Grand Junction, Colo.- The Metropolitan State University of Denver softball team earned a 5-4 victory of Colorado School of Mines in the first round of the RMAC tournament on Thursday afternoon.
 
Both teams started the game off strong, with both teams scoring early in the first inning.  The Orediggers were able to score two runs in the top of the first on two hits.  However, sophomore pitcher Darby McGhee (Camarillo, Calif./Adolfo Camarillo High School) and the Roadrunners made it out of the inning leaving three Orediggers on base.
 
The Roadrunners bounced back in the bottom of the inning. Sophomore Megan Sansburn (/Dakota Ridge H.S. ) led the game off drawing a walk for the Roadrunners.  Sansburn was then advance to second off a single from junior Ashlee Kim (Castle Rock, Colo./Douglas County H.S.). Freshman Koryna Wright (Rancho Cucamonga, CA/Rancho Cucamonga High School) then came up big for her team knocking one out of the park for a three run homer, stealing the lead at 3-2.
 
Mines tied the game up at three in the bottom of the second inning.
 
The Roadrunners led off the bottom of the third inning with back-to-back singles before senior Serena Espinoza hit a single down the left field line to break the tie and give the Roadrunners a 4-3 lead. Sophomore Alyssa Richter (Thornton, Colo./Mountain Range H.S.) followed suit by hitting a double to right center field and padded the lead for MSU Denver giving them a 5-3 lead after three innings.
 
The sore would remain that way until the top of the seventh inning when Mines chipped away at the Roadrunner lead. The Orediggers hit a leadoff double to left field before the next batter reached on a throwing error to give Mines runners at second and third base. Mines scored one run a fielder's choice giving Mines two runners on base with no outs.
 
Junior Kylee Burnside (Idaho Falls, Idaho/Skyline H.S.) took over at pitcher in the second inning for the Roadrunners. In the seventh inning with the tying run on second and no outs, Burnside got the next two Oredigger batters to pop out and then ground out before eventually sealing the win with a strikeout.
 
Burnside faced 26 batters and gave up just four hits and gave up just one unearned run for the Roadrunners.
 
With the win, the Roadrunners will take on the winner of Colorado Mesa and Chadron state tomorrow at 10:45 a.m.