DENVER – Back-to-back homers by Audrey Burt and Hannah DiFabio sparked a six-run, two-out rally in the sixth inning as MSU Denver rallied from a 5-1 deficit to defeat Regis 8-6 on Saturday in the second game of a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference doubleheader.
 
Regis won a pitcher's duel in the opener, emerging with a 3-2 decision.
 
MSU Denver is now 31-18 overall and 19-13 in the RMAC, while Regis is 29-20 and 23-11.
 
The Roadrunners were five outs away from being swept, trailing with one out in the top of the sixth in the second game, before coming to life.
 
"It took longer than we wanted it to, but we finally started to string good, tough at-bats together," MSU Denver coach Annie Van Wetzinga said. "Putting up six runs in the sixth was great to see, and it definitely felt like a weight lifted from our hitters who were working to put it together."

Katie Maney walked, Kami Grammerstorf reached on an infield single. After an infield fly, Burt hit her sixth homer of the season – a three-run shot – to pull the Roadrunners within 5-4.
 
DiFabio then followed with her ninth homer to tie it 5-5.
 
The Roadrunners weren't done, though.
 
Haley Doughty delivered a pinch-hit double and Ari Valdez and Emily Shreves drew walks, and Rebecca Gonzales put MSU Denver ahead with a two-run single through the left side.
 
The Roadrunners added an insurance run in the seventh, as DiFabio delivered an RBI single.
 
It capped a 3-for-4 game for DiFabio. Eight other Roadrunners had one hit.
 
In the circle, Destinee Lopez got the win with two innings of relief. She yielded a run in the bottom of the seventh after a leadoff triple and sacrifice fly.
 
After a single brought the tying run to the plate, Van Wetzinga called upon Burt in relief, and the true freshman – who started the comeback with her homer – got the final two outs for her fourth save of the season, tying Nicole Larsen's single-season school record set in 2015.
 
Burt also pitched three scoreless, one-hit innings in relief in the opener.
 
"Audrey in relief was really solid today," Van Wetzinga said. "She pitched around a lot of base runners and battled against an offense that was attacking at the plate. Combined with Julia (Heitz) and Destinee in the second game, that was a really good pitching staff win."
 
The series concludes Sunday with at 11 a.m. doubleheader.

"Games with Regis are always tough, hard-fought competition," Van Wetzinga said. "Overall, our team competed well and our fight back in the second game was really great to see.

"Our challenge to them now is to come out from the start tomorrow with that attack and approach at the plate."