PUEBLO, Colo. – Colorado State University Pueblo baseball extended its win streak to four straight games here Saturday afternoon by sweeping both ends of a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference doubleheader against New Mexico Highlands at Rawlings Field.

The ThunderWolves opened Saturday's doubleheader with a 6-2 win and then recorded 20 hits scored five or more runs in three innings en route to earning a 21-4 win in the nightcap. The teams will conclude their four-game series with a 12 p.m. home game on Sunday, March 19.

With the doubleheader sweep, the Pack improves to 8-13 overall and 6-1 in the RMAC, while Highlands falls to 1-20 overall and 0-3 in the league.

Game 1 | CSU Pueblo 6, New Mexico Highlands 2
In Saturday's opener, the Pack scored four runs in the first inning and then used strong complete game performance on the mound from junior Tyler Curtis (Las Vegas, Nev./Southern Idaho) to post the win. The Pack had nine hits, but committed two errors that led to an unearned run.

Sophomore third baseman Kysen Howard (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley Northwest) had two of CSU Pueblo's nine hits. In fact, all nine starters in the line-up recorded at least one hit in the win, including senior first baseman Reggie Williams (Castle Rock, Colo./Douglas County) extending his hit streak to 16 consecutive games. Howard, who has both of the Pack's two errors, and Williams each scored twice in the opener.
NMHU got on the scoreboard in the top of the first inning thanks to a double and an RBI single by Fabian Ferreira off of Curtis, who was making his sixth start of the season.

The Pack, though, would strike for four runs in the bottom of the first to take a 4-1 lead. Williams opened the inning with a walk, moved to second on a single by senior centerfielder Noah Hennings (Draper, Utah/Southern Idaho) and reached third when junior catcher Brady Prewitt (Raytown, Mo./Iowa Western CC) walked to load the bases. Junior designated hitter Christian Casteneda (El Paso, Texas/Otero JC) brought home Williams on a sacrifice fly and then redshirt senior shortstop Trey Vasquez (Greeley, Colo./Dodge City CC) brought home Hennings on RBI groundout. Howard would then follow with an RBI double and freshman rightfielder Jeremiah Sanchez (Pueblo, Colo./Pueblo West) brought home the fourth run on his RBI single.

In the fifth, the Pack extended its lead to 5-1 thanks to an RBI double by Prewitt, which plated Williams, who opened the frame with a single.

CSU Pueblo added its sixth run in the bottom of the sixth thanks to a lead-off double by Howard and an RBI single by junior second baseman Joseph Quintana (Golden, Colo./Erskine) off of NMHU starter Jadrian Martinez, who also tossed the entire game for the Cowboys.

The Cowboys finished with eight hits in the game as Chase Stewart and Alex Admire each had two hits in the loss.

Curtis (3-1) allowed eight hits and two runs (one earned), while striking out six and walking none. In 39 innings this season, Curtis has struck out 24 and walked just six.

Martinez (0-5) took the loss for Highlands as he tossed six innings and allowed nine hits and six runs, while walking two and fanning two.

The Pack turned two double plays and left four runners on base, while Highlands turned a double play and stranded six runners.

Game 2 | CSU Pueblo 21, New Mexico Highlands 4
Meanwhile, in the nightcap, the Pack offense tied a season high with 20 hits and scored a season high 21 runs. The Pack have now scored in double figures in five of its first seven RMAC games this season. The Pack scored 20 of their 21 runs over a span of four innings from the third to the sixth, including scoring five runs in the third, six in the fourth and eight in the sixth.

Hennings and redshirt junior third baseman Cole Knightley (Solvang, Calif./Santa Ynez) each had three hits, while Williams, Casteneda, Vasquez and Howard each had two hits. Williams and Casteneda each extended their hit streaks to 17 and 12 consecutive games respectively.

Knightly had three RBI, while Vasquez, Howard and sophomore rightfielder Elijah Borjas (Denver, Colo./Lakewood) each had 2 RBI in the game.

For the game, 12 Pack players recorded a hit in the nightcap. Nine of the 20 hits by the Pack went for extra bases, including Hennings and Knightley each rapping out two doubles in the game.

Much like Saturday's first game, the Cowboys scored the first run of the game in the opening frame thanks to a bases loaded single by Martinez, which scored Admire, who led off the game with a single up the middle on the game's first pitch off of sophomore Owen Rudolphi (Eureka, Mo./Eureka), who started on the mound for the Pack.

The Pack, though, would tie the game in the bottom of the first on a single by Williams and an RBI double by Hennings off of Highlands starting pitcher Dominick Castillo.

Highlands would retake the lead in the top of the second thanks to RBI singles by Taiga Soto and Ferriera.

The Cowboys left five runners on base in the first two innings and would leave just three more runners on base over the final five innings of play.

Trailing 3-1, the Pack would send nine hitters to the plate in the bottom of the third and score five runs on seven hits and an error to take a 6-3 lead. Four of the seven Pack hits went for extra bases in the game as Hennings, Borjas and Knightley each had doubles and Vasquez recorded a triple. The latter three hits all drove in runs for the Pack.

In the fourth inning, the Pack sent 12 hitters to the plate and scored six runs off of three hits, two walks and an error to push its lead to 12-3. Four of the Pack base runners reached base thanks to being hit by pitches from Gage Guardiola, including Borjas and Knightley getting hit by pitches with the bases loaded.

The Pack's lead grew to 13-3 in the bottom of the fifth on a pinch hit triple off of the bat of junior Jeremiah Mares (Albuquerque, N.M./Cibola). The triple was the first hit of Mares' CSU Pueblo career.

CSU Pueblo would add eight more runs on five hits and an error in the sixth inning to take a 21-3 lead. The big hit in the inning was a 2-run double by Sanchez.

The Cowboys would complete the scoring by adding a run in the seventh thanks to a single, a walk and an RBI double by Martinez off of graduate student pitcher Ruben Portillo (Thornton, Colo./Eastern Arizona CC), who was the third pitcher for the Pack.

Sophomore Travis Farrell (Las Vegas, Nev./Otero JC) picked up the win for the Pack in relief as he tossed four shutout innings and allowed two hits, while walking one and striking out two. Rudolphi pitched the opening two innings and allowed seven hits and three runs, while walking one and striking out two.

Castillo (0-5) took the loss for Highlands as he pitched three innings and allowed 10 hits and six runs, while striking out one and walking none.

Admire, Sato, Ferreira, Martinez and Stewart each had two hits for the Cowboys as they finished with 11 in the nightcap.

The two teams combined to leave 17 runners on base as the Pack left eight and Highlands stranded nine.