When softball’s Megan Smith hit a game ending home run in game two of Saturday’s doubleheader against Metro State, you would th ink that would be the biggest moment of the day. That, however, was overshadowed by pregame festivities when Kathy Howa, president of Swing for Life, threw out the first pitch to assistant coach Jim Hazelhurst. Howa, a former player at Mesa State, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2002 and Hazelhurst was diagnosed with cancer this past fall. Howa has beaten the cancer and now looks to raise money and bring awareness to the cancer.
“I love coming to Mesa because I played here and it’s one of the highlights of my life,” Howa said. “With Kris (Mort) and Cindy (Cohn) being so big on our foundation and allowing us to come every year has actually helped us kick off Swing for Life. When I go away from here, we take away a lot of fun memories as well as doing such a great job on their auction.”
The Swing for Life series is an annual event at Bergman Field where the team tries to raise money for breast cancer. Even though they raised over $2,200 this weekend, it’s not all about the money.
“It’s successful because we raise awareness,” Howa said. “All these young women are becoming more aware of their bodies. When you find the disease early it’s now 99 percent curable.”
Even the players were aware of how important the series was outside the ballgames.
“It gives us something more to play for,” Sara Jordan said. “Our coach Jim has put up a fight. He said he was going to be here in the spring and he is. That definitely gives us something more to play for other than wins and our team. I love coach Jim and he’s a big influence all the time.”
Even though the event showed that softball will always be just a game, the ladies had to go out and play them. The weekend brought in conference powerhouse Metro State, who h BI double. After the 3-0 win, Jordan had gone 11 straight innings without giving up a run.
The final game of the series was the most important for the Mavs as they tried to win the series and gain ground on Metro State. After a bases clearing double by the Roadrunners in the second inning, the bats for Mesa State weren’t able to close the early gap, and they lost the game 8-2. Jordan only made it through two innings before she felt she couldn’t continue on the mound.
“I kind of pulled myself out because I could tell my pitches were falling off,” Jordan said. “I didn’t really have the command I was hoping for.”
Despite not being able to win the series, the team doesn’t feel completely dissatisfied about the split with Metro State.
“My guess would be satisfied or elated, which is better than being unsatisfied, but we know we could have done better” coach Mort said. “We are getting better. We need to keep getting better. We need to be more consistent and keep climbing. It’s that time of year to just work harder. It’s not time to look up and see where everyone else is at. It’s time to put our noses down and just keep pushing. When it comes tournament time, that’s when we can take it one game at a time.”
With two more series remaining on the season, the Mavs are looking for better seeding. They are first overall in the division with a 17-13 conference record, but fourth in the RMAC. This weekend they travel to Peblo to take on CSU-Pueblo before returning home for Alumni Weekend and Senior Day against Western New Mexico.

ahimes@mesastate.edu