Colorado State University Athletics
Friday, March 6
Fort Collins, Colo.
3:45 PM MT
Colorado State
10-12
11
vs
5
Purdue
15-9
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Purdue
0
1
0
3
1
0
0
5
11
0
Colorado State
3
0
0
6
0
2
X
11
11
0
Rams Close Out Classic in Style
3/8/2020 4:39:00 PM | Softball
Big hits deliver pair of wins over Purdue
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The leadoff hitter sets the tone.
Ashley Michelena, Colorado State softball's leader to open each game, did just that Sunday, albeit in an unusual way: a groundout in the seventh inning to end the Rams' hopes against Idaho State.
The game was a continuation of Saturday's halted contest and served as the kickstart they needed, despite losing 4-1. In Michelena's at-bat, she fouled off pitch after pitch, eventually ending the game on the 13th offering of the battle.
After the out, the Rams stormed past Purdue in another continuation of Friday's contest, 11-5, before rounding out the weekend with a 4-3 win over those same Boilermakers.
It all started with Michelena, who went a team-best 8-for-18 in the Colorado State Classic.
"We keep saying, 'things are gonna shift, things are gonna shift,' and it just hadn't happened for us," head coach Jen Fisher said. "Ashley Michelena's 13-pitch at-bat in the Idaho State game is what I think really propelled us – showing that fight. We haven't been able to put together at-bats like that. Proving to ourselves that we can do that, you can have a semi-ugly swing or foul something off, and you can still come right back."
Suddenly, the Rams found the spark they've searched for. In just the first chance against Purdue in the continued contest, they put up six runs. Half of them came courtesy of another Ashley, this time Ruiz, who nailed a three-run home run as part of her 2-for-4 day in which she went deep twice and drove in four runs.
She finished the Classic 4-for-16 with three home runs over five games.
Just two innings later, Corina Gamboa followed the lead of Ruiz with a two-run home run of her own. The biggest hit of her day came in the following game's sixth frame, however. After hitting two balls deep, but foul, she adjusted and went deep over the left-field fence to give the Rams the one-run edge they needed.
Taylor Gilmore finished Purdue off in the seventh and final frame as part of her complete-game effort in which she allowed three earned runs and struck out six.
"The at-bat in front of that, she struck me out," Gamboa said. "I just had that mindset that she's not going to get me this time. I kept it really simple and tried to stay as calm as possible, but also aggressive."
Gamboa's breakout weekend was also a boon for the Rams' success. Last year, she was often the driving force of an offense which simply couldn't be stopped at times. En route to going 5-for-16, she showed the same form – one Fisher knows is always there.
Her teammates know as well.
"They are really happy for Corina and just so proud of her," Fisher said. "They really know how good she is and how talented she is, and she has just been struggling to get her bat going. They were really in that at-bat, right with her, and screaming. She's a really good leader and she's just been struggling to get her stick going."
The same sentiment has been true for so many of the Rams' stalwarts.
Too often this year, Fisher has watched the top hitters on the team fail to come through in pivotal moments – chances they hardly missed last year. She knows each of them hasn't gotten worse suddenly, their results have just not been there yet.
The kinks the Rams discovered in their out-of-conference slate were normal. Fisher purposely scheduled things to be tough. The goal was to learn from the mistakes and compete against some of the nation's best in preparation for next weekend's start to the conference slate against San Diego State.
Effectively ending the weekend with two consecutive wins was key.
"We faced a lot of pitchers, fielders and hitters that we don't normally face in conference," Ruiz said. "I think it definitely prepared us for what we'll see and how to adapt."
The Aztecs await the Rams for a three-game set to kick off the Mountain West season for both teams.
Fisher's squad is ready.
Ashley Michelena, Colorado State softball's leader to open each game, did just that Sunday, albeit in an unusual way: a groundout in the seventh inning to end the Rams' hopes against Idaho State.
The game was a continuation of Saturday's halted contest and served as the kickstart they needed, despite losing 4-1. In Michelena's at-bat, she fouled off pitch after pitch, eventually ending the game on the 13th offering of the battle.
After the out, the Rams stormed past Purdue in another continuation of Friday's contest, 11-5, before rounding out the weekend with a 4-3 win over those same Boilermakers.
