Indians take doubleheader from Coyotes
SALINA, Kan. – The McCook Community College baseball team swept a pair of games Friday over the Kansas Wesleyan JV team winning 15-12 and 12-2.
“Kind of tale of two games again,” said MCC Coach Jon Olsen. “We didn’t play great game one, they gave us a lot of opportunity with free passes, but we just couldn’t get the big hit all game with runners on.”
The Indians held on for a 15-12 win in a sloppy Game 1 as the two teams combined for 22 walks, eight hit batters, and six errors in the game.
“We finally had a big seventh inning and needed it because we had trouble closing it out again,” said Olsen.
MCC sent 13 hitters to the plate in the first inning of Game 2 and scored 10 runs while freshman Aviv Bobrov (Shekhanya, Israel) pitched a complete-game win in five innings.
“We obviously had a huge top of the first and then Aviv put it on cruise control and threw a great game, he was pretty good today,” said Olsen.
With the sweep, MCC improves to 7-10.
The Indians hit the road again Tuesday for a game at Dodge City (2 p.m.) then continue on to Oklahoma where they will play the Northwestern Oklahoma State JV team for a pair of games in Alva. Okla. Wednesday and on to Oklahoma City Thursday for a single game against Southwestern Christian JV.
MCC’s next home games will be March 27 at 1 p.m. against Western Nebraska.
“Hopefully we can carry this momentum into the next two weeks because two weeks from today we will be playing region games,” said Olsen.
For all the latest information about MCC baseball including schedule and schedule changes, livestream links, statistics, rosters, photos and more please visit the MCC Athletics website, www.mccindians.com
GAME 1 – McCook 15, Kansas Wesleyan JV 12: The Indians took advantage of four first-inning walks, a hit batter and an error on a pickoff attempt to score two first-inning runs. The Coyotes responded with a run in the bottom of the inning with a walk and two singles off MCC starting pitcher Cory Wouters (sophomore Saskatoon, Saskatchewan).
Wouters put MCC up 3-1 in the second with an RBI-double. Freshman Dalton Berg (Frederick, Colo.) had an RBI-ground out and sophomore Owen Glover (Elderslie, New South Wales) drove home Wouters with a single to give the Indians a 5-1 lead.
Kansas Wesleyan scored a run in the third on a leadoff walk and an RBI double and sent eight batters to the plate in the fourth but after allowing a leadoff double and a walk and a single, Wouters struck out two straight hitters with the bases loaded then walked in two runs but was able to wiggle out of the inning with a 5-4 lead.
MCC took advantage of three hit batters and a walk in the fifth and had the bases loaded with one out but managed just one run when sophomore Maddox Shaver (Belleville, Ontario) was hit by a pitch to bring in a run and give MCC a 6-4 lead.
KWJV immediately got that run back in the bottom of the inning with a leadoff home run and put two more runners on with a walk and a hit, but Wouters struck out the final two hitters he faced to get out of the inning. Wouters gave up seven hits and walked six in his five innings. He was charged with five earned runs and struck out nine.
Once again in the sixth MCC took advantage of three walks and a hit batter to take a 7-5 lead and with one out, freshman Landon McKillip (Lamoni, Iowa) doubled in two runs, a two-base error led to two more MCC runs, and a balk gave MCC a 12-5 lead.
Freshman Elvis Conte (Fort Collins, Colo.) came on in relief in the bottom of the sixth and retired the first two batters he faced then gave up a single, hit two batters and allowed a two-run single to make it a 12-7 game.
Glover belted a solo home run to lead off the seventh and the Indians added another on an RBI-single from Tyler Reyburn (freshman, Frederick, Colo.) and the final on a Coyote error to put MCC up 15-7.
The Indians defense loosened with two errors to start the seventh and Wesleyan scored five runs on two singles and four walks. Conte departed the mound after the first five Coyotes reached in the seventh. He gave up four earned runs in his inning of work, on three hits, two walks and a strikeout. Freshman Landen Zehr (Kitchener, Ontario) walked the first two hitters he faced in relief of Conte then picked up the save retiring three of the final four batters. He walked two, allowed a hit an struck out two in his inning of work.
“We have got to get better closing games out,” said Olsen. “It seems like we’re pretty tight when it gets to that spot, but Landon Zehr came in and did a real nice job to get us out of it.”
MCC had seven hits in the game and reached base 12 times on walks six more on hit batters. Glover and Shaver each had two hits. Freshman Joshua Joseph (Poplar Grove, Ill.) was hit three times, walked once and had two RBIs.
MCC pitchers walked 10 hitters and hit two more.
GAME 2 – McCook 12, Kansas Wesleyan JV 2 (5 innings): The Indians took a 7-0 first-inning lead on five walks, two hit batters, two wild pitches, a Coyote error, a sacrifice fly and the only hit coming from the No. 2 hitter, Connor Charvat (Elkhorn South) who doubled – until later in the inning when Cory Wouters delivered the second hit of the inning, a three-run home run to give MCC a 10-0 lead.
MCC added a run in the second and another in the fourth before KWJV scored twice in the bottom of the inning.
Aviv Bobrov (Shekhanya, Israel) picked up the complete-game win on the mound, giving up four hits, and three walks in five innings. He struck out nine.
The Indians outhit Wesleyan 6-4 with Charvat and Wouters having the only extra-base hits.