DENVER – It was Late Night at the Assembly Athletic Complex.
 
That's what will happen when you score 27 runs in a doubleheader that starts at 4 p.m.
 
Runs, and more runs, are the signature of this MSU Denver team and that was no different Friday in wins of 15-5 and 12-3 over Colorado Christian in a night that finally ended at 10:21 p.m.
 
But what stood out most Friday were strong pitching performances, particularly from seniors Conner Nantkes in the opener and Carter Akerfelds in the second game, in must-win games for an MSU Denver team hoping to secure a potential at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament's South Central Regional if it isn't able to win the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's automatic bid as the league's tournament champion.
 
"This is a huge weekend for us, and our guys know it," MSU Denver coach Ryan Strain said. "And Colorado Christian still had a chance to get into the (RMAC) tournament if they had swept us. We're fighting for the sixth spot in arguably the toughest region in the country. It's important to win games all year, but it's important to win them at the end, too."
 
Nantkes (5-1) pitched five innings of two-hit shutout relief in the opener, allowing the Roadrunners' explosive offense to turn a 7-5 lead into a 10-run margin. Nantkes walked one and struck out seven.
 
"That was huge for us," Strain said. "(Starter Andrew) Hayes gave up four runs out of the gate, but he did a nice job of weathering the storm and putting up some zeroes, and then Nantkes was really good for us. I was really happy to see that from him."
 
Akerfelds (1-3) started for the first time since the season opener – he missed extended time with injury and then came back as a reliever – and allowed three runs on five hits in a solid five-inning effort.
 
"I'm really happy for Ack," Strain said. "He earned the opportunity to be a starter and started the first game of the year for us but got hurt, which really stunk. But he battled back and we were able to start stretching him out in relief roles, and I'm happy he was able to have a chance to start again on Senior Weekend."
 
Eric Cox and Brady Mello each added a scoreless inning to finish up the seven-inning affair.
 
MSU Denver improved to 30-18 overall and 19-11 in the RMAC. The Roadrunners have now won 30 games in back-to-back seasons for the first time since the 1989 and 1990 seasons, and for only the second time in school history. MSU Denver was 34-10 last season.
 
"I'm proud of our guys and proud of where the program is going," said Strain, who is 120-91 in his fifth season. "To  be able to have probably the two most successful seasons back-to-back in school history is a testament to our coaching staff, to our administration that has helped us have the ability to do that, and to our players. We've got good players who have worked hard for this, and we're not done yet. Getting 30 wins back-to-back is no easy task."
 
Having a lethal lineup helps and MSU Denver didn't disappoint Friday.
 
Bill Ralston had two homers and six RBIs in the second game, capping a 5-for-9 night. Ralston now has 20 homers for the season, still the second-best single-season total in program history and now just five behind Matt Malkin's 2019 record of 25.
 
In the opener, the Roadrunners drew 17 bases on balls to go with 13 hits. Tanner Garner collected three of the hits, while Cody Schultz drove in four runs . Ross Smith hit a solo homer to start the comeback from a 4-0 deficit before putting the Roadrunners ahead to stay with a two-run single for a 7-5 lead in the fifth.
 
Garner and Schultz each had two stolen bases, while Zane Schmidt drew four walks.
 
MSU Denver had baserunners all game long, and stranded a season-high 15 in a game that was officially three hours, 22 minutes long.
 
In the 2:21 nightcap, Cam Yuran and Ross Schuler were each 3-for-3 with a double and an RBI, while Garner picked up three more stolen bases to give him 15 for the season.
 
Colorado Christian had tied the game with three runs in the third, but Ralston's homer put MSU Denver ahead to stay in the fourth and then Blake Mattey's pinch-hit, two-run single ignited a seven-run fifth that put the game away.
 
"We had a lot of good at-bats and lot of big hits when we needed them," Strain said. "Mattey's pinch-hit was huge."
 
The regular season concludes with Saturday's 1 p.m. doubleheader, which includes a pre-game Senior Day ceremony.