Sports

The two teams were tied 4-4 after six innings.

Gabriella Parra, the Mesa State Mavericks' left fielder and No. 3 hitter, stepped to the plate with two outs and a runner on second base.

"We gave up a two-run homer to put 'em up by two," Fort Lewis College Skyhawks' softball coach Pam Adams said Thursday night.

"We scored one in the seventh, but we just couldn't get that other one across."

Parra hit a two-run home run in the top of the seventh against Skyhawks' freshman Alyssa Rahm, and Mesa State won Game 1 of a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference doubleheader 6-5 on Thursday at Aspen Field on the FLC campus.

Fort Lewis rebounded with a 9-1 victory in Game 2.

"It was right there for us, but we let it slip," Adams said of the near sweep. "It was a good bounce back, but I sure would've liked to get 'em both."

Rahm, from Farmington, allowed six runs - four earned - on 10 hits in seven innings. She struck out three, walked none, and took the loss.

Rahm (5-4) allowed a four-run fifth inning and Parra's two-run shot in the seventh. She was backed by four Skyhawk home runs.

Ashley Hibbs hit a solo home run in the third.

Natalie Janes hit a two-run home run in the fourth.

Stevie Benedict hit a solo home run in the sixth.

Jordan Willis hit a solo home run in the seventh.

Fort Lewis scored seven runs in the first three innings of its eight-run victory in Game 2.

Amber Massey had the big blow in the bottom of the first inning: a one-out grand slam to left-center field.

Chelena Coulston homered in the second, and Desirea Gil hit a two-run homer in the third. Denae Benally capped the Skyhawks' slugfest with a solo shot in the fifth, a walk-off of sorts.

The game ended after Benally's homer - the Skyhawks' eighth of the afternoon - and just 5 1/3 innings.

Stephanie Janes (3-3) earned the win with one run on four hits in five innings pitched. She struck out four and walked one.

"That was a brilliant game for her," Adams said of the freshman. "Last week was a whole lot better - better command of her pitches, better mindset; she just continues to get better."

With the split, FLC is 8-8 overall and 4-4 in the RMAC.

Fort Lewis will play doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday at Regis.

"We made some mistakes, and we're going to do that," Adams said of her freshmen-heavy squad. "We're just going to have to hit around that.

"We can't afford to (split) too many more times.

"This weekend will define us," Adams said of the Regis (16-9, 8-2) games. "We'll see where we're really at in this conference."

heraldsports@durangoherald.com