GOLDEN, Colo. – Sunday afternoon at Jim Darden Field brought six total home runs across two games as the Colorado School of Mines Baseball team split its RMAC Round-Robin doubleheader, losing 9-7 to Regis before bouncing back with an 8-6 win against Colorado Christian.
 
Mason Andrews had two of the home runs, accounting for both of his hits, finishing the two games with two runs and three RBI. Alex Dunagan was the most efficient Oredigger, hitting .600 while scoring two runs and notching one RBI. He had a home run as well. Danny McDermott rounded out Mines' long-ball hitters, smacking one home run while batting .500 and scoring three runs. Jackson Woolwine also scored three runs for the Orediggers. Also notable was Garret Nielsen going 3-for-6 with two RBI. Nielsen, Woolwine, and Adam Houghtaling each tallied a double.
 
Luke Folsom and Ben Schoneman were the starting pitchers for Mines. Folsom did not factor in the decision in game one, giving up six runs on 10 hits while striking out seven and walking none. Schoneman (1-0) earned the win in game two. He provided 6.1 innings of six-run, eight-hit baseball with four strikeouts and one walk. Marcus Lee earned his second save of the season by tossing 2.2 innings of shutout relief in which he surrendered just one hit and zero walks. Jackson Bakovich and Weston Siefken also came out of the bullpen for the Orediggers, and Siefken (0-2) took the loss in game one of the day.
 
Sunday's split gave Mines (4-8) a 2-2 weekend as part of the RMAC Round-Robin. None of the games counted toward the conference standings despite all coming against RMAC opponents. Regis (9-9) improved its record to .500. Colorado Christian (3-9-1) lost its second straight after defeating nationally-ranked MSU Denver on Friday. The Orediggers totaled four home runs on the day while hitting .277 as a team. The Rangers and Cougars combined for five doubles and two home runs while hitting .312 overall. After 18 innings of action, Mines scored 15 runs on 14 RBI and its opponents also scored 15 runs on 14 RBI. The Orediggers committed five total errors in the field resulting three unearned runs.
 
GAME ONE: Regis 9, Mines 7
The home team exploded in the bottom of the opening frame thanks to back-to-back singles by Houghtaling and Trent Nielsen. Caden Bonds' bases-loaded groundball made the score 3-0 in favor of Mines after one inning of play. Andrews made it 4-0 in the bottom of the second with his two-out, solo bomb. Regis finally responded, and in a big way, scoring three runs in the third, two in the fourth, one in the fifth, and two in the sixth. That pushed the Rangers to an 8-7 advantage despite Mines' three-run fourth frame.
 
The Orediggers wouldn't be able to score again even though they loaded the bases in the bottom of the sixth inning. Regis added one run of insurance in the top of the ninth and finished the game with no home runs. The Rangers did notch five doubles. Ethan Sloan (3-2) was the winning pitcher for RU thanks to 5.0 innings of shutout. He struck out 10 batters and only walked two. Michael May earned the save for Regis, his first of the season.
 
GAME TWO: Mines 8, Colorado Christian 6
In the weekend finale, it was the visitors come out of the gate fast. Colorado Christian hit two home runs in the opening inning and burst out to a 4-0 lead. Mines immediately responded in its half of the first frame as Garret Nielsen drove in Woolwine with a double to the fence in centerfield. Another run for CCU made the score 5-1 after one and a half innings of action. However, the Oredigger pitchers and defense would shut the Cougars out for the next four frames. Meanwhile, Woolwine hit a two-run single in the bottom of the second to cut Mines' deficit to 5-3. McDermott and Dunagan tied the game at 5-5 in the third inning with back-to-back, solo home runs. Andrews gave his team the lead in the fourth inning by mashing a tater with Woolwine on base. Ryan Vermeer worked a RBI walk to cap the Orediggers' scoring in fifth inning. Fortunately for the home team, eight runs were enough. Colorado Christian plated one, unearned run in the seventh to make the final tally.
 
NOTABLES
- Dunagan's home run was the first of his collegiate career.
- Andrews hit career home runs 12 and 13 in just his second collegiate season.
- McDermott took sole possession of #7 on Mines' all-time home runs list with the 22nd long ball of his career. He broke a tie with Joe Popp (2016-19) and Anthony Siderius (2007-10).
- Houghtaling's double was the 20th of his Oredigger career. He has also reached base safely in 20 consecutive appearances, a streak dating back to the 2022 season.
- Schoneman surpassed 100 strikeouts for his career and earned his eighth win on the mound at Mines.
- Bakovich's appearance in relief resulted in 4.0 innings of one-run, four-hit work including two strikeouts and zero walks.
- Head Coach Robby Bales is now 98-68 in his fifth season leading the Orediggers.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines opens conference play next weekend in Lakewood at Colorado Christian. The series opens Friday at 3 p.m. at All-Star Park. Live stats and video on the RMAC Network will be offered for free at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Fans can follow Mines baseball on Twitter at @OrediggersBSB. They can also follow all of Mines Athletics on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @MinesAthletics, and online at www.minesathletics.com.