DENVER – Last season, UCCS quite probably stole the final spot in the Division II South Central Regional Tournament away from MSU Denver by upsetting Colorado Mesa and winning the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament.
 
MSU Denver will renew acquaintances this weekend in a four-game series at UCCS -- the teams didn't actually play in the RMAC Tournament last season. The schedule calls for games Friday at 3 p.m., Saturday at noon (in a doubleheader) and again Sunday at noon.
 
While picked to finish near the top of the RMAC again and compete for regional invitations this season, thus far both teams are off to slower than expected starts. MSU Denver is 16-10 overall and 7-5 in the RMAC, while UCCS is 8-14 and 4-4.
 
That said, three of UCCS' four league losses were to then-No. 6 Colorado Mesa, and the Mountain Lions bounced back to win the final game of that series. Both the Mountain Lions and Roadrunners went 3-1 in a home series with New Mexico Highlands.
 
"They lost quite a bit from last year's team, but they still hit pretty well," Strain said. "They have a couple of pitchers back. They'll play hard. They're pretty consistent."
 
While UCCS played Highlands in its first RMAC series, MSU Denver played the Cowboys last weekend. The Roadrunners opened with a disappointing 12-6 loss in the opener, as pitching ace Reichle Arcilise was unable to perform all weekend.
 
"That definitely threw us last Friday," Strain said. "It was an unfortunate deal. We would've like to have had Reichle on Friday, because I think it would've been a different result most likely."
 
Arcilise (4-2, 3.00 ERA, 49 strikeouts in 36 innings), Brad Helton (2-0, 3.33), Austin Stone (1-1, 4.62) and Andrew Hayes (1-1, 7.24) appear to be the top starting pitching options for the Roadrunners.
 
"If those guys are healthy, those are four good, solid starters in our league," Strain said.
 
The overall staff ERA of 5.77 is higher than it has been the past couple of years, but it is certainly competitive in the RMAC, where much of the season is played at altitude.
 
MSU Denver's high-powered offense has contributed to a 16-2 record when the opponent scores fewer than 10 runs.
 
One of the Roadrunners' catalysts has been freshman outfielder Cam Yuran, who had an unusually efficient weekend against Highlands – not only was he 5-for-6 in the four-game series, he also drew five walks and was twice hit by pitches while compiling an .857 on-base percentage and scoring eight runs.
 
"That's good," Strain said, laughing. "He's been doing a really nice job of getting on base and giving us good, quality at-bats behind the guys in front of him."