CHADRON, Neb. -- February 21, 2019 -- The Chadron State College softball team was supposed to play four games at home this weekend against Metropolitan State University of Denver, but a cold snap will require those games be moved to Denver, where the weather is more favorable on Saturday and Sunday. The Eagles will remain the "home" team although the game will be hosted by their opponents on the "visitor's" field, which is composed of artificial turf.

Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference rules require that the wind chill can't be lower than 25 degrees for the conference softball teams to take the field. The forecast isn't favorable for that to happen, and it also indicates snow is probable a couple of days this week.

The doubleheaders will begin at noon on Saturday and 11 a.m. on Sunday at Regency Athletic Complex in Denver, which overlooks the city's skyline. The forecast wind chill for downtown at gametime Saturday is a balmy 31 degrees, and is expected to rise above freezing on Sunday. Chadron does not anticipate thawing out all weekend.

The Eagles had last weekend off after winning two of five games February 7-9 while playing in a classic at Dixie State in St. George, Utah, a place which has palm trees and gets very little snow.

Chadron State's wins were over Cal State-East Bay 13-10 and Western New Mexico 11-2.

Two of the losses were by only a run. Northwest Nazarene, an Idaho school, won 7-6 in eight innings and Hawaii Pacific squeezed out an 8-7 victory.  The third game, against Hawaii-Hilo, wasn't close. That score was 19-0.

The Eagles are now 3-7 for the season. Their first five games were in Lubbock, Texas, where CSC also defeated Western New Mexico 15-11, but lost the others by an average of 4.5 runs.

Several Eagles hit the ball well during the Dixie State Classic. Freshman Haleigh Hoefs of Lincoln had eight hits in 13 at bats and is now batting a robust .571 with 16 hits in 28 trips to the plate.  Six of her hits are doubles and two are homers.

Another freshman, Bailey Marvel of Lakewood, Colo., had eight hits in 17 at bats in Utah and is now hitting .378 for the season while going 14 of 37 at the plate.

Junior outfielder Alyssa Geist had seven hits in 18 at bats and is now hitting.361.              

Senior Kayla Michel had just four hits in 15 plate appearance in Texas, but was seven of 16 in Utah and is now hitting .355. She's been at bat 31 times and has yet to strike out. 

Junior Elle Owens, who got off to a slow start in Texas, was six of 16 during the second round of games and raised her averaged from .188 to .281. 

As a team, the Eagles are hitting .315 through the first 10 games.  The opponents also have swung the bat well and have a .376 cumulative average. 

Pitchers Megan Horn, Cassidy Horn and Peyton Propp have each been credited with a victory.

The twirlers have walked 49 and struck out 24. They have given up 16 doubles, just one more than the Eagles have swatted, and allowed 14 homers, two more than CSC has belted.

Michel leads the Eagles with four round trippers and Owens has three.

Metro has opened its season with a 4-8 record. The Roadrunners lost three times to the University of Sioux Falls in their opening weekend, and they were present at the St. George tournament which CSC also attended. At the Dixie State classic, MSU Denver went 1-4, also losing to Hilo but defeating Northwest Nazarene.

Roadrunners starting pitcher Darby McGhee is holding opponents to a .209 batting average, appearing in seven of her team's 12 games and starting five. She has 29 strikeouts and 14 walks. The junior also bats .444.

JJ Shephard, a freshman first baseman, leads MSU Denver batting .529.

Starting the first five games of the season at first base, Abby Anderson is a face familiar to the Eagles. The sophomore from Loveland, Colorado, transferred from CSC to MSU Denver in 2018 out of the necessity of family back in her home state.

Fans will have to wait until March 16 and 17 to see the Eagles in action at home. Colorado Mines and Adams State are due to visit that weekend for round-robin action.