DENVER – The MSU Denver softball team faces a sneaky-good opponent this weekend as Fort Lewis comes to the Assembly Athletic Complex for doubleheaders Friday at noon and Saturday at 11 a.m.
Fort Lewis is just 10-17 overall, but is more impressive with its 8-12 record against Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference competition.
Look a little closer, and the Skyhawks have done some even more impressive things within their league schedule – picking up a rare win at third-place Colorado Mesa, earning a series split against fifth-place Colorado School of Mines, winning a game at eighth-place Chadron State, splitting with ninth-place CSU Pueblo and – most recently – enjoying an eye-opening split at fourth-place Regis.
"I think they've got a tough team, and they've got some good athletes," MSU Denver coach
Annie Van Wetzinga said. "They have a good balance – some kids who can run and some power kids. They'll be scrappy at the plate and they can score in different ways."
MSU Denver was a surprising 1-3 at Fort Lewis last season, though that series came immediately after the stunning news that All-American outfielder
Shelby Robb was lost for the season due to injury.
Not only is Robb back this season, she is on fire – ranking fifth in the RMAC in batting (.437), tied for fourth in doubles (10), tied for second in triples (five), third in RBIs (28) and fourth in slugging percentage (.887).
MSU Denver, 23-8 overall and 19-1 for second in the RMAC, is 20-2 since Robb returned to action after missing the first nine games while completing her recovery.
Finally on Tuesday, for the first time in her career, Robb was named the RMAC Player of the Week. She capped that seven-day stretch by going 11-for-16 with two doubles, one triple, three homers, 10 RBIs and three stolen bases in a four-game sweep of Black Hills State.
"Her player of the week is just a reflection of the consistent type of player she is," Van Wetzinga said. "She probably wasn't happy with how she was hitting prior to last weekend, but you were pretty confident she would come out of it. Her stats line is impressive, not just because she's a long-ball hitter, but she's a speed kid, too. She really can do it all."
There was good news in the circle last week, too, as true freshman
Cheyenne Prieto was 3-0 with a 1.47 ERA, and senior transfer
Maddy Wilson as 2-1 with a 1.87 ERA, capped by a one-hit shutout of Black Hills State.
"Maddy is our oldest, most-experienced college pitcher, but she hasn't had as many opportunities prior to last week," Van Wetzinga said. "She pitched really well against Fort Hays State, even though she got the loss, and then had the one-hitter against Black Hills, which had been scoring some runs. It was great to see her pitching with confidence.
"And Cheyenne has a really solid weekend, and had a couple of starts that she can build off. Our pitchers were much sharper on day two last week over day one."
The Roadrunners are off to their second-best RMAC start ever – the 2010 team opened 22-1 en route to going 37-2 for the regular-season championship. Eventually that team reached the semifinals at the National Championships.
It's been an exciting ride.
"We've been able to use our baserunning," Van Wetzinga said. "We're fun to watch, and each weekend we're believing on ourselves even more. Being aggressive on the bases makes our offense go, and our defense, too. Because we're playing freer and making some awesome plays on defense because of it."
