New Mexico Highlands fans are reminded to sign up for text updates on all Cowboys and Cowgirls news by clicking here.GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – The Cowgirls fell in game one, but they rallied to take game two from the Mavericks as the New Mexico Highlands Cowgirls softball team (6-14, 1-8 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) split with Colorado Mesa (13-12, 9-4 RMAC), dropping game one 5-2 before taking game two, 6-3.
Down 2-1 entering the fifth, the Cowgirls preceeded to score five runs in the final three innings for the come-from-behind win. With two outs and no one on, freshman
Destiny Navarro and junior
Jacquelyn Solis doubled to tie the score. However, a key error opened up the floodgates in the top of the sixth. Junior
Ashton Borunda opened the inning by reaching on a Mavericks' miscue. She was sacrificed to second and scored on senior
Jacquelyn Wood's single to put Highlands in the lead. Wood scored on junior
Dekota Monarrez's single before junior
Ka'uilani Kamai homered to right field to open up the 5-2 lead.
The Cowgirls closed the scoring in the top of the seventh thanks to more Colorado Mesa miscues as they started the inning with a pair of errors. Sophomore
Katelyn Bates singled to load the bases before senior
Jessica Brink singled in an insurance run.
Colorado Mesa scored one run in the bottom of the seventh for the final 6-3 margin.
Navarro went 3-for-4 with a run scored while Solis went 2-for-4 with two RBI's and a run scored. Brink picked up her third consecutive win and improved to 3-6 on the year in the circle, allowing six hits and three runs in the complete game win.
Down 1-0, Colorado Mesa scored two runs in the bottom of the second. Sarah Phillis singled and scored on Zoe Pakes double. After advancing to third, a sacrifice fly by Tawnee Woosley hit a ball that led to a 2-1 lead for the home team.
Pakes went 2-for-3 with a run scored and an RBI. Rochelle Talamantes fell to 2-4, allowing nine hits and four runs in 5.1 innings pitched.
In game one, Kamai tallied an RBI single in the third. Three walks and an RBI double by Navarro scored a run and brought the potential go-ahead run to the plate in the seventh, but Colorado Mesa got out of the jam for the win.
Borunda and Brink both finished the game with two hits in four at-bats. Freshman
Michelle Brincefield took the loss in the circle, allowing nine hits and five runs (four earned} to fall to 2-3 on the year.
Trailing 1-0, Colorado Mesa scored two in the bottom of the third and three more in the bottom of the fifth for the 5-2 win.
Brooke Hodgson picked up the win in the circle for the home team, improving to 9-5 on the year. She allowed six hits and two runs in the complete game win with five strikeouts.
The Cowgirls finish the series Sunday (May 15) with a double header beginning at noon.
