Huskie's starter Luke Tupy would then continue to throw shutout baseball.
- Zotto found himself in some trouble as three more SCSU players came across to score in the top of the fifth giving the visitors a 6-0 lead, but Ryder Mancuso would come in and get the out that UCCS needed.
- After another three up three down inning, in the bottom of the fifth for UCCS, St. Cloud State would tally on five more runs including a two run from Huskie infielder Cal James to make the score 11-0. The bottom of the sixth saw the Mountain Lions answer no questions.
- Evan Reynolds struck out three straight in the top seventh and Alec Gomez would collect the first Mountain Lions hit of the afternoon with a solo shot to open the bottom half inning making the score 11-1. UCCS loaded the bases later in the inning thanks to an Evan Steinberger single, a Richardson hit by pitch, and a Whalen hit by pitch with two outs, but they left them stranded.
- The Huskies tacked on another in the eighth making it 12-1 and the Mountain Lions would threaten in the bottom of the inning by loading the bases once again after Hayden Iverson led the inning off with a walk, followed by a single from Caleb Chance, and an Aaron Jenkins walk but were unable to plate any across.
- UCCS was down to their last three outs but were able to make some noise as Chance doubled down the left field line to score Iverson and Kasey Campbell followed by Gomez and Kit Wigington driving in a run each to push their deficit to 12-5.
- Steinberger then drove in two with a double and Joe Plise would follow that with a single to score another run to make the game 12-8 with two down. That's where the comeback would end for the Mountain Lions as they dropped this one 12-8.
GAME STATISTICS | GAME ONE
- Chance and Steinberger led the Mountain Lions in hits and RBIs as they each 2-for-5 while driving in two runs each.
- Gomez's seventh inning homerun was his sixth homerun of the year, and he now has a team high 20 RBIs.
- The Huskies recorded 18 hits compared to UCCS who notched nine.
- Reynolds' six strikeouts in 2.1 innings pitched in game one marks as a career high.
- Fink falls to 0-3 on the season while Tupy earns his second win on the year.
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME TWO
- St. Cloud State started game two on top as they notched a runner across in the first inning. UCCS would respond in the bottom half as Hayden Iverson opened with a double and was then driven in by Alec Gomez who also doubled down the left field line making the score 1-1 after one inning of action.
- Both teams were quiet in the second, but the Huskies would go for six runs in the top of the third. A silent bottom half for the Mountain Lions led to SCSU to another six-run inning putting themselves up 13-1 after four frames.
- Garrett Shriver threw a spotless top of the fifth for UCCS and the Mountain Lions tacked on two after Chance tripled home Iverson. Chance found himself scoring later in the inning decreasing the Mountain Lions deficit to 10 (13-3).
- The Huskies added another run in the top of the sixth after Brayden Jacobson hit a solo homerun and after nothing doing for UCCS in the bottom half, SCSU captured two more runs in the seventh to make it 16-3.
- Down to their last three outs, the Mountain Lions would get two more runs across after a Colton Trudeau double scored Iverson and a Kasey Campbell double scored Trudeau. UCCS went on to lose by a 16-5 final.
GAME STATISTICS | GAME TWO
- Iverson, Trudeau, and Tyler Richardson led the team in total hits with each of them recording two.
- Iverson tallied three of the Mountain Lions five runs scored in game two.
- The Huskies outhit UCCS 20-10 in the 11-run loss.
- Cole Phillip falls to 1-2 on the season while SCSU starter Jack Habeck is now 2-1 on the year.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Third baseman Alec Gomez has now hit a homerun against every opponent that the Mountain Lions have faced so far this season.
- Caleb Chance is now leading UCCS in batting average hitting .383 on the year.
- Hayden Iverson recorded his team leading 20th hit of the season in today's double header action.
UP NEXT
- Next time out, the Mountain Lions take on Colorado Christian University on Tuesday Feb. 27 at Mountain Lion Park. Coverage begins at 2 p.m.
SOCIAL
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As a member of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs competes in 14 varsity sports in NCAA Division II intercollegiate athletics.
