DENVER – MSU Denver was able to get a bit of a head start to its baseball season when it played a three-game series in California on the opening weekend.
 
But, after last weekend's series was cancelled due to bad weather, the Roadrunners are sort of starting over again when Sioux Falls (S.D.) comes to the Regency Athletic Complex for a three-game series that starts with an 11 a.m. doubleheader Friday. It will be Sioux Falls' season opener.
 
"It's their first games out, and it'll feel a little like our first games out, too," Metropolitan State University of Denver coach Ryan Strain said. "We're kind of starting over after having a two-week layoff.
 
"We haven't been able to get many live at-bats because there's been snow on the field. We'll probably have to knock off some rust that we wouldn't have had to otherwise. "
 
The Roadrunners' home-opening weekend also has a single game scheduled for Saturday at noon. The series had originally been set for Friday through Sunday, but the schedule was altered in an attempt to work around expected chilly weekend temperatures.
 
Sioux Falls is picked to finished 11^th in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference after going 15-31 overall and 15-21 in league play last season. MSU Denver swept a three-game home series with the Cougars last year.
 
"We played pretty well against them last year and hopefully we will again," Strain said. "It's important just to play well. Our first day in California, we just didn't play very well."
 
The Roadrunners jumbled their schedule to avoid rain during their season-opening series at Cal State San Marcos, dropping a Friday doubleheader before putting together a strong effort in a Sunday loss.
 
"I was really encouraged by how we swung the bats on Sunday," Strain said. "We got 11 hits, but we hit the ball hard enough to get close to 20. We had several balls that we hit on the nose that were lineouts. We didn't have any cheap hits, we earned every one.
 
"Friday, we just didn't swing the bats very well the first game. I think part of that was being nervous, the newness of the season, having so many new starters. We didn't take batting practice before the game because of the rain – just showed up and played. They handled it better than we did. And their pitcher did a nice job as well. He had command of the (strike) zone, he didn't walk anybody, he made us put balls in play."
 
Middle infielder Ty Lightley (Littleton, Colo./Dakota Ridge) and Zach Paschke (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Mountain Vista) paced the Roadrunners' offensively, going a combined 8 for 22 (.364).
 
"Those guys both just compete," Strain said. "They play hard. They're really good on defense, which doesn't show up in the stat sheet very much. They were able to make some nice plays. But they really swung the bats well. They fought off pitches.
 
"Zach had a tremendous day Sunday, just fighting off pitches and putting balls in play. We'd like Zach to be at the top of the order eventually. Ty has done a nice job since he got here making some adjustments in his swing and giving himself a chance to be more than just a defensive shortstop. We think he's been labeled that, but I think he can be an offensive threat as well. They both handle the bat well, so they give us a chance to hit-and-run and bunt and some of those things."
 
Catchers Draven Adame (Lamar, Colo./Lamar) and Matt Malkin (Broomfield, Colo./Monarch) were a combined 6 for 15 (.400) in the opening series.
 
Meanwhile Javi Vegi was the best of the Roadrunners' starting pitchers, leaving with the lead after working 4 1/3 innings of a seven-inning game after allowing one run on five hits, with no walks and four strikeouts.
 
"It was neat to see that, first time his parents got a chance to see him pitch in college," Strain said. "This time of the year, he got a little tired towards the end. He was on a pitch count and we were able to get him out of there with a lead. He pitched well. That's what he can do. He's got a little more velocity than he did last year and that's helped him."
 
Austin Stone (Arvada, Colo./Faith Christian) and Logan Soole (Louisville, Colo./Monarch) are scheduled to start Friday, while Branden Dehority (Chandler, Ariz./Mesquite) is slated to get the ball on Saturday.