It all started with Michelena, who went a team-best 8-for-18 in the Colorado State Classic.
"We keep saying, 'things are gonna shift, things are gonna shift,' and it just hadn't happened for us," head coach Jen Fisher said. "Ashley Michelena's 13-pitch at-bat in the Idaho State game is what I think really propelled us – showing that fight. We haven't been able to put together at-bats like that. Proving to ourselves that we can do that, you can have a semi-ugly swing or foul something off, and you can still come right back."
Suddenly, the Rams found the spark they've searched for. In just the first chance against Purdue in the continued contest, they put up six runs. Half of them came courtesy of another Ashley, this time Ruiz, who nailed a three-run home run as part of her 2-for-4 day in which she went deep twice and drove in four runs.
She finished the Classic 4-for-16 with three home runs over five games.
Just two innings later, Corina Gamboa followed the lead of Ruiz with a two-run home run of her own. The biggest hit of her day came in the following game's sixth frame, however. After hitting two balls deep, but foul, she adjusted and went deep over the left-field fence to give the Rams the one-run edge they needed.
Taylor Gilmore finished Purdue off in the seventh and final frame as part of her complete-game effort in which she allowed three earned runs and struck out six.
"The at-bat in front of that, she struck me out," Gamboa said. "I just had that mindset that she's not going to get me this time. I kept it really simple and tried to stay as calm as possible, but also aggressive."
Gamboa's breakout weekend was also a boon for the Rams' success. Last year, she was often the driving force of an offense which simply couldn't be stopped at times. En route to going 5-for-16, she showed the same form – one Fisher knows is always there.
Her teammates know as well.
"They are really happy for Corina and just so proud of her," Fisher said. "They really know how good she is and how talented she is, and she has just been struggling to get her bat going. They were really in that at-bat, right with her, and screaming. She's a really good leader and she's just been struggling to get her stick going."
The same sentiment has been true for so many of the Rams' stalwarts.
Too often this year, Fisher has watched the top hitters on the team fail to come through in pivotal moments – chances they hardly missed last year. She knows each of them hasn't gotten worse suddenly, their results have just not been there yet.
The kinks the Rams discovered in their out-of-conference slate were normal. Fisher purposely scheduled things to be tough. The goal was to learn from the mistakes and compete against some of the nation's best in preparation for next weekend's start to the conference slate against San Diego State.
Effectively ending the weekend with two consecutive wins was key.
"We faced a lot of pitchers, fielders and hitters that we don't normally face in conference," Ruiz said. "I think it definitely prepared us for what we'll see and how to adapt."
The Aztecs await the Rams for a three-game set to kick off the Mountain West season for both teams.
Fisher's squad is ready.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Jarecki, Jessica (3-6)
L: Peters,Ashley (2-2)
Batting:
2B: Becker,Rachel 1 ; Webb,Skye 1 ; Hixenbaugh,Halle 1
3B: Jones,Becca 1
HR: Webb,Skye 1
RBI: Webb,Skye 1 ; Wilhoit,Kasey 1 ; Hixenbaugh,Halle 1 ; Jones,Becca 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Becker,Rachel 1 ; Webb,Skye 1 ; Cox,Emilee 1 ; Wilhoit,Kasey 1 ; Hixenbaugh,Halle 1
Batting:
2B: Trott, Tyler 1
3B: Acosta, Jordan 1
HR: Donaldson, Haley 1 ; Gamboa, Corina 1 ; Ruiz, Ashley 2
RBI: Donaldson, Haley 2 ; Gamboa, Corina 3 ; Ruiz, Ashley 4 ; Acosta, Jordan 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Michelena, Ashley 1 ; Donaldson, Haley 3 ; Gamboa, Corina 2 ; Ruiz, Ashley 2 ; Allen, Peyton 1 ; Trott, Tyler 1 ; Acosta, Jordan 1
SB: Donaldson, Haley 1
HBP: Donaldson, Haley 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
2
H
3
RBI
3
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
4
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
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Colorado State Softball: Highlights vs. New Mexico
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Colorado State Softball: Highlights vs. San Jose State Game Two
Saturday, March 26
RamWire: Coach Fisher One-On-One
Tuesday, May 14