GREELEY, Colo. – Northern Colorado won both ends of the doubleheader 9-5 and 11-8 against Santa Clara softball on Sunday to snap their 11 game losing streak as well as the Broncos five game win streak.  The two teams split the series two games apiece after SCU swept the doubleheader a day earlier.     

Game 1: Northern Colorado 9 - Santa Clara 5

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Krista Francia, Nya Chacon and Kenzie Carter combined to drive in seven runs and Isabelle Dinapoli settled down in the circle after a rough start to lift Northern Colorado (8-21) to a 9-5 victory in the first game of the doubleheader.  
• Trailing 5-2 in the bottom of the third inning, Northern Colorado scored five runs, all unearned, to flip the game around.  In the inning, Broncos starter Cari Ferguson got two outs with a walk sandwiched in between to Amailee Morales.  Ferguson induced Francia to a grounder to but the spin on the ball handcuffed first baseman Lauren Bryson for a tough error that scored Morales to make it 5-3.  Three hits and a walk later, UNC had a 7-5 lead.  Chacon doubled home the tying run and Carter plated two more for the go-ahead runs.  
• Francia added a two-run home run in the fourth to give Dinapoli a four run cushion.  Chacon was 3-for-3 with three RBIs, Carter was 1-for-2 with two runs batted in and Francia scored three times. 
• Santa Clara (18-11) got all their runs in the first two innings.  In the opening frame, Taryn Clements' base knock gave the Broncos a 2-0 lead.  And in the second inning, Cairah Curran had an RBI single and Hope Alley hit a two-run homer to make it 5-2.  Dinapoli gave up just two hits the rest of the way in her 149 pitch complete game effort.  All five runs were charged to her on seven hits, four walks and she struck out eight to improve to 6-7 on the season.  
• Ferguson dropped to 3-7.  
• The top of the Bronco lineup did much of the heavy lifting with Cairah Curran going 4-for-4 from her lead off spot and Alley had two hits, scored a pair and drove in two runs from the three spot.  

Game 2: Northern Colorado 11- Santa Clara 8

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Northern Colorado (9-21) scored in all but one inning to beat Santa Clara (18-12) in the backend game of the doubleheader 11-8.  The game had a total of 25 hits and seven errors.  
• Just as they did in the first game, Santa Clara got off to a fast start putting up three runs in the opening frame.  Cairah Curran once again kick started the offense leading off with a double before coming around to score on Hazyl Gray's single.  On Gray's hit, the right fielder let the ball get past her that also allowed Hope Alley to score for the second run.  Gray then stole home in the front end of the delayed double steal with Robynn Balmediano.  
• Northern Colorado answered with a run in the bottom of the first and four runs in the second.  The four runs came on consecutive singles by Katie Walling, Amailee Morales, Krista Francia and Nya Chacon to take a 5-3 lead.  Each of the aforementioned players had two RBIs with Francia going 3-for-4.  
• A double by Robynn Baldmediano in the third pushed across two runs to knot the game at 5-all.  
• UNC responded once again with another four run inning in the third.  Walling and Francia each doubled to bring in three runs to take a 9-5 lead that they would not relinquish. 
• SCU chipped away with a run in the fourth and fifth to get within two runs but that's as close as the Broncos got.  Morales added a solo homer in the fifth for a Bears insurance run.  
• Hazyl Gray went 3-for-4 and scored three runs but she was the pitcher of record responsible for the runs given up in the third inning.  She suffered her first loss of the season and dropped to 7-1. 
• Anna Wilming threw five innings to move to 3-8 on the year.  

NEXT UP:

• Santa Clara hosts Fresno State for a doubleheader at the SCU Softball Stadium on Tuesday.       

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