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Ashley Burriel vs. New Mexico Highlands - Apr. 21, 2024
Kaitlyn Silva
Ashley Burriel (6), the Skyhawks anchor at the hot-corner, owns Fort Lewis' fourth-best batting average (.279) among qualified hitters.

Skyhawks to face Mountain Lions with postseason hopes on the line

4/25/2024 11:00:00 AM

By: Hayden Mangan, Assistant AD-Communications & Fan Engagement
DURANGO, Colo. – The Fort Lewis College softball team (17-28, 15-21 RMAC) will close out its regular season schedule this Friday and Saturday with hopes of sneaking into the sixth and final spot in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament with a four-game series at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs (17-32, 14-26 RMAC) over on Mountain Lion Field.
 
Game Information
Friday, Apr. 26 | Noon & 2:00 p.m.
vs. UCCS
Colorado Springs, Colo. | Mountain Lion Field
Watch | Live Stats | Tickets
FLC Game Notes
 
Saturday, Apr. 27 | 11:00 a.m. & 1:00 p.m.
vs. UCCS
Colorado Springs, Colo. | Mountain Lion Field
Watch | Live Stats | Tickets
FLC Game Notes
 
Tournament Scenario
Two teams will need to be perfect this weekend: Fort Lewis and Colorado Mesa (39-7, 37-3 RMAC). Firstly, the Skyhawks need to go on the road and sweep the Mountain Lions on its home turf to crack the door into the RMAC Tournament. Secondly, Colorado Mesa – which is in contention to capture the regular season title this weekend – will also need to sweep CSU Pueblo (22-29, 20-20 RMAC), who currently holds the sixth and final spot in the tournament, to open the door and allow the Skyhawks to sneak in based on win percentage in conference contests.
 
Momentum Is Critical
Fort Lewis, despite dropping its final home game of the season last Sunday 6-2 to New Mexico Highlands (14-29, 10-28 RMAC), has still won eight of its last nine contests on the back of commanding pitching in the circle and timely run support from key spots in the lineup. Over its last three series, the Skyhawks have split a pair with MSU Denver (38-14, 31-9 RMAC), swept Black Hills State (12-3, 11-27 RMAC), and captured its final home series 3-1 over the Cowgirls. Over the same stretch, Fort Lewis' pitching staff owns a 2.30 earned run average while hitting .306 as a team.
 
Scouting The Mountain Lions
UCCS is coming off a tough 3-2 loss on the road at CSU Pueblo last weekend which dropped the Mountain Lions into a series split with the ThunderWolves. Additionally, UCCS has dropped six of its last eight games after suffering a sweep at the hands of Colorado School of Mines (25-21, 21-17 RMAC) two weeks ago. And while the Mountain Lions lead the all-time series 73-45 over the Skyhawks, FLC has won seven of the last 10 matchups.
 
Autumn Kunze (10-10) stands as the toughest challenge in the circle for the Skyhawks. The five-foot-four sophomore from Chandler, Ariz., owns a 4.06 ERA through 129.1 innings, has posted three shutouts, and earned 10 of UCCS' 17 total wins including its only two at CSU Pueblo last weekend.
 
Offensively, the Mountain Lions boast a .272 team average headlined by freshman Gianna Pancost who is hitting .404 on the season with a team-leading 12 doubles, two triples, and a home run for a team-high 26 runs batted in. UCCS actively hunts for opportunities once on base as the Colorado Springs squad is 55-69 on the base paths this season and led by Alyssa Gutierrez, who stole the second-most bases in a single season (19) for Fort Lewis last season, at 13-13 on the year.
 
The Hands of Fate
Will it be another season of finishing just outside of the RMAC Tournament, or will the Skyhawks make the late-season push to capture the tournament's sixth and final spot? The answers lie at both the CMU Softball Mountain Lion fields this Friday and Saturday.
 
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