DENVER – After two weekends of regular-season Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference softball play, four teams have raced off to 8-0 starts.
 
But at least two of those teams won't be undefeated after this weekend, as not only does Colorado Christian (16-1 overall, 8-0 RMAC) play a four-game series against Colorado Mesa (10-4, 8-0), but also MSU Denver (15-5, 8-0) plays host to Regis (12-6, 8-0).
 
The MSU Denver-Regis neighborhood rivarly is scheduled for Saturday at noon and Sunday at 11 a.m., with doubleheaders each day.
 
"Regis is always tough," MSU Denver coach Annie Van Wetzinga said. "They have good athletes, good speed and solid pitching. I think our teams are built pretty similarly, and if you look at the numbers, and our (non-conference) schedule and how we've come out, it's very similar.
 
"I'm happy we're playing them at home. I think you're always more confident on your home field. Even though they are only 10 minutes away, home field matters."
 
The teams played four common non-conference opponents in St. Edward's (Texas), St. Mary's (Texas), Texas A&M International and Angelo State (Texas), with Regis going 3-2 against those teams and MSU Denver compiling a 3-4 mark.
 
And, while Regis is riding an eight-game winning streak, MSU Denver has now won 11 straight games, including a nice non-conference doubleheader sweep Wednesday against Fort Hays State (Kan.).
 
"Fort Hays State had a great pitching staff and I'm really proud of how our team battled through that and had tough at-bats," Van Wetzinga said. "We're going to have a similar challenge against Regis."
 
Leading the way in the circle for Regis is Kylie Harpman, who is 8-2 with a 3.04 ERA.
 
For MSU Denver, Jenna Medhus is working her way back to full form and has won five of her last six appearances to improve to 5-0 with a 1.75 ERA for the season.
 
Meanwhile, a Roadrunners offense that batted just .189 in a five-game opening weekend has hit an astouding .401 in 15 games since to improve to .351 for the season. MSU Denver is batting an RMAC-best .435 in league games.
 
Meanwhile, Van Wetzinga is two wins away from reaching 500 for her career – she's 345-188 at MSU Denver after previous coaching stops at Colorado School of Mines and Upper Iowa.
 
"A few people have brought that up," Van Wetzinga said. "But I'd rather focus on how cool it is that Kami Grammerstorf is about to set our stolen base record and things like that. But when a milestone like this happens, you think of all the people who have been part of it – the coaches and players – and you know you've been around some talented people."