Spring Break
Rams Happy After Road Trip
Paul Baker
The CSU softball team returned home after a tough road trip, where the Rams played conference foes Utah and Brigham Young. The Rams (36-13 overall, 12-4 Mountain West) won three out of the four games on the weekend to stay in second place in the MWC.
On Friday, the Rams defeated Utah in two straight games, winning 6-2 in Game 1 and 7-5 in Game 2.
The two games against Utah showcased the Rams talented hitting.
In the first game, junior catcher Kerry Farrell went 4-for-4 with four RBIs and two home runs. Two other Rams had multiple hits that game as freshmen Brittany Huerta and Jessica Strickland both went 2-for-4. Strickland recorded her sixth home run of the year in the game. Senior pitcher Megan Masser picked up the win, striking out six batters in five innings of work. Strickland came on to pick up the save.
In Game 2, Farrell again used her bat to help the Rams win the game. Farrell hit her third home run of the doubleheader in the first inning to bring her total to seven on the year. Over the two game series with Utah, Farrell had three home runs, two doubles and seven RBIs. The Rams took a 7-0 lead into the seventh inning, when the Utes started their comeback. The Utes scored five unanswered runs before Strickland came into the circle to pick up her second save of the day.
"We hit the ball really well today," said head coach Mary Yori. "When we had the opportunity, we converted."
On the second stop of the road trip, the Rams went to Provo for another two-game set with BYU on Saturday. After losing the first game 4-3, the Rams came back in the second game to win 1-0.
In the first game, CSU fell behind 4-0 early in the game before they got going from the plate. In the fifth, the Rams scored one run when junior second baseman Steph Roberts doubled in freshman Stacey Leigh. The Rams had a rally with two outs in the seventh to score two runs, but it wasn't enough in the end. Masser (10-4) took the loss, pitching a complete game and striking out nine batters.
In the nightcap, the Rams scored in the top of the first when Farrell singled in Roberts, who singled to start the game. The run proved to be the difference in the game. Senior Ricki Walker, sophomore Katie Dean, Farrell, Roberts and Strickland each went 1-for-3 from the plate. Sophomore pitcher Genevieve
Kelly (10-2) recorded the win for the Rams, only allowing three hits in four innings of work and striking out one. Strickland again came on for her sixth save, and is now one save away from tying Masser's single season record of seven, which she set last year.
"All of the pitchers played really well this weekend," Strickland said of the team's continuous success. "When I was in, I just threw the pitches that (the coaches) told me to and they worked."
With the win, Kelly became the third Ram pitcher to reach 10 wins on the season, along with Masser and Strickland (10-4).
The Rams will close out the conference season with four-game series with New Mexico on Saturday and Sunday at Ram's Field.
