The U softball team took most of the week off in preparation for a big weekend in New Mexico and Colorado.
The Utes will play New Mexico in a doubleheader on Friday, followed by another doubleheader with Colorado State on Sunday.
The long layoff won’t hurt the Utes, according to U coach Mona Stevens, who said the team has been so preoccupied with the end of the school year and finals they’ve kept themselves busy.
“It’s been really important that they’ve had that time off,” Stevens said.
In order to maintain their No. 2 status in the Mountain West Conference, they must win in both series. Utah can obtain the No. 1 spot in the MWC Tournament if it wins and San Diego State loses.
Although Utah is 7-3 in the MWC and SDSU is 13-3, the Utes can gain percentage points, which ultimately determines the winner of the crown.
“I had a feeling it might come down to the last weekend,” Stevens said. “I’m sure San Diego State is feeling the pressure too.”
Molly McLean and Melissa Stahnke lead the Utes into battle. McLean leads the team in batting average at .328 and 51 hits, 11 of them doubles. Stahnke has a .323 average, 12 home runs and 34 runs batted in.
Jennifer Pursell leads the Utes on the rubber with a 13-15 record, 2.94 earned run average and 114 strikeouts. Heather Bowlin has a 10-16 record, 2.75 ERA and 98 strikeouts.
Both will throw for the Utes this weekend.
Albuquerque, N.M., will be the first stop for the U. The Lobos are fourth in the MWC with a 6-9 record, 14-26 overall. New Mexico stole a game from the Utes back on April 5 when Cassie Chavez hit a grand slam for a 7-6 New Mexico victory.
The Lobos were swept by San Diego State last weekend in San Diego and now bring in a four-game losing streak to the series with Utah.
Kelly Glass leads the Lobos with a .346 average on 45 hits. Brooke Chaffee is hitting .328 with 10 doubles and 5 homers.
Stevens is confident her Utes can get the job done.
“If we do what we’re supposed to, we’ll be fine this weekend,” said Stevens. “But we’ve got to show up to play.”
Following the New Mexico series, Utah is entertained in Fort Collins, Colo., by the Colorado State Rams. CSU possesses the worst record in the MWC at 4-11, 17-27 overall. They are in last place and own a seven-game losing streak.
Although the Utes swept the Rams on April 6, the Rams gave the Utes all they could handle?Utah was forced to come from behind in both games to win.
Ricki Walker leads the Ram offense with a .307 average, with 6 doubles and 4 home runs. Melanie Mahoney leads the Rams on the rubber with a 2.27 ERA in 139 innings pitched.
With CSU’s poor record, can the Utes overlook the Rams?
Stevens doesn’t think so.
“There’s enough motivation going into these games [that] I don’t think we’ll look past them. By the time we play Colorado St., we’ll know if SDSU lost a game or not,” she said.
“If they’ve lost a game and we took two from New Mexico, it’s in our hands to win the conference.”
The doubleheader with New Mexico begins at 1:00 p.m. in Albuquerque and the Colorado State doubleheader begins at 11:00 a.m. in Fort Collins.