Hornbuckle Masters Wind, Lobos in Shutout

FORT COLLINS, Colo. – Showing up to the ball yard wasn't a confidence builder. Hitting during batting practice only made it worse.

Sydney Hornbuckle was welcomed to Ram Field on Sunday by wind gusts of 20 mph and straight to center field, the flags stationed out there blowing stiff at times. The setting looked like a launching pad.

"It's definitely not a confidence booster. It's a pitcher's nightmare, right, when the wind is blowing out 20 miles per hour," Hornbuckle said. "But we had a plan. The goal was to keep everything down, keep it in the infield, keep getting groundballs and hopefully not any pop flies and it worked out. That's easier said than done."

Her actions spoke volumes as she checked a New Mexico lineup which had hit four home runs in the first two games of the series on six hits, not only keeping the ball in the yard but spinning her second shutout of the season in an 8-0 five-inning victory.

With the win, Colorado State won the three-game set, moving to 13-20 on the year, 5-7 in Mountain West play. The Lobos now stand at 22-16, 2-7.

Balls were sailing over the fence during batting practice and CSU head coach Jen Fisher figured she'd need all four of her pitchers ready for what looked like a possible high-scoring affair. The day never played out that way, however, even with batter's going to the plate knowing if they got under a ball, it would fly.

"That was very impressive," CSU second baseman Peyton Allen said of Hornbuckle's day. "We were hitting BP and infield pop flies were going to the warning track. I mean, they were hitting her, but they weren't getting under her enough to get it out. I'm so proud of her. She's super hard on herself, but she deserved that win and she's been working so hard."

In Hornbuckle's seventh start of the season, she delivered her third complete game and her second shutout, the first an eight-inning effort against Incarnate Word. There was some traffic on the bases, but mostly off infield hits, one of which hit the first-base bag and took a nasty hop.

Her physical delivery was sharp, but her mental approach was the key, as she erased the nightmarish conditions from her thinking and went to work. And at times, she was able to use the wind – blowing directly at her – to her advantage.

"There were a couple of pitchers that went off the catcher's glove. They were just breaking a lot," Hornbuckle said. "There were a few, but only when it was blowing hard. It could work on righties. Lefties it hurt me. One got hit by pitch with a drop-curve that broke a lot, but I definitely used it to my advantage when I could."

She didn't give up a two-out hit on the day, and she blanked the Lobos the one time they had the bases loaded, getting a strikeout and a weak grounder to end the second-inning threat.

It was her best outing since dropping a 2-0 decision to San Diego State a few weeks ack, going six innings. Considering the circumstances, she felt it was her best start of the year, and Fisher was in line with that thinking.

"The wind was blowing out 30 MPH; she did an incredible job," Fisher said. "The thing about it is we've been getting great performances from her and all the pitchers, and they've just been so patient and ready when their number is called. I was proud of her. She didn't try to overthink anything and went after them.

"The thing about Syd is she has a lot of confidence in her changeup and a lot of confidence in her pitches. She's a sophomore now, and it's so neat to see her grow and mature. She's asking a lot of great questions and really listening and learning. I think she knew from coach Dedeann Pendleton-Helm what the plan was."

Thanks to her offense, she only had to work five innings, dropping her ERA to 3.22 in picking up her third win. The Rams broke through with two big innings, scoring three in the third and four more in the fourth, then ended the game with a solo run in the bottom of the fifth.

Peyton Allen played a role in the offensive production, producing two hits to plate two while also scoring a pair of runs. Her third-inning single produced the first run, then she tripled as part of the fourth-inning outburst. A few batters later, Kaitlyn Cook finally did what everybody expected would happen often, launching a pitch deep to left field for a three-run shot to make it a 7-0 lead.

Allen is counted on in the heart of the order, but she had struggled in conference play, hitting .100 entering the day and putting her average below .200. The past two games, she's delivered three hits, including her team-leading seventh home run.

She's not ready to say she's broken through quite yet, but she is feeling better.

"I'd like to say yes, but this game humbles you very quickly," Allen said. "I think the past two days I've just had to get out of my head. Yesterday we talked being grateful for the opportunity, being grateful for this game. When I was filling up my water this morning in Moby, I was just walking up and down the halls saying thankful, grateful and opportunity. I think that really just started the day. I came out and had a day, I will say, but I'll just keep working and pushing through."

Allen said she used to play the game for fun, but this season, for some reason, has been more of a mental test for her. Even still, she had more extra-base hits than she had a season ago and she's surpassed her RBI total as a sophomore.

Fisher has been waiting, noting Allen's frustrations aren't coming from bad plate discipline as she has only struck out six times in 33 conference at-bats. At times, making good contact with no results can play more mind games than no contact at all.

"She's not been swinging it bad. Last weekend was a cold spell for everybody," Fisher said. "That part of the lineup was 3-for-8 Saturday, but we didn't get any production out of the top or bottom. I try to get them not to overthink and have the same approach every day. She has been really steady, but Peyton, she's a big time competitor and she raises everybody else's game. I think today she got some help from her teammates with energy and passion. She plays with so much, sometimes she needs it from other people."

Hailey Smith had two hits in front of her, also scoring two runs. Cook drove in four with a pair of hits.

The scoring was in contrast to what the weather suggested would happen, so it was fitting the Rams ended the game early with small ball. With two outs, Makenna McVay's low pop up in the infield couldn't be handled by the pitcher, and Smith followed with a single to right to score the necessary eighth run.

By that time, Hornbuckle was not longer worried about the win, just focused on the task at hand. Not that she wasn't happy to not have to go one or two more frames.

"I was totally down to do it, but I'm glad it happened," she said.

So were the Rams.

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