The Chadron State College softball season continues on Saturday and Sunday with another Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference series, when Adams State University visits Chadron for doubleheaders on each day.
The ASU Grizzlies come to town with a 9-26 record, including a 4-20 mark in RMAC play. CSC is 6-30 but remains one game ahead of this weekend’s opponent in the RMAC standings, at 5-19.
Due to a number of factors, including COVID, this will be the first time CSC has hosted ASU since Senior Day of 2017.
The visitors bat .274 as a team, good for ninth in the league, however in streaks they have shown the ability to string together some offense. On consecutive weekends in March, they hit .305 on the road at Fort Lewis, .354 at Black Hills State, and .333 versus New Mexico Highlands at home. Last weekend they hit 14-for-27 in game three of their home series with Colorado School of Mines.
Junior utility pitcher Jade Garbiso does it all for the Grizzlies on offense. She leads the team in batting average (.381), runs scored (38), extra base hits (20), walks (15), and stolen bases (5). When she isn’t pitching on defense, she also plays shortstop where she has more assists than any of her teammates.
Sophomore second baseman Sydney Muniz also bats well, with a .356 average on the season. Third on the team is sophomore designated player Belinda Vargas, who bats .315 with a team-high 30 RBI.
Although the Grizzlies have the 10th-best team ERA and the 12th opponent batting average in the RMAC, they do maintain a deep bullpen. Eight different pitchers have had their numbers called this year, and five have gotten starting nods at some point.
Chief among the twirlers is Tayler Duncan, a sophomore who sports a team-best 4.58 ERA and .320 opponent batting average. Jade Garbiso and her sister, Jasmine, a sophomore, also contribute regularly, with junior Taylor Sandoval accounting for most of the remaining starts.
The Grizzlies have only one lone senior rostered. That is Andrea Cline, the team’s starting catcher.
The Eagles are urgently needing wins, after a four-game slide at MSU Denver last weekend. Fortunately, the schedule lightens up a bit moving forward. CSC’s next three opponents are a combined 33-61 in RMAC play. The season finale will be played at league co-leader Colorado Mesa (21-1).
The RMAC doubleheaders are at noon on Saturday and 11 a.m. on Sunday at CSC Softball Field.