CMU Mavericks Walk Off With RMAC Tournament Championship

A solo home run by Alex Fife in the bottom of the 9th inning Sunday gave the Colorado Mesa Mavericks a walk-off 7-6 victory over Metro State and the RMAC tournament championship.

After losing to Metro State 4-2 on Friday, the Mavericks faced two elimination games on Saturday, but stayed alive with a 9-4 win over CSU Pueblo and an 8-4 win over Metro State. The win over Metro State forced a deciding game on Sunday, with the winner receiving an automatic bid in the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament.

In Sunday's championship game, the Mavericks overcame three errors in the field and rode the long ball to victory, facing Metro State for the third time in the tournament. RMAC Player of the Year Austin Wallingford hit his first home run since April 12, a three-run shot in the 3rd inning that gave the Mavs a 4-3 lead. The Mavs led 5-4 after 7 innings, but Metro scored two runs in the 8th to tie the score at 6.  That set the stage for Alex Fife's 9th inning heroics, his second round-tripper of the tournament.

The Mavericks used four pitchers to limit the Roadrunners to just 6 hits. RMAC Freshman of the Year, Bligh Madris, pitched two scoreless innings in just his third pitching appearance of the year, and scored the win. Madris was named the tournament's most valuable player finishing with 8 hits and 5 RBI's, hitting safely in all five games.

The Mavericks won the RMAC tournament for the second consecutive season, and advance to the South Central Regional Tournament as the #1 seed. The Mavs will open the regional on Thursday against #6 seed St. Mary's at Suplizio Field. Meanwhile #2 seed St. Edwards will play #5 West Texas A & M. and #3 Angelo State will play #4 CSU Pueblo.

You can hear all of the CMU Mavericks games in the regional tournament on ESPN Radio 1230.