Denver—The Metropolitan State University of Denver baseball team defeated Colorado School of Mines 3-0 in Friday afternoon's game to improve to 5-6 on the season with Mines falling to 7-6.  This marked the first game of a four-game series this weekend.
 
Sophomore Julian Garcia (Fort Collins, Colo./Fossil Ridge H.S.) took the mound for the Roadrunners in his fourth start of the season.  Garcia entered the game with a record of 1-2 before pitching a complete game shutout, allowing only two hits and three walks with eight strikeouts en route to his second victory of the season to improve to 2-2.
 
The game remained scoreless through the first four frames as a pitcher's duel unfolded.  In the bottom of the fifth inning senior Nick Comito (Lakewood, Colo./Mullen H.S.) led off with a single, and then advanced to second in the next at-bat on a sacrifice grounder off the bat of junior Jake Thurston (Centennial, Colo./Grandview H.S.).  Comito advanced to third on an error by the Orediggers shortstop, and then scored on a deep sacrifice fly to left field from sophomore Hunter Donaldson (Fort Collins, Colo./Fossil Ridge H.S.).  With that sacrifice fly Donaldson notched his 12th RBI of the year.
 
Comito led off the seventh inning with a stand-up double on a hit to the right field corner.  In the next at-bat Thurston was ruled out on an unusual interference call by the umpire, and then junior Reilly Mau (Longmont, Colo./Longmont H.S.) drew a walk.  With runners on first and second Donaldson hit another deep fly to right field to advance the runners to second and third, and in the very next at-bat junior Andrew Paust (Parker, Colo./Ponderosa H.S.) hit a bases-clearing double to make it a 3-0 ball game.  Paust is now hitting .385 on the season.
 
The Roadrunners will take on the Orediggers in a doubleheader on Saturday at noon at the Regency Athletic Complex.