GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. - Metropolitan State University of Denver shocked No. 3/2 Colorado Mesa on Friday night with a 4-2 win to advance to the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament championship at Suplizio Field in Grand Junction, Colorado. It will be the first appearance in the championship game for the Roadrunners since winning the tournament in 2003. They improved to 28-20 this season. CMU falls to an elimination game with No. 16/15 Colorado State-Pueblo and the winner of that game will have to beat the Roadrunners twice on Saturday to win the championship.

Trent Maloney (Castle Rock, Colo./Douglas County H.S.) belted a two-run home run in the first inning, providing an early lead.

After a rain delay in the second inning, the Roadrunners kept the momentum going and added a run in the fifth on a failed pickoff attempt by CMU for a 3-0 lead.

Meanwhile, Mike Thill (Littleton, Colo./Columbine H.S.) was outstanding on the mound, allowing two runs in the seventh and finishing with five strikeouts. He was replaced by Ryan Baca (Loveland, Colo./Loveland H.S.) in the eighth inning and Baca pitched two scoreless innings to earn the save, striking out two.

Baca led off the ninth with a single and scored on a base hit by Marcus Bean (Fort Collins, Colo./Rocky Mountain H.S.) to push the lead to 4-2. Bean finished the game 2-for-3.