GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— The Colorado Mesa University softball team bounced back from a rare defeat to claim their 25^th win of the season and a weekend series victory by a 9-1 run-rule margin on Sunday afternoon over the visiting Regis University Rangers here at the CMU Softball Stadium.
 
The Rangers had defeated the Mavericks 6-5 in the first game of Sunday's Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference doubleheader snapping the Mavericks' 23-game overall winning streak.  The Mavs also saw the end of their 17-game home-field winning streak but roared back to win the second game of the twin-bill in six innings as they took the weekend series, three games to one. Two of their victories came via the run-rule.
 
The Mavericks are now 25-5 overall and 17-1 in RMAC play while the Rangers finish the weekend with a 21-14 overall and 15-5 RMAC record.

The Mavericks have now won 14 consecutive conference series over the last two seasons.

They are tied with Colorado Christian for first place in the RMAC standings heading into a 4-game set at New Mexico Highlands next weekend.  Colorado Christian will be at Regis next weekend.
 
Game 1
 
The Mavericks came from behind three times but could not do so a fourth as the Rangers claimed the 6-5 victory thanks to a 2-run sixth inning.  Carly Beard led off that inning with a game-tying home run before the Rangers scored an unearned run on the Mavericks' lone error of the day to go ahead, 6-5.
 
Ranger pitcher Kylie Harpman then retired six of the final seven Mavericks she faced to complete the victory.  Harpman (11-5) allowed just six hits and five runs in the complete game effort.
 
The Rangers had taken 2-0, 3-2 and 4-3 leads with runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings, but watched the Mavericks come back each time.  Ashley Bradford, who also had a home run in game two, gave the Mavericks their lone lead at 5-4 with a 2-run shot in the fifth before Beard answered right back in the top of the sixth hitting her home run on the first pitch of the inning.
 
The Rangers' Mia Moore then drew a 4-pitch walk and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt before moving to third on an infield single.  Moore then scored on the ensuing error by Bradford as they went on to the victory.
 
Earlier, Regis had gone ahead 2-0 on a 2-run double by Miia Campos before the Mavericks answered back with two runs of their own in the bottom of the third.  Lauren Wedman plated the first with an RBI double and then scored two plays later on a Myah Arrieta RBI single with two outs.
 
The Rangers then took a 3-2 lead in the fourth on an RBI ground that allowed Rachel Williams to score after having moved around the bases on an infield single, sacrifice bunt and passed ball.
 
However, the Mavs responded once again as Ally Distler hit her team-leading ninth home run of the season with one out in the bottom of the fourth to tie the game.
 
The Rangers then went ahead for a third time as Allisha Martinez hit an RBI single to score Victoria McMains, who had begun the fifth inning with an infield single.
 
However, the Mavs came back for the third time in the bottom half of the frame as Wedman hit a 1-out single before she and Bradford scored on the shortstop's blast over the left center field fence, which gave the Mavs their lone lead at 5-4.
 
Arrieta and Wedman both finished with two hits as Shea Mauser (7-2) took the loss as the third Maverick pitcher after having come on to face Beard at the start of the sixth.
 
Jessi Case and McMains had two hits a piece for the Rangers, who managed eight as a team, two more than the Mavericks
 
Game 2
 
The Mavericks seized control and never let up, winning the game in walk-off fashion with a 4-run sixth inning.
 
They took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second as Sarah Jorissen hit a lead-off homer to begin the frame before Bradford drove Nicole Chirstensen home with a sacrifice fly later in the inning.
 
Meanwhile, Maverick pitcher Paige Adair recorded five of her six strikeouts in the first two innings.  She did allow a lead-off double to Carly Gray to begin the third before Gray was erased on a nice outfield double play by Wedman, who gunned down Gray at the plate trying to score on a Case flyout to right.
 
The Mavericks then left a runner on base in the third but retired the Rangers in order in the fourth.
 
Then then increased the lead to 5-0 in the fourth as Wedman hit a 2-out RBI double to score Christensen, who had hit a 1-out single three players earlier.  Iliana Mendoza and Wedman then both scored on a Arrieta RBI single down the left field line prompting a Ranger pitching change.
 
Reliever Katherine Raper then got out of the jam before the Mavs made a change of their own bringing on Ellie Smith in place of Adair (7-1), who allowed just two hits and no walks in four innings to garner the win.
 
The Rangers then left two runners on in the top of the fifth before scoring their only run of the game in the sixth on a wild pitch.
 
Leading 5-1 going to the bottom of the sixth, the Mavericks then put the finishing touches on the victory as Bradford hit a 1-out home run before Arrieta doubled Wedman home to make the score 7-1.  Distler than drove Arrieta home with a single to make it 8-1.
 
Pinch-runner Ava Fugate then moved to second on a Brandi Haller walk before another pitching change that did not work out as Jorissen delivered her second RBI of the game with a single up the middle that allowed Fugate to round third and score.
 
The Mavericks finished the second game with 11 hits from eight different players.  Arrieta, who went 2-for-4 with three RBIs, Jorissen, who was 2-for-3, and Christensen, who was 2-for-3 with two runs scored, all had two hits.  The Mavericks also drew six walks against starter Abby Covington and Raper. 
 
Covington (3-3) took the loss after giving up six hits and five runs in 3 2/3 innings.