COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The University of Colorado Colorado Springs softball team earned a pair of run-rule victories over Adams State University on Saturday, winning game one by a score of 12-1 in five innings before securing a 12-2 victory in six innings in game two.
INSIDE THE MATCHUP
Final: Game 1: UCCS 12, ASU 1 (5 innings) | Game 2: UCCS 12, ASU 2 (6 innings)
Records: UCCS (15-26, 12-20 RMAC), ASU (5-36, 3-29 RMAC)
Location: Mountain Lion Field | Colorado Springs, Colo.
All-Time Series: The Mountain Lions improve to 69-56 all-time against Adams State and are 18-5 against the Grizzlies dating back to 2018 season.
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME ONE
- With the help of an error at shortstop by UCCS' Laynee Case, the Grizzlies jumped out to an early 1-0 lead against UCCS starting pitcher Autumn Kunze. After the error, a walk and a pair of singles by Adams State brought in an unearned run, but Kunze managed to get a strikeout of Krista Healy to strand the bases loaded.
- Facing the early deficit, Jacqueline Berkowitz sparked a rally for UCCS in the bottom half of the first frame as she drew a walk and wound up getting to third base after a stolen base and passed ball. Gianna Pancost would promptly cash in Berkowitz with a single into left field that evened the game at one run apiece. After the next batter, Izzy Grioux, drew a walk to put a pair of runners on base, Laynee Case ripped a triple down the left field line to clear the bags and give the Mountain Lions a 3-1 advantage. A sacrifice fly from Jennavieve Goldsworth would add one more run in the inning to push the lead to 4-1.
- The Grizzlies threatened to cut into the Mountain Lion's lead in the top of the second as they collected three singles in the inning, but Kunze managed to tightrope out of the trouble and leave the bases loaded for a second straight inning.
- The Mountain Lions continued to swing the bats well in the bottom of the second inning as they racked up six hits and took advantage of a pair of errors by the Grizzlies to score four more runs and take an 8-1 lead. In the frame, an RBI single by Jada Montoya started the scoring while an RBI double from Berkowitz, an RBI single by Pancost, and an RBI single by Goldsworth accounted for the rest of the scoring.
- UCCS would tack on a pair of runs in both the third and fourth innings to extend their advantage to 12-1 after four complete frames. In the third inning, the Mountain Lions got their scoring done with an RBI single from Berkowitz and a run-scoring double by Pancost, while a two-run home run by Busshart accounted for the scoring in the fourth frame.
- After allowing plenty of traffic on the basepaths in the early innings, Kunze settled into the game nicely throughout the remainder of the game as she tossed three more scoreless innings down the stretch to finish off a 12-1, run-rule victory.
STATS FROM THE GAME | GAME ONE
- The Mountain Lions tallied 13 hits in just four innings of offensive play, with four different student-athletes recording multi-hit games.
- Pancost continued her strong weekend as she posted a 3-for-3 line with a double and three RBIs.
- UCCS also received two-hit games from Berkowitz, Case, and Busshart as the trio combined to go 6-for-8 with six RBIs. Busshart also launched her fifth home run of the season in fourth inning.
- The Mountain Lions also drew four walks in the game while not striking out once.
- On the basepaths, Berkowitz recorded a pair of steals for her fourth and fifth of the season. Pinch-runner Edyn Lopez also notched her third stolen base of the campaign.
- Inside the circle, Kunze (8-9) earned the win as she limited the Grizzlies to just one unearned run across five innings pitched. The sophomore pitcher allowed seven hits and four walks while striking out three hitters.
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME TWO
- The Grizzlies opened the series finale with an early lead once again as a two-RBI single by Makayla Veglia in the top of the first inning against Mountain Lion starting pitcher Kailey Bond gave Adams State a 2-0 lead.
- UCCS got one of the runs back in the bottom of the second inning as Busshart sparked a two out rally with a walk before coming around to score on an RBI double down the left field line by Lexi Wagner.
- Still trailing by a score of 2-1 in the bottom of the third inning, UCCS threatened to take a lead with a walk from Case and a double by Pancost putting runners on second and third base with just one out in the inning. The next batter, Giroux, would hit a hard line drive back to the pitcher that was caught and flipped to third base for an inning ending double play.
- In the bottom of the fourth inning, the UCCS offense broke through to score six runs and jump out to a 7-2 lead. Siefken opened the scoring and evened the game at two runs apiece with an RBI triple that brought Goldsworth across the plate before the Mountain Lions took their first lead of the game on an RBI single by Wagner. The Mountain Lions would go on to add four more runs in the inning to take the five-run lead to the fifth inning.
- After UCCS added another run in the bottom of the fifth inning on an RBI single by Wagner to make it an 8-2 ballgame, the Mountain Lions poured on four more runs in their half of the sixth with a three-run home run by Siefken capping a 12-2 run-rule victory.
STATS FROM THE GAME | GAME TWO
- For a second straight game, UCCS tallied 13 hits and saw four players record multi-hit games, including Siefken and Wagner with three hits apiece.
- Siefken broke out with a 3-for-4 batting line as the designated player as she recorded two triples and her first home run of the season along with four RBIs.
- Wagner earned a start in left field and made the best of her opportunity, going 3-for-3 with a double and three RBIs.
- UCCS had five stolen bases in the ballgame, with Berkowitz stealing two bags and Case, Unrein, and Wagner each swiping one.
- Inside the circle, Bond (6-7) picked up her sixth win of the season with a solid outing that saw her pitch six innings of two-run ball.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- Kunze tossed her tenth complete game of the campaign in game one, which sits tied for the fifth-most in the conference this season.
- With their 15th victory of the season, the Mountain Lions surpassed their win-total from the 2023 season.
UP NEXT
- The Mountain Lions will head back out on the road next weekend as they continue their conference schedule in Golden, Colo., with a matchup against Colorado School of Mines on Saturday and Sunday, April 13-14.
SOCIAL
Twitter – @GoMountainLions
Instagram – @gomountainlions
Facebook – GoMountainLions
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.
