After splitting their first series of the season against Colorado Christian University last weekend, the Colorado Mesa University softball team went on the road to Colorado State University-Pueblo (CSUP) and showed the RMAC that the Mavericks aren’t slipping anymore. The first game was a solid 10-4 win than a 9-4 victory to round out the day.
“We were playing a different team,” Head coach Ben Garcia said. “We hit the ball well and didn’t panic when we were playing from behind both times today.”
The first game saw the Mavericks take an early lead in the first inning with a sacrifice fly from Brooke Hodgson. The Mavericks would then go scoreless until the fourth after CSU-Pueblo scored four runs in the third innings to put Mavericks down by three.
Then the Mavericks offense would take off.
It began in the fourth with an RBI-single from Kellie Mrofcza then Abby Toller finished the fourth with an RBI for herself. Hailey Hinson was the sole scorer in the fifth, getting a run off of a passed ball. Kaila Jacobi slugged a homer for a single point and Zoe Pakes an RBI single. The seventh inning saw the final decimation of CSU-P, with the Mavericks scoring four points. AnnMarie Torres and Jacobi both had their own RBI singles, Toller had a sacrifice fly RBI and Pakes followed with an RBI single of her own.
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The defense had a stellar performance and achieved zero errors. The pitching was strong with McKenzie Surface hitting three strikeouts and getting seven pitches hit in her 20th win of the season. Surface has been battling a knee injury but she still managed to seven complete innings in the win.
“I think our pitchers are tired,” Garcia said. “[McKenzie] is still not a full 100 percent. We know that and we just need to hit more and get more runs. Do our job hitting and let them find their groove.”
The second game didn’t start so well for the Mavericks who lost the lead early as the Thunderwolves would go up 2-0 in the first. CMU had to make up the difference in the third, this was, however, the last time the Mavericks were behind.
Alexandria Dufour had an RBI off of a fielder’s choice to start the floodgates and Hodgson followed up with a three-RBI double, taking the lead back from CSU-P. In the fourth, Maggie Manwarren got an RBI single and Jacobi hit another home run. The sixth inning had the final runs and was hit in by two RBI singles, one each going to Torres and Mrofcza.
Zero errors were made once again by the defense, showing that they were truly playing the defensive game they normally put forward. The pitching was taken by Kimbri Herring who managed six strikeouts and allowed another seven hits like Surface did in the first game.
The team, now amped on winning back to back games, will look to do the same in the next doubleheader against CSU-P on Sunday in which the first game of the doubleheader starts at 11 a.m.