Section: Athletics
Roadrunners score honors, berths in post-season action
May 6, 2009

Metro State’s Roadrunners have been rockin’ this spring season, finishing up with numerous awards, championship runs and championships, including one national championship so far.

Softball
The No. 13-ranked Roadrunners hit it out of the park as the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) 2009 champs, which gives Metro State an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. As the second seed, Metro State will host Bracket 2; however, the games will be played at Regis University as the Auraria Field does not meet the NCAA fencing requirements. The Roadrunners will face seventh-seed Mesa State in the first round on Friday, May 8.

Jennifer Fisher was named RMAC Coach of the Year. In only their second year, Fisher's team won the RMAC Championship and heads to the NCAA tournament this Friday.

Head Coach Jen Fisher was named RMAC Coach of the Year after leading the Roadrunners to their first RMAC regular season championship in only the second year of the program. Kellie Nishikida, Tara Mickelson and Christie Robinson were named to the first team All-RMAC. Mickelson is also the first Metro State softball player to be named Louisville Slugger/ National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Division II Player of the Week.

Jessica Haab, Danni Hedstrom and Molly Clark were all named to the second RMAC All-Academic team and Jesse Minch was named to the RMAC honor roll.

In addition, the team tied an NCAA Division II record by hitting eight home runs against UC-Colorado Springs on Friday, April 10.

Track
Metro State's Danielle Kehoe took first place in the women's 10,000 meter run at the RMAC Championships in Alamosa, Colo., May 3-5.

On March 14, Anthony Luna became Metro State’s first-ever national champion in track, winning the 800-meter race at the NCAA Division II Indoor Track Championships in Houston, Texas. To read more, go to http://www.mscd.edu/~collcom/artman/publish/track_twv6031809.shtml.

Tennis
Metro State's men's and women's tennis teams have both received berths in the NCAA Tournament.

As the No. 1 seed in the Central Region, the men’s team will host the preliminary rounds at the Auraria courts. They will face the winner of Colorado State-Pueblo and Mesa State match on May 8 at 1 p.m.

The women's team is the sixth seed in the Central Region and will face Nebraska-Kearney on May 8 in Grand Junction, Colo.

No. 1 singles player Sascha Ruckelshausen was named RMAC Player of the Year and Head Coach Beck Meares earned coach of the year honors.

Baseball
Metro State is ranked eighth in the Central Region of the NCAA Division II and No. 10 by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). Students Matt McConnell and Tyree Abshire are ranked within the top 100 in the division.

Metro State Honors
Men’s basketball player Jesse Wagstaff and women’s tennis player Mitra Hirad have been named the Student-Athletes of the Year by Metro State’s Athletic Department. The two were honored on April 27 at the College's student awards banquet at St. Cajetan's.

Wagstaff became the ninth player in Metro State history to earn All-America honors. This season, he was named second team All-America by Division II Bulletin and third team All-America by Daktronics.

Wagstaff finished his career ranked fourth in school history in scoring (1,545 points), fourth in rebounds (750) and first in free throws made (407). He also ranks among the top 10 in steals, games played and field goals.

A civil engineering technology major with a 4.0 GPA, Wagstaff was named this season to the ESPN the Magazine/CoSIDA first team Academic All-America this season.

Hirad has played at No. 1 singles for Metro State her entire career, helping the Roadrunners improve their record each season.

This spring, she leads the team in doubles wins, teaming with freshman Yerica Pessoa at the No. 2 doubles spot for one of the best records in the RMAC. Hirad was named third team all-conference this spring as a singles player and second team All-RMAC as a doubles player.

Hirad has twice been named Academic All-RMAC and will earn those honors again this spring. She is majoring in sports industry operations and has a 3.57 GPA.