LAS VEGAS, N.M. – The Colorado School of Mines softball team confirmed their postseason plans for next week as they began the final weekend of the regular season with a doubleheader split against New Mexico Highlands. After being walked off by the Cowgirls (18-36, 16-26) in the series opener 7-6, the Orediggers (25-27, 21-21) erupted offensively with their highest scoring total of the season in game two as they bounced back with a dominant 24-4 win in five innings.
New Mexico Highlands scored the first run of the weekend on Shaylene Saladin's one-out single that scored Yasmin Villa. After a scoreless second, Mines tied things briefly in the third inning when
Lauren Romero's RBI groundout scored
Sam Whisenand after she led off with a single. NMHU came back with three runs in their half against
Taylor Wayne, as she was unable to work out of a two-out bases-loaded jam which resulted in a three-run double by Aliya Rhees that made it a 4-1 game. The Orediggers battled back in the fourth to within a run as an RBI double by
Madyson Ortiz scored
Grace Weiler before
Kylie Bickford came off the bench and hit a sac fly to right that scored pinch runner
Sydney Pendowski and made it 4-3.
The Cowgirls gained some more separation in the fifth as Saladin singled home Villa again and brought about a pitching change. Ortiz (5-6) went to the circle for Wayne looking to limit the damage but instead was tagged for an RBI double by Giana Marez that made it 6-3. In the sixth Mines battled back again as an RBI single by Bickford chased home Weiler before Ortiz helped her own cause by scoring on a single by
Kellan Ton. After Ortiz left two in the home sixth, she helped her own cause in the seventh with an RBI single that scored
Lauren Romero and tied things up at 6-6. Unfortunately, one run was all Mines mustered in a bases-loaded situation as pinch runner
Kiyana Tsuei was thrown out at home on an 8-2 double play to keep the score level. In the home seventh, NMHU needed five batters to win it as Hallie Watkins scored the go-ahead run on a bases-loaded single up the middle by Olivia Boswell as the Cowgirls took the opener 7-6.
After being dealt the walk-off loss in game one, Mines left little doubt to the outcome in game two of the day. A nine-run first inning followed by six in the second and four more in the third resulted in a 19-2 lead after three innings. 15 batters went to the plate for the Orediggers in the top of the first on their way to taking a commanding lead.
Lauren Romero scored
Kellan Ton with an RBI double before score herself moments later following a
Kendall Aragon single and a wild pitch. After a walk by
Grace Weiler,
Madyson Ortiz singled home Aragon before a fielder's choice by
Emiaj Self plated Weiler to make it 4-0.
Rylee Church's walk passed the torch to
Kylie Bickford, who continued her fine day with an RBI single to left field to score Ortiz.
Sam Whisenand's sacrifice fly to center field scored Self and made it 6-0 as the lineup turned back over to Ton. The junior singled to left to score Church and after an NMHU pitching change, Romero's sac fly to center scored Bickford to make it an eight-run lead. An E6 off the bat of Aragon resulted in another run and made it 9-0 Mines after an inning. New Mexico Highlands came back with two runs in the home first, but it did little to impact the lead. An RBI groundout by Cheyenne Ben and an error allowed Andrea De La Trinidad and Yasmin Villa to score and briefly bring the margin back to seven.
Mines kept pouring it on in the second, as four straight singles resulted in three runs to begin the frame as an error in left field on a single by Ton cleared the bases as Church, Bickford and Whisenand all scored to make it 12-2. A double steal of second and home moments later by Romero and Ton made it 13-2 before a triple to right center by Aragon made it a 12-run lead. After the third pitching change of the day by the Cowgirls, Weiler's RBI groundout to shortstop allowed Aragon to trot home and make it 15-2. The Orediggers showed no signs of slowing down in the third as a one-out single to left by Ton scored pinch runner
Mia Lopez and made it 16-2. A two-run double by Romero to left center followed and made it 18-2. Two batters later an RBI single to left by Weiler scored Romero and made it a 17-run game.
After being held off the board for the first time in the top of the fourth, the Orediggers surrendered a pair of runs to the Cowgirls in the bottom of the inning. A walk, error, hit by pitch and a single by London Lamb plated Hannah Hopkins before Amanda Rodriguez singled to right field to score McKinsi Durham and make it 19-4. More offense followed for Mines in the fifth as a bases-loaded walk by
Lucy Herston followed by a two-run double by
Emily Rogers made it a 22-4 game.
Kat Miller, who recorded her first career hit last Saturday, delivered a two-out two run single back up the middle to extend the margin to an even 20 before a lineout ended the inning.
In the circle, Church (6-5) and
Ellen Shull split the afternoon's abbreviated work load. Church worked the first three frames, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out a pair. Shull took over in the fourth and worked the final two innings of the run-rule shortened affair, allowing two runs on two hits while striking out two of the final four batters she faced to close out the 24-4 win.
NOTABLES
-Ton recorded a five-hit day highlighted by going 4-4 with four runs scored, three RBI and two stolen bases in game two
-Bickford, seeing her first extended action Saturday in more than a month, came off the bench to go 1-1 with two RBI in game one before starting game two and going 3-3 with three runs scored and another RBI
-Aragon had a four-hit day highlighted by going 3-4 with her 12th triple of the season, two runs and two RBI in game two; in doing so she became the second player in program history to reach 270 career hits and now has 271, six back of Sarah Van Lingen (2008-11) for the all-time record
-Romero had a three-hit day as she recorded three doubles on the day, including two in game two as she drove in six (including five in game two) and scored four on the afternoon
-Ortiz turned in a five-hit afternoon at the dish, going 3-3 with a double, walk, two RBI and a run scored in game one before following that up with a 2-3 game with another run and an RBI in game two while also working 1.2 innings of relief in the opener
-Weiler hit safely in each game and scored twice with two RBI on the afternoon
-
Nina Sammoury recorded her first career hit in game two while Herston drove in her first career run
-Miller recorded her second career hit and also drove in the first two runs of her career in game two
-All nine starters in the batting order in game two scored a run for Mines as a total of 15 different players scored a run, 13 recorded a hit and 11 drove in at least one run
-Mines used a season-high 22 players in the game two win
-The 24 game two runs by Mines were the highest total scored in a game this season and the second time the Orediggers have put up 20+ in a game this spring; the last time Mines had multiple 20-run games offensively in a season came in 2008, when they had a trio of 20-run games against Colorado College (22-4, 21-3) and UCCS (25-18)
-With results from around the league Saturday, including Black Hills State (24-31, 21-23) being swept by Colorado Mesa, Mines is guaranteed to finish no worse than 21-23 in RMAC play; regardless of results Sunday, and by virtue of their series win over BHSU earlier this season, the Orediggers secured the final spot in the 2026 RMAC Softball Championship as they'll make their first postseason appearance since 2024 and first under head coach
Tobin Echo-Hawk
ON DECK
The Orediggers and Cowgirls will be the only two teams in action Sunday as they wrap up the regular season with a doubleheader starting at 10 a.m.
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.
