GOLDEN, Colo. – After starting the series Saturday with a pair of walk-off wins, the Colorado School of Mines softball team had their eyes on the continued defense of their home field in 2024 Sunday as they closed out their Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference series with UCCS. While the first two games of the series were decided by a lone run, the Orediggers (24-18, 20-14) left little doubt about the results in the final two games of the weekend, posting a 9-1 win in five-innings in the opener followed by an 11-5 win in the finale to complete the sweep of the Mountain Lions (15-30, 12-24).
 
The opener started off about as well as Mines could have asked for, scoring five runs over the first two innings to take the lead right out the gates. Kellan Ton got things going in the first with a lead off single before stealing second and being joined on base by Kendall Aragon with an infield single. The pair executed a double steal with Ton coming home to score on a throw into left field by the catcher with no one covering third. After a long flyout to left that saw Aragon tag up and advance, Sara Larson singled the other way to right field to make it 2-0. Getting right back to work in the second, Cassidy Chvatal powered a double to left center and advanced to third on the next play as a bunt by Sam Whisenand was muffed at first base as everyone ended up safe. After the freshman stole second UCCS managed a groundout for the first out of the inning, but a sac fly by Ton made it 3-0. Now with a runner at third and two outs, Aragon stood in and singled the other way to right, but a misplay by the right fielder saw the ball scoot by all the way to the wall as Aragon got waved all the way around the bases for a little league home run that saw the lead move to 5-0.
 
Sadriena Rodriguez (15-6) picked up right where she left off Saturday in her start, retiring the Mountain Lions in order twice in the first three innings and allowing just one hit in the second. UCCS did crack the scoreboard in the fourth with a one-out double and a two-out triple as Rodriguez got a flyout to end the inning.
 
Heading to the bottom of the fifth, Aragon led the frame off with a bunt single and advanced to second with one out following an infield pop up with a stolen base A groundout back to the circle moved her to third for Lexie Semeyn who doubled to the warning track in center to make it 6-1. A Kayleigh Krueger walk kept the inning going with two outs, but not for much longer as Cassidy Chvatal stepped into the box and unloaded on the first pitch she saw, sending a titanic fly ball down the left field line and over the fence in left field line for a walk-off three-run home run to clinch a series win with a 9-1 victory in the opener.
 
Game two saw UCCS with a chance to score first as the opening pitch was ripped into the right field corner for a standup triple, but Kat Miller came back to retire the next three she faced to escape early trouble.
 
The Orediggers offense meanwhile kept things rolling in the home first, as Kellan Ton singled to shortstop before stealing second with one out and coming around to score on a double to right center by Sidney Wilson. Sara Larson followed with a double of her own, this one to left field as Wilson scored easily to make it 2-0.
 
In the top of the second, UCCS posted their best offensive inning of the weekend, getting on the board by way of a one-out walk followed by a double to left and a two-run home run to straightaway center. Allison Westbrook (5-3) came on in relief and after getting tagged for a double on the first pitch she threw, got a pop up and a groundout back to her in the circle to escape further damage.
 
Undeterred, the Mines offense roared back to regain the lead in the home third. A one-out walk by Kailey Morales thanks to a pitch clock violation and a wild pitch set the table for a big inning. A Hannah Roberts double to right center put the pair in scoring position for the top of the order as Ton slapped a single through the right side for a run before a bunt single by Aragon just in front of home plate that left no play for the defense allowed Roberts to slide home safely to regain the advantage 4-3. Ton, who ended up at third on the play with no one covering, scored moments later on a sac fly by Wilson the other way to right to make it 5-3.
 
The Mountain Lions battled back and got within a run in the fourth, as a leadoff double came around to score following a wild pitch and a single, but Westbrook managed to worked around it and overcome an error behind her to escape with the lead still intact.
 
Mines tacked on another run in the home third, as Cassidy Chvatal left the yard for the second time on the afternoon, taking a 3-2 offering out to left field to make it 6-4. Following a scoreless fourth, the Orediggers hung up another crooked number in the fifth. Lexie Semeyn singled off the third base bag into left and ended up being safe at third on a fielder's choice attempt off the bat of Kayleigh Krueger as the throw to second was muffed and got away into right field. After a steal of second by Krueger to put two in scoring position, Kailey Morales dumped one down the right field line for a run before Roberts laid down a bunt single of her own just in front of the plate that left the defense without a play and saw Krueger slide across to make it 8-4. After a groundout for the second out of the inning, Kendall Aragon did it again, lining a two-run single to left and coming all the way around to score again on another defensive miscue to make it 11-4.
 
UCCS managed a single run in the sixth as a leadoff walk came around to score on a sacrifice fly to right after an error in the inning, but it did little to impact the outcome as Westbrook got a flyout to left to end the inning before working a 1-2-3 seventh to close out the 11-5 win and secure the weekend sweep.
 
NOTABLES
-Chvatal belted her fifth and sixth home runs of the season Sunday, rebounding after a tough Saturday to finish the series 3-6 with four RBI and a double
-Aragon went 5-7 on the day, going 3-3 with three runs scored and an RBI in game one and 2-4 in game two with three RBI and a run scored and now leads the team with 29 RBI on the season while sporting a six-game hitting streak
-Ton sent 1-2 with a run, RBI and two steals in the opener and 2-4 with an RBI, two runs and another swipe in the finale and is now 19-19 on steals attempts in 2024, moving into a tie for fourth all-time in a season with Renata Boyd (2022) and Kaleigh Starr (2009)
-Larson went 3-7 on the day and drove in a run in both games to run her hitting streak to nine games
-Semeyn doubled in game one and finished the day 3-7 with an RBI, a stolen base and two runs scored to run her hitting streak to eight games
-Wilson and Roberts both doubled in game two and combined for three runs and three RBI between them with the latter adding a stolen base as well and the former working a walk in game two, now giving her 59 in her career as she now stands along in eighth all-time in program history
-Rodriguez set a new career high for single-season win with 15 in the opener as she struck out one and didn't issue a walk and allowed a run on three hits in the opener; she's now one win away from tying for the sixth-most wins in a season with Katie Kocman (2008), Kelly Unkrich (2012) and Sydney Marchando (2019) while her 38 career wins are now two shy of Claire Stringfellow (2017-20) for fourth all-time at Mines
-Westbrook turned in one of her best outings of the season, spinning 5.2 innings of relief and allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits to pick up the win
-Six different players all recorded two hits each in the series finale
-Five players now have 20 or more RBI for the Orediggers in 2024 while the 15 home runs hit as a team are now three shy of the mark of 18 that came in the 2022 season when it comes to recent history
-Mines is now 11-1 in 12 home games at Joe Coors, Jr. Softball Field in 2024 and has recorded two four-game sweeps at home in the same season for the first time since 2018 when they swept UCCS March 10-11 and CSU Pueblo April 8-9
 
UP NEXT
The Orediggers head back downtown next week for their final four road games of 2024 against MSU Denver on April 20-21.
 
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.