MCC Softball splits games with ranked opponents
The McCook Community College softball team split a pair of games Saturday against two Division 2 teams ranked in the top 20. MCC topped Kirkwood Community College 10-9 and lost to North Iowa Area Community College 17-7.
In Game 1 at Kansas City, Kan., MCC scored four runs in the sixth inning with two outs to top Kirkwood 10-9. The team from Cedar Rapids, Iowa was ranked ninth in the NJCAA Division 2 rankings.
“This was game a complete team effort. Kirkwood was easily the best team we have played this year,” said MCC Coach Mike Mendenhall. “We had really good approaches at the plate and battled until the end.”
Freshman Payton Kinsley (Didsbury, Alberta) put the Lady Indians in front 10-9 with a bases-loaded, two-out single driving in two runners in the sixth inning.
In Overland Park, Kan. for Game 2, North Iowa Area Community College broke up a 6-6 tie in the sixth inning with five runs and added seven more in the seventh.
“This game was completely different. It was competitive for five innings, but we ran out of gas,” said Mendenall. “It was a long day being at the field at 8 a.m. and traveling to a different location for the second game, but that is no excuse for the loss.”
MCC goes to 12-4 on the season and continues the road trip Sunday in Beatrice taking on Southeast Community College in a doubleheader starting at 1 p.m.
“This is a challenging weekend for us, and we need to continue getting better,” said Mendenhall.
On Wednesday, the Lady Indians will be home for the first time this season hosting the Lumberjacks of Dakota College at Bottineau (1-7). First pitch at the Jaycees Sports Complex is at noon.
Region IX play begins Friday in Sterling, Colo. with a pair of games against the Plainswomen. Those two teams will play in McCook March 22 starting at 1 p.m.
Up-to-date information about MCC softball including livestream links, schedule, statistics, rosters, photos and more can be found on the MCC Athletics website, www.mccindians.com
GAME 1 – McCook 10, Kirkwood CC 9: MCC was designated the home team and scored single runs in the bottom of the first and second innings. Kirkwood CC scored a pair of unearned runs in the third to tie the game 2-2.
Paige Warren (Victoria, British Columbia) and Laila Gutierrez (Seminole, Texas) hit back-to-back triples leading off the third to put MCC up 4-2.
Six straight Eagles reached base in the fourth inning leading to six runs scored on a three-run home run, a hit batter, two singles, an error, a wild pitch, a stolen base and a dropped third strike as Kirkwood took an 8-4 lead. Warren went three innings, allowing four earned runs on five hits, two walks and six strikeouts before she was relieved by freshman Kaliyah St. Amand (Duncan, British Columbia) in the middle of the fourth inning.
The Lady Indians got two runs back in the fourth on freshman Cassidy Fenske’s (Gibbons, Alberta) leadoff double, a two-out RBI-single by freshman Haley Emmerson (Sterling, Colo.) and a two-out RBI-single by Gutierrez to make it an 8-6 game.
Kirkwood got a solo homer in the fifth and went up 9-6.
Emmerson hit an RBI-single in the bottom of the inning with two outs to start the game-winning rally. Warren followed with an RBI-single and Payton Kinsley put the Lady Indians in front 10-9 with a bases-loaded single driving in two runners.
“We were down pretty much the entire game but kept chipping away,” said Mendenhall. “It showed the team what kind of team that we can be.”
St. Amand walked the leadoff hitter in the seventh and reliever Sadie Kahl (Calgary, Alberta) hit the first batter she faced but picked up the save by retiring the final three hitters of the game. Amand pitched two innings, allowing two earned runs on two walks, three hits and four strikeouts. Kahl hit a batter and struck out a batter in her inning of work.
MCC outhit Kirkwood 14-8 with Warren leading the way with four hits. Gutierrez, Fenske, Emmerson and Ayana Goodwin (Broomfield, Colo.) all had two-hit games.
Kirkwood goes to 14-5 on the season.
GAME 2 – North Iowa Area CC 17, McCook 7: The Lady Indians took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first with a leadoff double by Paige Warren, an RBI single by Payton Kinsley who later scored.
NIACC scored three times in the second inning, but MCC scored four runs in the third to take a 6-3 lead with RBI hits from Sadie Kahl, Cassidy Fenske and
Ayana Goodwin.
The Trojans scored three in the fourth to tie the game 6-6 and the game remained tied until North Iowa scored five times in the sixth inning and put the game away with seven runs in the seventh inning.
MCC’s final run in the seventh came on a solo home run by Laila Gutierrez.
NIACC outhit MCC 16-8 which included four home runs. Gutierrez, Kahl and Goodwin all had two-hit games.
Four pitchers split duties in the game with Kahl pitching four innings, Warren 1.2 innings, St. Amand 0.1 and freshman Olivia Pollon (Tisdale, Saskatchewan) pitched one inning. MCC committed four errors in the game.
Trojans go to 6-8 on the season.