The University of Northern Colorado softball team homered its way to another day at the Big Sky Conference Tournament.
Facing elimination against Montana, the fourth seed and host Bears pounded out 16 hits with five home runs in a 19-9, five-inning win Thursday afternoon at Gloria Rodriguez Field.
Nya Chacon, a graduate student from Loveland, hit two home runs and had six RBI as the two-time defending tournament champions remained alive in the six-team, double elimination tournament.
UNC and Montana, which is out after the loss, combined for eight home runs, the sixth-seeded Grizzlies had 12 hits off two UNC pitchers and the majority of the runs early in the game came from home runs.
“I think we were all fighting to live another day today,” said Chacon, a center fielder whose two home runs and six RBI were a season best. “We’re fighting for our season right now. We don’t want to go home, we want to keep playing so I think everyone put everything they had into the game today. We just wanted to play another day together.”
UNC faced the Grizzlies a little more than 12 hours after ending its marathon-long day at the field Wednesday, when rain and storms continued to delay games and mess with the tournament schedule. The Bears took their first loss of the tournament late Wednesday night, almost early Thursday morning, after a 10-2, five inning defeat to top-seeded Idaho State. The game, the second of the day for UNC, was scheduled to start at 3 p.m. Wednesday, but didn’t begin until about 8 p.m.
The Bears played Wednesday morning, finishing off a postponed game with the inclement weather from Tuesday. Chacon said her day Wednesday started about 6 a.m. when she woke up and UNC didn’t finish until after 11 p.m.
“We get to come out here and play a beautiful day of softball and be together one more day so I think that’s why,” Chacon said the quick turnaround from Wednesday night. “If we can keep that in our hearts and that’s how we manage that and we’re good to go.”
University of Northern Colorado’s Nya Chacon celebrates during a recent Big Sky Conference championships game at Gloria Rodriguez Field in Greeley. Chacon hit a 2 run homer to beat Montana on Thursday.(Jim Rydbom/Staff Photographer)The Bears (18-29) earned the chance for another game and another elimination match up at noon Friday. UNC will play the loser of the Portland State and Sacramento State game that followed the Bears and Montana.
Chacon had three hits with the home runs, a double and she scored two runs from the eighth spot in the Bears lineup. Her six home runs are third among UNC players this season, trailing only Amailee Morales (14) and Ella Gonzales (8).
Gonzales, the designated player and lead off hitter for the Bears against Montana, finished the day 4 for 4 with a home run, two doubles, four RBI and four runs scored.
Catcher Sabrina Javorsky was 3 for 3 with a home run and five RBI. Katie Walling also homered for UNC, and five other Bears players delivered at least one hit off four Montana pitchers.
Gonzales and Chacon both hit 3-run home runs in UNC’s six-run second inning. Javorsy and Walling each 2-run home runs in the six-run third.
The Bears swept Montana in three games during the regular season, including a 9-1 win in six innings over the Grizzlies in UNC’s Big Sky Conference opener in late March.
UNC jumped on Montana starting pitcher for eight runs on eight hits in 1 ⅔ innings — including grabbing a 2-0 lead in the top of the first. The Bears were the visiting team for the game.
Montana quickly rallied, scoring three runs on three hits off UNC starter Isabelle DiNapoli in two-thirds of an inning. DiNapoli’s day was done after giving up a 3-run home run to Grizzlies’ catcher Madison Tarrant in the bottom of the first.
That was the last time Montana (8-42) led for the rest of the day. The Bears scored six runs in both the second and third innings and five in the fourth to put away the win.
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