Chris Day
ASC Sports Information
The Adams State College Grizzly softball team hit four home runs in the last two innings, two which came off the bat of sophomore shortstop Rebecca Lindquist (Fort Collins, Colo.), as they snapped a 9-game losing streak with a 5-2 Game 1 win before giving up three homers and the same number of big innings allowing the host Fort Lewis College Skyhawks to win the second game of Saturday’s Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference doubleheader here at Aspen Field by an 11-10 score.
The split left the Grizzlies, now 10-19 overall and 9-18 in RMAC play, still 2 ½ games behind the Skyhawks (10-19, 9-18 RMAC) for the eighth and final RMAC Tournament qualifying spot and also in last place in the RMAC West Division standings by percentage points after New Mexico Highlands (15-25, 10-19 RMAC) won both games of doubleheader at division-leading Colorado State-Pueblo on Saturday.
Regis (12-20 RMAC) and UC-Colorado Springs (10-21 RMAC), which were playing a doubleheader pushed back into the late afternoon and evening because of snow, also sat between the Grizzlies and Skyhawks heading into the day
Lindquist, who missed last Sunday’s doubleheader against Nebraska-Kearney because of an injury suffered late in last Saturday’s twin-bill against Chadron State, tied the first game at 1 in the top of the sixth inning before teammate Lizzy Schossow (Fort Morgan, Colo.), who added a 3-run homer in Game 2, gave the Grizzlies a momentary 2-1 lead with her solo shot to left-center just two batters later.
However, the Skyhawks came back to tie the game at 2 in the bottom of the sixth as the Grizzlies dropped consecutive balls allowing Natalie Janes to score.
After Katelyn Lovato (Northglenn, Colo.), who extended her consecutive game hitting streak to 28 and 29 with a 4-for-9 day, reached on a 1-out error in the top of the seventh, Lindquist then delivered the game-winning homer, a 2-run shot to right center. That homer was the sixth of her season.
Jaycee Lovato (Northglenn, Colo.) then added a security run moments later with her team-leading ninth homer of the campaign, also hit to right center field before the Skyhawks loaded the bases with three 2-out singles in the bottom of the seventh. Grizzly junior pitcher Sarah Lindquist (Fort Collins, Colo.) then got out of the jam as she got Ashley Hibbs to ground out to Schossow at third base as the Grizzlies held on to the win.
Lindquist, who went on to suffer the Game 2 loss in relief of starter Marissa Elsberry (Lyons, Colo.) allowed just six total hits and one earned run while striking out five Skyhawk batters in the complete game win. Meanwhile, Stephanie Janes, now 7-9, suffered the loss for Fort Lewis after giving up nine hits and three walks.
Rebecca Lindquist went 2-for-4 with three RBI in that game and then went 4-for-5 in Game 2 as the Grizzlies jumped out to an early 3-0 lead in the top of the first thanks to back-to-back doubles by Lindquist and Jaycee Lovato followed by a RBI single by Jamie Roland (Hesperia, Calif.).
However, the Skyhawks came back to score four runs of their own in the bottom of the first as they used three singles, two walks and a pair of sacrifice flies while pressuring their Grizzly defense with their speed.
Trailing 4-3, the Grizzlies then tallied five unearned runs in the top of the second as the Skyhawks committed their third and fourth of what would be seven errors in the game. Schossow recorded the biggest blow by hitting a 3-run homer, the sixth blast of her season, giving the Grizzlies an 8-4 lead.
In the bottom of the third, the Skyhawks scored three times to cut the gap to 8-7 thanks before Jordan Willis tied the game at 8 with a home run on the first play of the fourth inning after Lindquist came in to relieve Elsberry.
After Lindquist gave up a walk and a single, Kayla Bruner then hit a 3-run homer to give the Skyhawks an 11-8 lead through four innings of play.
After leading the bases loaded in the fifth, the Grizzlies managed to score one run in the sixth on a Tarah Campagnola (Littleton, Colo.) single that plated Roland but ran themselves out of the inning as Selina Pacheco (Denver, Colo.) was gunned down at the plate after trying to cut the gap even more.
In the top of the seventh Ashley Pohl (Lake Tapps, Wash.), who kept the Skyhawks off the board in the bottom half of the fifth and sixth innings, then scored from first base on a Lindquist single and an error by Amanda Willmon to cut the gap to 11-10 before Lindquist moved to third on a passed ball with just one out.
Standing just 60 feet away from tying the game, Lindquist was then stranded as reliever Kassie Haubert struck out Lovato before getting Schossow to pop out to her counterpart Natalie Janes while earning her second save of the season.
Haubert gave up six hits but just two unearned runs in her three innings of work after the Grizzlies pelted eventual winner Jayme Fuller (4-6) for nine hits and eight runs, only two of which were earned, in the first four innings.
Meanwhile, Natalie Janes and Bruner went a combined 6-for-7 with six runs scored and five RBI in the No. 4 and 5 spots in the Skyhawk lineup.
The Grizzlies banged out 15 hits in the contest and 24 on the afternoon but stranded 10 runners on base in Game 2 as Lindquist fell to 6-8 after giving up five hits and four runs in her inning of work.
The two teams will play another doubleheader on Sunday beginning at 11 a.m. The Grizzlies will then return to play their final seven regular season games at home.
What’s Been Said…