DURANGO, Colo. – Playing in their second straight road series, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs softball team dropped two games Saturday afternoon at Fort Lewis College.  UCCS fell in the opening series, 1-0 in 10 innings, and again in game two, 9-8.

INSIDE THE MATCHUP

• Final Game 1: UCCS 0, FLC 1 (10) | Final Game 2: UCCS 8, FLC 9
• Records: UCCS (11-12, 5-9 RMAC) | FLC (3-21, 2-12 RMAC) 
• Facility | Location: FLC Aspen Field | Durango, Colo.
• All-Time Series: UCCS is 80-47 all-time against Fort Lewis. Under head coach Dwight Sanders, the Mountain Lions are 6-2 against the Skyhawks. 

 
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME ONE

• Strong pitching and defense from both teams kept the game scoreless for most of the afternoon. Neither team advanced a runner past first base in the opening two innings. Halley Redd recorded the first hit of the game in the second inning, sending a liner over the pitcher's head for a single.
• Fort Lewis was limited to just one baserunner in the first three innings as UCCS pitcher Autumn Kunze and the Mountain Lion defense retired the Skyhawks in order in both the first and third frames. Jennavieve Goldsworth added a single up the middle in the third inning and later stole second base, but the Mountain Lions were unable to bring her home.
• The Skyhawks matched UCCS defensively, holding the Mountain Lions to three-up, three-down innings in both the fourth and fifth. In the bottom of the fifth, UCCS escaped a scoring threat when catcher Addy Baxter fired a throw to shortstop Redd to catch a Skyhawk stealing second with a runner on third before a pop-up ended the inning.
• UCCS threatened again in the sixth inning when Goldsworth recorded her second hit of the game with a single past the shortstop. Pinch hitter Katie Steinmetz battled through a 12-pitch at-bat before grounding out to move Goldsworth to second, and Mackenzie Scott followed with a pop-up that advanced Goldsworth to third. The Mountain Lions, however, were unable to capitalize as the game remained scoreless through six innings.
• The Mountain Lions loaded the bases in the seventh inning behind Laynee Case, Tayler McCombs and Alyssa Gutierrez, but a short pop-up to the shortstop ended the inning and kept the game tied.
• After seven shutout innings from Kunze, Kailey Bond entered the circle in the eighth inning. Fort Lewis recorded its first extra-base hit of the game, but the Mountain Lions held the Skyhawks from advancing past second to preserve the scoreless tie.
• The game remained locked at 0-0 until the bottom of the 10th inning. Fort Lewis opened the frame with a walk before Mia Cueva singled to the left side to put runners on first and second. After the Skyhawks loaded the bases with no outs, Carmen Alexander lifted a sacrifice fly to bring home Alex Tenorio for the walk-off run as Fort Lewis claimed the 1-0 victory.

 
GAME STATISTICS | GAME ONE

• Four Mountain Lions recorded multi-hit performances. Goldsworth, Gianna Pancost and Case each went 2-for-5 at the plate, while Gutierrez finished 2-for-4.
• Kunze tossed seven shutout innings, allowing just four hits while striking out three batters. She faced 26 hitters and induced 10 flyouts and seven groundouts.
• Bond (3-4) was charged with the loss after pitching 2.1 innings, allowing one hit and one earned run while issuing three walks.
• UCCS stranded 12 runners on base in the game, while Fort Lewis left nine.
• Mia Cueva led the Skyhawks offensively with three hits in five at-bats.

 
HOW IT HAPPENED | GAME TWO

• UCCS jumped out to a quick lead in the opening inning. Goldsworth started the game by drawing a walk and stealing second base. Jacqueline Berkowitz followed with an RBI single to third base to bring her home. With runners on second and third, McCombs lifted a sacrifice fly to center field to score Berkowitz before Redd added an RBI single to plate Scott and extend the lead to 3-0 with two outs.
• The Mountain Lions continued the rally as Gutierrez drove in Redd with an RBI single, and Goldsworth was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in Case, giving UCCS a 5-0 advantage after the top half of the first inning.
• Fort Lewis quickly responded, however, as Tristan Hoobler delivered a two-run double to highlight a five-run inning for the Skyhawks, evening the score at 5-5.
• Freshman pitcher Janessa Giugliano settled in following the early surge, holding Fort Lewis hitless over the next two innings. UCCS regained the lead in the fourth inning when Pancost drew a walk and stole second base with two outs. McCombs followed with a hard-hit ball that deflected off the third baseman's glove, allowing Pancost to score and giving the Mountain Lions a 6-5 lead.
• The Skyhawks answered in the bottom of the fifth inning as Carmen Alexander led off the frame with a solo home run to center field to tie the game once again.
• UCCS took the lead for the third time in the game in the sixth inning. Goldsworth opened the frame with another walk and stole second before Scott dropped a hit down the right field line that scored Goldsworth to give the Mountain Lions a 7-6 edge.
• Abby Hayes entered the circle for UCCS in the bottom of the sixth, but Fort Lewis strung together four hits and three runs in the inning to claim its first lead of the game, 9-7.
• Needing at least two runs in the seventh, Redd opened the inning with a double to the right-center gap. Steinmetz reached base on a pinch-hit single before being replaced by Case on the basepaths, who was later caught stealing for the first out. Pinch hitter Baxter followed with a sacrifice fly that scored Redd to cut the deficit to one run. Gutierrez then drew a two-out walk to put the tying run on base, but Fort Lewis recorded a strikeout to seal the 9-8 win.

 
GAME STATISTICS | GAME TWO

• Redd led the Mountain Lions at the plate, going 2-for-4 with two runs scored and one RBI.
• Goldsworth finished with two runs scored and three walks in the game.
• Scott added a 2-for-4 performance with one RBI and one run scored.
• Giugliano pitched the first five innings, allowing five runs on six hits while striking out five batters.
• Hayes (1-2) took the loss after allowing three runs on four hits in one inning of relief.
• Fort Lewis had four players record multiple hits, led by Hoobler's 2-for-3 performance that included two doubles and two RBI.

 
BEYOND THE BOX

• Kunze's three strikeouts in game one moved her into a tie for fifth place in program history with Taylor Reidhead with 284 career strikeouts.
• The 1-0 loss in the series opener snapped UCCS' six-game winning streak against the Skyhawks.  It also marked the first extra-inning game of the season for the Mountain Lions.
• The victory also ended Fort Lewis' 19-game losing streak and marked its first RMAC win of the season.
• Goldsworth's two hits in game one extended her hitting streak to nine games dating back to Feb. 27, and she has now recorded a hit in 19-of-23 games this season.
• UCCS swiped six bases on the day, extending its RMAC-leading total to 65 stolen bases this season.

 
UP NEXT

• Sunday's doubleheader action will get underway at 11 a.m. tomorrow morning from Aspen Field.

 
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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. Read Full Article