WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Back in the state of Florida to begin their season for the second time in as many years, the Colorado School of Mines softball team was at Simpson Field against their opening day opponent from a season ago in Palm Beach Atlantic. After trailing early in game one, the Orediggers (2-0) got their offense going late in game one, rallying to score five in the final inning to record a 6-3 win in the opener before outlasting the Sailfish (2-2) in a pitcher's duel in game two, again finding some final-inning magic to back up a stellar performance in the circle to cap the afternoon with a 1-0 win.
 
It didn't take Mines long to get their first hit and first baserunner of the season as Kendall Aragon singled back up the middle to lead the game off and was joined on base in short order by Sidney Wilson on a fielder's choice, but nothing came of it as PBA starter Karen Vasquez was able to work out of danger.
 
Sadriena Rodriguez (1-0) started her day off in the circle by striking out two of three batters in the first inning but ran into some early trouble in the second. Three of the first four batters in the inning reached base by way of a single sandwiched between two hit by pitches before Rhiannon Sibbett and Kaitlyn Campbell both singled with the bases loaded to score a run and give the Sailfish the early 2-0 lead.
 
The Orediggers got a two-out baserunner in the top of the third inning when Wilson reached on an error and advanced to second on the overthrow, but the timely hit remained elusive for the silver and blue as Wilson was left stranded. PBA led off their half of the inning with a ringing double to straightaway center by Isabella Hernandez to put the pressure back on right away. Rodriguez tried to work out of trouble, getting a strikeout and a popout near the circle, but a two-out single to right field by Gracie Mullett scored Hernandez from third after she advanced on a ball to the screen to make it 3-0.
 
In the fifth inning, Cassidy Chvatal led things off with a double to left field and advanced to third on a wild pitch before coming home to score the season's first run on a throwing error by the PBA catcher. Rodriguez settled into a groove and retired the side in order in each the fourth, fifth and sixth innings to keep it a two-run game.
 
Heading to the seventh, the Orediggers found themselves in need of a late rally and were able to dig deep and do just that. Chvatal worked a one-out walk before being lifted for pinch runner Emily Rogers. Kailey Morales followed with a single to right field to put runners at first and second before she too was lifted for some extra speed in the person of Sam Whisenand. Hannah Roberts delivered out of the nine hole, splitting the left center gap for a double to score Rogers and put two in scoring position. Back to the top of the lineup, Aragon reached on an infield single after a diving stop by the shortstop left her without a play and saw Whisenand score to tie things at 3-3. After a groundout to third put two in scoring position again, Kayleigh Krueger stepped in and delivered the go-ahead base knock to left, scoring pinch runner Kellan Ton. After Krueger stole second on a ball in the dirt, Lexie Semeyn added a pair of insurance runs on a two-run triple to left center to make it a 6-3 game and force a pitching change for the Sailfish to finally get out of the inning.
 
Riding the momentum she built over the past three innings and now pitching with a lead, Rodriguez made quick work of PBA in the home half of the inning, working her fifth 1-2-3 inning of the day and retiring the final 10 batters she faced to secure the win.
 
In game two, Kellan Ton led off by reaching on an error and stole the first base of her Mines career but was left stranded to end the inning. Lexie Semeyn singled to lead off the second and advanced to third following a two-out double by Cassidy Chvatal that put two in scoring position, but again nothing came of it as PBA was able to dance out of danger.
 
Both starting pitchers shined in game two as the game turned into a battle of who would blink first in the circle. In the bottom of the fifth, it looked like it might be Mines starter Kat Miller (1-0), who gave up a leadoff single to Mullett who advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt moments later. She then looked to score on a two-out single to shallow left by Campbell, but Ton came up throwing and delivered a strike to Semeyn to cut down the go-ahead run at the plate and keep things scoreless.
 
In the sixth, the Orediggers got a baserunner in Kendall Aragon following a one-out single against Lacy Marty, but ended up being thrown at second on a stolen base attempt before a groundout ended the inning. Miller meanwhile answered back with a shutdown inning, setting down PBA to send things to the seventh.
 
Once again in the seventh, Mines mustered some late-inning action to grab the lead. Semeyn led the inning off with a double that split the left center gap and very nearly left the yard to put the go-ahead run in scoring position to start the inning. After a sac bunt by Trystin-Oshiro Sano moved Semeyn to third, Sara Larson dropped down a safety squeeze back to the circle and with Semeyn moving on contact, the only play available for the Sailfish was the out at first as the junior slid in safely without a play to take the lead 1-0.
 
Down to their final three outs once again, PBA looked to rally and got off to a good start when Alexia Martinez reached to open the inning with a hit by pitch. Looking to get the tying run into scoring position, Isabella Hernandez dropped down a sacrifice bunt of her own with Miller getting the out at first. To the misfortune of Palm Beach Atlantic, Martinez was a little too aggressive on the bases, trying to go first to third on the play and being thrown out by Oshiro-Sano who was covering first on the play to record two quick outs before a flyout to Aragon in center closed the book on a complete game shutout by Miller to post an opening day sweep with a 1-0 result in game two.
                                         
NOTABLES
-Aragon has now hit safely in 14 straight games going back to last season and reached base safely in 16 straight games, posting a 2-4 effort with an RBI and run scored in game one while going 2-3 in game two
-Krueger also went 2-4 in the opener with an RBI and run scored
-Chvatal, making her first starts in the field and not in the circle in her collegiate career, went 1-2 with a double, walk and run scored in game one and posted a 13 performance with another double in game two
-Roberts went 1-3 with an RBI double in game one
-Semeyn went 1-4 with a two-run triple in the opener and 2-3 with a double and a run scored in game two; of her 30 career hits in a Mines uniform, 16 of them have now been for extra bases
-Larson went 1-2 in the nightcap with the go-ahead RBI in the seventh
-Rodriguez went the distance in the opener for the first complete game effort of the season, striking out five without issuing a walk and allowing three runs on five hits
-Miller spun a gem in the circle in game two in just her eighth career appearance and second-ever start, going the distance to record her first career shutout, scattering three hits and striking out two while facing just three over the minimum and needing only 74 pitches to get the job done
-On the day, Mines pitching combined to work 14 innings and allowed three runs on eight hits while striking out seven without issuing a walk and facing 11 batters over the minimum over the course of two games
-The win in game one of Friday's doubleheader was the first time since 2018 the Orediggers started the season 1-0
-With the sweep in game two Friday, Mines is 2-0 to start the season also for the first time since 2018
-Four Orediggers made their collegiate debuts Friday, as the freshman quartet of Lauren Romero, Rogers, Ton and Whisenand all saw action over the course of the day
-Mines is now 2-2 all-time against Palm Beach Atlantic, with each team sweeping the doubleheader the two seasons they have met
 
UP NEXT
The Orediggers will be in Fort Lauderdale Saturday for doubleheader action against fifth-ranked Nova Southeastern. First pitch in game one is scheduled for 12 p.m. ET with game two to follow.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines softball on X at @MinesSoftball and on Instagram at @mines_sb. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, X and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.