GOLDEN, Colo. – Despite a 4-for-5 effort at the plate by junior rightfielder Elijah Borjas (Denver, Colo./Lakewood), Colorado State University Pueblo baseball fell 18-9 to Colorado School of Mines in its Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference series finale at Jim Darden Field.
 
With the setback, the ThunderWolves fall to 17-11 overall and 6-6 in the RMAC, while Mines improved to 14-12 overall and 7-5 in the RMAC. It marked the first series loss in league play this season for the Pack as they opened RMAC play with a 3-1 series win over UCCS, before splitting its four games last weekend at New Mexico Highlands.
 
Borjas had four of the Pack's 12 hits in Sunday's finale, but the Pack pitching staff struggled with its control as they walked eight and allowed a season-high 18 runs, including allowing nine runs in the third inning to put the game out of reach. The nine run third inning gave the Orediggers an 11-3 lead.
 
In addition to Borjas, junior second baseman Kade Snodgrass (Derby, Kan./Neosho County CC) and junior designated hitter Joseph Quintana (Golden, Colo./Erskine) each had two hits and combined for three runs scored. Borjas also added two runs and 3 RBI in the game.
 
Mines jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning thanks to RBI doubles by Jackson Woolwine and Luke Folsom off junior hurler Cameron Saso (McKinleyville, Calif./Folsom Lake), who started on the mound in Sunday's series finale.
 
The Pack, though, came right back in the top of the second inning as they took advantage to two Mines errors to score three unearned runs and take a 3-2 lead. The lone hit in the inning was a leadoff single by Borjas, who eventually scored the first run when Quintana reached on an error on his bunt attempt. Quintana and junior third baseman Kysen Howard (Overland Park, Kan./Blue Valley Northwest) scored the second and third runs when sophomore catcher Cody Macias (San Diego, Calif./Granite Hills) reached on an error.
 
Mines would retake the lead in the bottom of the third as the Orediggers sent 14 hitters to the plate and scored nine runs on seven hits and a Pack error to take an 11-3 lead. The first four runs came home on 2-run homers by both Mason Andrews and Folsom, while the other big hit in the inning was a 2-run single by I-Ly Hsue. The Orediggers also scored a run on a wild pitch by senior reliever Nick Perry (Denton, Texas/Richland JC), who was the third Pack pitcher of the inning.
 
The Pack got two of those runs back in the top of fourth inning thanks to an RBI single by Snodgrass and a bases loaded fielder's choice by sophomore centerfielder Jeremiah Sanchez (Pueblo, Colo./Pueblo West) to pull within 11-5.
 
Mines added four runs to its tally in the bottom of the fourth to take a 15-5 lead and tallied two more runs in the fifth inning thanks to a passed ball and a wild pitch to push out to a 17-5 lead.
 
The Pack would respond in the top of the sixth as they used four hits and an Oredigger error to drop Mines' lead to 17-9. Senior leftfielder Christian Castaneda (El Paso, Texas/Otero JC) got the scoring started on his RBI single to left. The RBI was Castaneda's team-leading 42nd of the season. Two batters later, Borjas drilled a 1-0 pitch from Matthew Dobberthien over the fence in right center for a 3-run homer. The homer was the eighth of the season for Borjas.
 
Mines added an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Woolwine to cap the scoring.
 
Junior pitcher Kade Douglas (Lakewood, Colo./Hill College), who was the second pitcher of the game for the Pack, took the loss (0-1) as he faced eight batters in the third and tossed 0.2 innings and allowed three hits and six runs (three earned), while walking two and striking out none.
 
Dobberthien (1-1), who was the third of four Mines pitcher, earned the win in relief as he tossed three innings and allowed six hits and four runs (no earned runs), while walking two and striking out one. Weston Siefken picked up the save as he pitched three scoreless innings and allowed two hits and struck out three.
 
Mines finished with 18 hits in the win as Canon Humphreys was 4-for-5 with four runs scored and 2 RBI. Hsue, Andrews and Woolwine each had three hits and combined for nine RBI and six runs scored. Folsom also had three RBI and scored three runs in the victory.
 
Mines committed three errors and the Pack had two errors in the loss, while the Pack stranded 10 runners on base and Mines left seven on base.
 
The Pack will look to rebound next weekend (March 28-30) as the Pack returns home to Rawlings Field for a four-game RMAC series against MSU Denver. The series begins with a single nine inning game on Thursday, March 28 at 3 p.m., before playing a doubleheader on Friday, March 29 beginning at 1 p.m. and then concluding the series with a single game on Saturday, March 30 at 12 p.m.