ALAMOSA, Colo. (March 28, 2014) -- Adams State University put an end to Colorado Mesa University's 21-game winning streak with a 7-4 win on Saturday. The game two victory against the first-ranked team in the country came after a disappointing 10-5 loss in game one.

ASU's signature win marked CMU's first defeat since Feb. 19 and their first conference loss of the season. It is also the first win for Adams State against Colorado Mesa since baseball returned as a varsity sport in 2013.  

With Saturday's split Adams State moves to 11-15 overall and 7-8 in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) play. Colorado Mesa stands at 26-3, 18-1 RMAC heading into tomorrow's series finale at 12:00 p.m.

Game 1
Senior Jerid Huggins lifted Adams State to a 5-0 lead in the third inning with a grand slam to left center. The bomb cleared the bases to score Tyler Thurston, Dillon Bollig, and Jaron Dorchinez. Huggins' fourth homer of the season sent ASU fans to their feet as it capped off a five-run inning. Huggins' shot was only two batters removed from Drew Wells' RBI sacrifice fly that put the Grizzlies up 1-0.

The comfortable 5-0 lead did not last as the Mavericks tallied two runs in the fourth, a run in the fifth, and a run in the sixth. Despite giving up the runs, ASU starting pitcher Andrew MacMahon escaped out of the fourth with back-to-back strikeouts and followed that with two consecutive groundouts to end the fifth.

The Grizzlies held a 5-4 lead entering the top of the seventh but the upset did not come to fruition as CMU put forth a six-run seventh inning. The Mavericks tallied the six runs with five hits and an ASU error.

Remaining a thorn in ASU's side was CMU's Austin Wallingford who accounted for two home runs in the game. Wallingford ended game one 3-for-4 at the plate with 4 RBI and three runs.

Huggins led ASU's efforts on offense by going 2-for-3 at the plate. Relief pitcher Ryan Richardson (2-2) picked up the loss after entering the game in the seventh and allowing four runs on two hits. CMU's Ryan Reno (8-0) pitched a complete game to earn the win.

Game Two
The Grizzlies quickly shook off the disappointing loss with a memorable 7-4 win to end the day. Starting pitcher J.D. Heredia controlled the Mavericks through six innings of work by allowing just four runs on seven hits.

With the backing of a strong pitching performance, the ASU offense went to work. An RBI single from Chris Morley tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the second but the bulk of the damage came from a three-run third inning and another three-run frame in the fifth.
 

With runners on first and second in the third, Dorchinez singled to centerfield to score Bollig. Huggins immediately followed with a two RBI single to put ASU ahead, 4-1.
With a CMU run in the fourth and fifth, ASU tacked on much need insurance in their half of the fifth. The three-run inning began with a Marco Garmendia RBI single to centerfield. Head coach Jim Capra then pulled Garmendia for pinch runner Jake Heaton. The change in personnel paid off two batters later as a Morley single scored Dillon Granzella from third and Heaton from second. Heaton narrowly beat out the throw from left field with a slide into home plate.

A sense of déjà vu crept in during the seventh as the Mavericks first two batters reached base. With runners on first and second, Capra called upon freshman reliever Bailey Garcia to close the game. With an unfortunate defensive error, Garcia's first batter reached base to score a CMU run but the freshman responded with a strikeout and a 5-4-3 double play to end the game.

With his appearance, Garcia notched his first save of the season as Heredia (3-3) collected the win.

Offensively, Morley led the way with a 3-for-4 performance including three RBI as Huggins chipped in two RBI.

The series final with Colorado Mesa is slated for 12:00 p.m. tomorrow. Fans who are unable to attend can follow along with live stats.