Cougar notes: WNCC baseball falls twice to Southeast

                The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team dropped a pair of games to Empire Conference North Division leader’s Southeast Community College on Sunday.

                The first game was a close battle as the two teams combined for 26 hits and Southeast held on for the 10-7 win.

                The second game saw WNCC strike first but the Cougars couldn’t hold the lead as the Storm came back to register the 14-8 win.

                The first game was a battle as Southeast struck first with a single run in the first. The Storm added four in the third for a 5-0 lead.

                WNCC answered with a single run in the third and four in the fourth to tie the game at 5-5.

                The third saw Jack Jones lead off with a double. Joey Olson followed with a single. Jones scored on a Michael Felton sacrifice fly.

                The fourth inning was when the Cougars unloaded with four runs all with two outs. Matt Womack led things off by reaching on an error. Jayden Orozco followed with a single and Sergio Tarango walked to load the bases. Womack scored the first run on a wild pitch. Jones than walked to load the bases again which came Olson the opportunity to score three runs with a double to tie the game at 5-5.

                Southeast came back to score three in the fifth, but WNCC answered in the bottom of the frame with two runs. Luiz Alcantara led off with a single and Jordan Rollins delivered a 2-run home run to cut the Southeast lead to 8-7.

                Southeast added two in the sixth to lead 10-7. WNCC had a chance in the seventh as Felton and Alcantara led off the inning with singles, but that was it as Southeast turned a double play to end the game.

                WNCC managed 10 hits in the contest. The first four batters all had two hits each. Olson had a double with three RBIs, while Felton had two singles and a RBI. Alcantara had two singles and a run scored, while Rollins had a home run and two RBIs.

                The second game was a different type of contest. WNCC was outhit in the contest 15-4, but the two squads combined for 22 runs.

                WNCC started things with three runs in the first inning as Caleb Coats walked followed by Michael Felton getting a single. WNCC loaded the bases when Alcantara walked. Jordan Rollins than doubled in two runs followed by Alcantara scoring on a wild pitch for the 3-0 lead.

                After scoring three runs in the first inning, the Cougars were shutout for five straight innings, including not getting a hit in those five innings.

                Southeast, in the meantime, scored three times in the third to tie the game and then added six in the fourth and one in the sixth for a 10-3 lead. Southeast added another run in the seventh to lead 11-3.

                WNCC finally broke out of the scoreless streak with three runs in the bottom of the frame. Riley Schanaman started the inning with a walk followed by Felton getting aboard by being plunked with a pitch. Alcantara then delivered a 3-run home run to make the score 11-6.

                Southeast came back to add four runs in the ninth on a 3-run Nick D’Antuono bomb.

                WNCC tried a seventh inning comeback as WNCC loaded the bases on three free bases with two walks (Coats and Felton) and a hit by pitch (Alcantara). Coats scored on a Rollins ground out and then Felton scored on a passed ball.

                WNCC had just four hits in the contest. Alcantara led the way with two hits with a home run and three RBIs.

                WNCC will be back in action Tuesday when they travel to Sterling, Colorado, for a meeting with Northeastern Junior College in an important Empire Conference North Division showdown.

Game 1

Southeast           104 032 0 – 10 15 1

WNCC                   001 420 0 – 7 11 3

WP – Alex Wize; LP – Harold Baez; S – Tyler Mattingley.

2B – WNCC (Jack Jones, Joey Olson); SE (Matt Goetzmann)

HR – WNCC (Jordan Rollins); SE (Matt Keating).

Game 2

Southeast           003 601 104 – 14 16 0

WNCC                   300 000 302 – 8 4 6

WP – Cooper Prososki, LP – William Potter.

2B – WNCC (Jordan Rollins); SE – AJ Garcia, Matt Keating.

HR – WNCC (Luis Alcantara); SE Nolan Brown, Nick D’Antuono, Zach Johnson.

WNCC softball drops a pair to McCook

The Western Nebraska Community College softball team played tough, but the Cougars just couldn’t pull out a win on Sunday, falling twice in Region IX conference games to McCook Community College.

                The first game saw WNCC give up eight early runs as McCook went on to earn the 10-2 win in five innings.

                The second contest saw WNCC lead early 3-1 and later tied at 7-7 entering the seventh. But, the Indians added six runs in the seventh to earn the 13-7 win.

                The first game saw McCook score three times in first all on a 3-run Taryn Jenkins home run. The Indians added a single run in the second to lead 4-0.

                WNCC cut the deficit in half with two in the second. Lexi Butterfield started things with a double followed by Chloe Cronquist getting a single. Both scored on an Erin Hanafin single.

                That was it for the scoring for the Cougars while McCook scored four in the third and two in the fifth.

                WNCC had five hits in the contest. Butterfield had two of the hits with a double. Cronquist, Hanafin, and Mackenzie Bakel each had the other hits. Hanafin had two RBIs in the game.

                The second contest was the game of the day. McCook struck first with a run in the first, but WNCC answered with three in the second to grab a 3-1 lead. The second inning started when Bailey Blanchard walked and Briana Henson singled. That set up Emma Schweitzer, who took the first pitch and sent the 2-out ball over the centerfield fence for a 3-run home run.

                The lead didn’t last long as McCook added five runs in the third on four singles to hold a 6-3 lead. That McCook lead stayed that way until the fifth when WNCC tied the game at 6-6. Schweitzer led off with a walk followed by Bakel getting a single. Then, with two outs, Bella Coffman took the first pitch and sent a line drive over the left field fence that hit the second outfield fence on the fly for the tie.

                Each team scored once in the sixth. WNCC’s run came as Blanchard walked and Henson singled. With two outs, Bakel singled in Blanchard, but Henson was stranded at third.

                McCook won the game with six runs in the seventh inning on five hits. The big hit was a grand slam by Taylor Thein.

                WNCC finished the game with eight hits. Bakel and Henson each had two hits with a run scored. Bakel also had an RBI. Coffman and Schweitzer each had three RBIs in the contest.

                WNCC will be home Friday and Saturday to wrap up the regular season when they host Lamar Community College. Friday’s contest is slated for 1 p.m. while Saturday’s action begins at 11 a.m.

Game 1

McCook                314 02 – 10 14 0

WNCC                   020 00 – 2 5 2

WP – Anna Wilcox; LP – Lexi Butterfield.

2B – WNCC (Lexi Butterfield); McCook (Taryn Jenkins, Ashland Baca).

HR – McCook (Alexis Cortez, Taryn Jenkins, Ashland Baca).

Game 2

McCook               105 001 6 – 13 14 0

WNCC                   030 031 0 – 7 8 1

WP – Amy Wilcox; LP – Chayden Chong.

2B – McCook (Emily Arp).

HR – WNCC (Bella Coffman, Emma Schweitzer); McCook (Taylor Thein).