COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- April 23, 2023 -- The Chadron State College softball team won their seventh straight game and got one game closer to a playoff berth Sunday, defeating UCCS in two games.

CSC won game one 8-1 before winning game two 11-3, earning the complete series sweep over the Mountain Lions.

With the victories, the Eagles improve to 24-23 overall and 22-18 in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play, a win percentage of .550.

Fort Lewis currently holds the sixth and final spot in the playoffs and is one spot above CSC in the standings. The Skyhawks went 1-1 against Adams State today, dropping their conference win percentage to .553.

Tori Haug only allowed two hits in game one, helping CSC earn the 8-1 victory.

Scoring started for Chadron State in the top of the first after Lauren Zimmerman, a sophomore from Reno, Nevada, hit a solo homerun to center field.

The Mountain Lions quickly tied the game in the bottom of the inning with a solo homer of their own.

Scoring was halted until the fifth inning but the Eagles would score the final seven runs of the game.

Zimmerman would add another RBI in the top of the sixth inning with an RBI double, scoring Aliyah Rothstein.

A Jazlyn Arvizo single that scored Mackenzi Kroll in the top of the sixth inning brought home the first of five runs in the inning.

Brady Laucomer, a freshman from Scottsbluff, doubled to left center, scoring J'lyssa Martinez and Jessie Henchenski.

The Eagles would extend their lead to 6-1 on a Bailey Steinke single that scored Laucomer.

An RBI single from Zimmerman scored Steinke to end the innings scoring.

Henchenski, a junior from Fort Collins, Colorado, added a solo homerun in the bottom of the seventh inning to end the games scoring, giving CSC the 8-1 victory.

Haug, a junior from Commerce City, Colorado, improved to 8-14 with the victory. While only allowing the two hits, Haug walked two batters and struck out eight, tying her season high.

Braelyne Crenshaw dropped to 2-16 on the season for the Mountain Lions.

Chadron State's 11-3 victory in game two only took five innings.

Zimmerman once against started the scoring in the top of the first with an RBI double, scoring Steinke.

Ashland Baca added two more runs in the inning with a homer, scoring herself and Jaelyn Martinez-Lewis.

A Laucomer solo homer in the top of the second extended CSC's lead to 4-0.

UCCS scored their first run of the game in the bottom of the second inning on an RBI double.

The Eagles responded with a two run third inning. Laucomer started the scoring with an RBI single, bringing Sloane Quijas home.

A Steinke single to left field added the final run of the inning, scoring Henchenski.

Two more runs were scored by CSC in the fourth inning.

An error by the Mountain Lion defense on a Quijas single advanced her to second base and brought Kroll home.

Henchenski would follow up the error with an RBI double, scoring Quijas.

Another RBI-double in the fourth inning added a run for the Mountain Lions, lowering their deficit to 8-2.

Zimmerman added her fourth homerun of the series in the top of the fifth inning, saving her best for last.

With the NCAA run rule being eight runs after five innings and winning by six, Zimmerman blasted a three-run homer, scoring Rothstein and Steinke.

Trailing 11-2, UCCS added a third run in the bottom of the fifth inning, but were unable to lower their deficit to seven.

Kenzi Garner, a sophomore from Broomfield, Colorado, earned her first victory of the season for CSC.

Garner allowed seven hits and three runs, while walking three batters and striking out two.

The Eagles had a season high fifteen hits in the victory.

Chadron State's playoff hopes will be decided next weekend when they host CSU-Pueblo. The games are scheduled for Thursday, April 27 and Friday, April 28.

First pitch on Thursday is scheduled for 12 and 2 p.m., while Friday's games will start at 11 a.m., and 1 p.m.