DENVER – A little extra-inning magic is good for the soul and the win column.

The scene was a 2-2 tie in the bottom of the eighth inning in the second game of Sunday's softball doubleheader between Metropolitan State University of Denver and CSU-Pueblo at the Regency Athletic Complex.  

Senior Ashlee Kim (Castle Rock, Colo./Douglas County) and freshman Rebecca Gonzales (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Mountain Vista) were the magicians.

Kim slapped a grounder to second base, but it was too far in the hole to have any chance of becoming an out at first. All of the sudden, Kim was standing on second.

"We say, 'if they fall asleep and leave second open, take it, especially if you're someone that has speed like Ashlee,'" MSU Denver coach Annie Van Wetzinga said Sunday.

Kim seized an opportunity to swipe an unaccounted for second base before ThunderWolves pitcher Hannah Anderson entered the circle, setting up Gonzales to promptly deliver a walk-off RBI double. The 13^th two-bagger of the season for the freshman gave MSU Denver (14-18, 10-8 and 6th Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) a 3-2 victory in the second game of the doubleheader, which followed an 8-2 win over CSU-Pueblo (5-17, 4-14 and 11th RMAC) in the first game.

"It was a great, heads-up play by her and executed really well," Van Wetzinga continued about Kim's game-changing, split-second decision. "It was huge. If she's at first, you probably have to use an at-bat, maybe sacrifice her over and put her in scoring position. We already have her in scoring position, so that allows Rebecca (Gonzales) to be able to swing away. Obviously, good things happened."

Gonzales continues to be a key cog in the MSU Denver lineup, as her .394 batting average, 13 doubles and 18 RBIs are each second on the team behind Darby McGhee (Camarillo, Calif./Adolfo Camarillo). She was 5-for-7 during Sunday's doubleheader, going 3-for-4 in the first game while scoring one of MSU Denver's eight runs and following that with a 2-for-3 performance in the second game that included a walk and the game-winning hit.

Gonzales wasn't the only freshman that came through in the clutch for MSU Denver on Sunday, however. With the Roadrunners trailing 2-1 in the fifth inning of game two, No. 8 hitter Ari Valdez (Denver, Colo./John F. Kennedy) launched her first collegiate home run to left center to tie the game.

"It's nice to see players of any age, but especially a freshman, be able to work through some tough times," Van Wetzinga said. "Ari (Valdez) has been struggling a little bit with her swing and seeing the ball. What's great about her is she's a worker and she's really bought in. She worked through some things this week in practice, got some extra work in. She just kind of stayed within herself and tried to put a good swing on the ball. Obviously, there, she put a really good swing on it."

Valdez was 1-for-3 in both contests on Sunday, but each of those hits were key knocks. In game one, it was a two-run single in the fifth that put MSU Denver up 7-1. She also sparked the first offensive output of the day, reaching on an error in the second inning as JJ Sheppard (Fountain Valley, Calif./Fountain Valley) scored. Kim followed that with an RBI single to score Valdez.

MSU Denver held a 2-0 lead into the fifth inning of the first game, riding another incredible start from Darby McGhee (Camarillo, Calif./Adolfo Camarillo). CSU-Pueblo scored an unearned run in the fifth, but the Roadrunners responded with an offensive explosion in the bottom half of the frame.

Sophomore Koryna Wright (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga) delivered a two-run, pinch-hit single to make it 4-1, then Alyssa Richter (Thornton, Colo./Mountain Range) lifted an RBI double to right center to make it 5-1 before Valdez struck with her two-run single. CSU-Pueblo added a run on a homer in the sixth, but it was too little, too late.

McGhee helped her own cause with an RBI double in the bottom of the sixth, driving home the game's final run to secure an 8-2 victory in the opener. She gave up just four hits in six innings in the circle, striking out six and walking two while surrendering just one earned run. McGhee's record improved to 6-8 as her ERA dropped to 2.78 for the season. She was also 3-for-4 at the plate in the first game and is hitting .421 for the season.

Sophomore Destinee Lopez (La Verne, Calif./Bonita) was solid in relief all day, turning in a scoreless inning to put CSU-Pueblo to rest in game one before getting the final five outs of game two in scoreless fashion. She was awarded the win in game two, her first of the season.

Freshman pitcher Julia Heitz (Queen Creek, Ariz./Queen Creek) contributed an impressive start in the second game, peppering just six hits over 6 1/3 innings while giving up just one earned run. While it proved to be a no-decision for Heitz, her season ERA fell to 4.14.

After taking three of four from the ThunderWolves, MSU Denver will turn around quickly to host Colorado Christian for a non-conference doubleheader on Tuesday. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 3 p.m. MT.

"Hopefully we can keep the momentum going," Van Wetzinga said. "Basically, the biggest message is 'let's build off this.' We obviously had a tough week last week. We took three of four here. Let's build. Let's not take steps back. Let's build and continue to have quality at-bats and get solid pitching and defense."