Golden softball leads race for 4A Jeffco League title

LAKEWOOD — Golden softball is in the driver’s seat to win the Class 4A Jeffco League title for the second time in three years.

The Demons (11-5, 8-0 in league) remained undefeated in conference play Saturday, cruising to 17-3 road victory over Green Mountain. Golden has a 1-game lead over defending league champion D’Evelyn (13-4, 7-1) with six conference dates remaining.

Golden edged the Jaguars 10-9 in their first league meeting back on Sept. 25.

“We have talked about that,” Golden coach Steph Martinez said of the Demons facing D’Evelyn again in the league finale on Oct. 11. “We aren’t going to overlook anyone. The ball is in our court. We have to show up every game the same for every team.”

Golden had a bit of a rough patch going 1-4 at the Dave Sanders Memorial Tournament in early September, but the Demons have rattled off nine straight victories over the past three weeks.

“It’s long, but honestly, the farther we go into the grind of the season the better we play,” Golden senior Maddie Stubenrauch said. “We except that hard work. That has always been a core value of our program. You got to put in the hard work.”

Staying undefeated in 4A Jeffco looked like it might be a chore early on. Green Mountain junior pitcher Jenna Neuenschwander got a strikeout and groundout to start off the game, but the Demons’ bats quickly caught fire.

Golden cranked out four straight doubles with Stubenrauch getting the two-out rally started.

“We have kind of been good with two outs all year,” Martinez said of the Demons stringing together four straight doubles with two outs in the first inning. “Especially in that part of the order. They stepped up and set the tone for the game.”

Juniors Katie Welte, Adrianna Riddle and Luca Merz all had RBI doubles to give the Demons a 3-0 lead. Golden kept it going with a 5-run top of the second inning to extend the lead to 8-0.

“Our whole mindset was just keep hitting the ball,” Stubenrauch said after the Demons cranked out 17 hits. “Just chipping away and doing the little things right. Everyone did well. Everyone did their part. We won as a team.”

Merz accomplished a rare feat having an RBI in each of her four at-bats. She finished with five RBIs.

Riddle pitched the complete-game victory on the mound for the Demons. Sophomore Kara Johnson drove in the Rams first run in the second inning on a fielder’s choice. Junior Beverly Starr had a 2-run double in the third inning for Green Mountain (8-9, 4-4).

The Rams got things going in the fourth inning after a rare error at second base by Stubenrauch. A Green Mountain fan yelled ‘E4’ after Stubenrauch’s miscue. The future Division I softball player didn’t hesitate in responding back, ‘Scoreboard!’.

“She (Stubenrauch) brings a lot of emotion to every game. She is working hard for her team,” Martinez said. “She has a lot of passion. Sometimes we have to control it a little bit. She brings a lot of good energy.”

A strikeout and ground out ended the threat as Golden walked off the field with its fourth double-digit win during the current winning streak.

Stubenrauch has already made clear her college decision. She will head to the Ivy League after graduation next spring.

“I’m so happy right now,” Stubenrauch said of her verbal commitment to play softball at Brown University in Rhode Island. “It’s great because I can come out here and put all my effort into them (Golden teammates).”

While the Demons won the 4A Jeffco League title in 2022 and advanced to the 4A state tournament, last season Golden fell short of making the 16-team state tournament.

“She (Stuenrauch) has seen it all,” Martinez said about her four-year starter at second base. “She has a great group of juniors behind her that got a lot of playing time last year. Now they are ready to go. She trusts them around her.”