DENVER, Colo. – Following a Sunday split to open the series, the Colorado School of Mines softball team had their eyes set on a weekend win Monday as the Assembly Athletic Complex in their final road games of the season against MSU Denver. Unfortunately for the Orediggers (25-21, 21-17) that was not meant to be as the Roadrunners' (38-14, 31-9) pitching held them to just one run over the course of the doubleheader, taking both games by scores of 2-0 and 5-1.
The Roadrunners got on the board first in game one, scoring single runs in the first and second on an RBI single and an RBI double, but a potential third run was erased at the dish by
Kendall Aragon in the first as she delivered a dart to home plate where
Lexie Semeyn applied the tag for the out to end the inning.
It was tough sledding for the Mines offense as they managed just one baserunner in the first three innings as
Sidney Wilson's first at bat of the day saw her grazed with an inside fastball. In the fourth she became the second baserunner of the day, legging out an infield single deep in the six hole to shortstop but nothing came of the opportunity.
Sadriena Rodriguez (16-7) didn't quite have the same stuff as she did Sunday when she spun a three-hit shutout, but rebounded from allowing two early runs and showed her veteran moxie over the next four innings of shutout ball, working a pair of 1-2-3 frames in the third and sixth, stranding the bases loaded in the fourth and leaving one in the fifth as she kept Mines in the game.
The Orediggers' best scoring chance of the game came in the fifth when
Kayleigh Krueger reached with an infield single before stealing second and being joined on base by
Cassidy Chvatal who coaxed a walk. Following a fielder's choice off the bat of
Emily Rogers saw Chvatal forced out at second and put runners on the corners, pinch hitter
Sam Whisenand stood in and didn't get cheated on any of her swings but ultimately ended up going down on strikes as the inning ended.
After leaving a runner in the sixth following a
Kellan Ton single, Mines looked to rally in the seventh as Krueger and
Hannah Roberts both reached on walks to get the go-ahead run to the plate, but a screamer off the bat of Ton was snagged at first to end the game with a 2-0 result in favor of MSUD.
The series finale saw Mines get two on base to start things off as
Kendall Aragon and
Sidney Wilson posted back-to-back singles but were left stranded.
Allison Westbrook (5-5), getting the start for the second time in the series, spun a 1-2-3 first before MSU Denver got on the board in the home second with a two-out single down the left field line to take the lead.
After both sides went down in order in the third,
Cassidy Chvatal came through in the fourth to tie the game with her seventh big fly of the season, sending one out to centerfield and taking aim at a passing RTD light rail train beyond the fence to draw things even at 1-1.
Westbrook came back with a 1-2-3 bottom of the fourth, but MSUD regained the lead in the fifth as a leadoff single came around to score on a fielder's choice to second to make it 2-1. The Roadrunners added three more runs in their half of the sixth, as a one-out single followed by an RBI double and a two-run home run quickly made it a 5-1 game.
Down to their final three outs,
Kayleigh Krueger again looked start a seventh inning rally with a leadoff single back up the middle, but a flyout and a 6-4-3 double play ended any hopes Mines may have had as they fell in game two to end the series.
NOTABLES
-Chvatal ended the weekend on a high note by blasting her seventh home run of the season in game two and now sets her sight on the record books as she is three back of sixth all-time for most home runs in a season with 10, last accomplished by Clara Larson in 2021
-Wilson capped off the series by extending her hitting streak to five games with a base knock in each leg of the doubleheader and has now hit safely in 17 of her last 20 games
-Ton notched a hit and her 21st stolen base of the season in game one, needing just three to tie the single-season record and four to break with four games to play
-Krueger also logged a base hit in each game Monday to hit safely in all four games of the series and establish a four-game hitting streak
-Aragon and Roberts both singled in the finale
-Rodriguez was the hard-luck loser in game one, allowing lone runs in the first and second innings followed by four scoreless frames as she allowed seven hits and struck out a pair
-Westbrook, making her second start of the weekend, allowed five runs on seven hits but worked three scoreless innings in her six innings of work
UP NEXT
The Orediggers wrap up the regular season at Joe Coors, Jr. Softball Field Friday and Saturday against Adams State with doubleheaders set each day for 12 p.m. and 11 a.m. Friday will be Senior Day with festivities being held following the conclusion of game two while Saturday is set to be Family Day along with an alumni tailgate hosted by the Mines Foundation.
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.
