After dropping a pair Thursday the Barton Community College baseball team, tallyed 28 runs Saturday afternoon at Lawson-Biggs Field earning a series split over Colby Community College with a doubleheader sweep 10-2 and 18-5.
The victories snap the Cougars' five game skid improving their overall record to 15-6 and conference mark to 3-5 while the Trojans fall to 7-12 on the year and drop to 4-4 in KJCCC play. Barton will return to action Thursday opening a four game set with Dodge City Community College, first pitch slated for 3:00 p.m. from Cavalier Field.
Game One – Barton 10, Colby 2
Facing a one-out bases loaded jam in the top of the first starter Zach Thornton limited the damage as the Trojans accounted for the game's first run on a Zach Olson sacrifice fly.. Managing just three hits in the opening two games at Colby on Thursday the Cougars matched that mark in the opening frame with three straight two-out knocks highlighted on Connor Allen's RBI double knotting things up at 1-1.
Following a Colby run in the top half of the second, Barton counted a carbon copy of the opening frame recording three straight two-out hits seizing the lead for good on Carson Pracht's two run double plating Peyton Sparks and Alex Rodgers. The margin stretched out to two at 4-2 as a wild pitch scored Pracht capping the three-run frame.
Breaking things open in the fourth; the Cougars mounted together a four spot on Pracht's third RBI of the contest followed up by a three-run Connor Scott moonshot extending the Barton advantage to 8-2.
Thornton kept the Trojans in check tossing his third straight scoreless in the fifth before giving way to Ian Lanik in the sixth as the duo combined to hold the Colby bats at bay allowing just two hits over the final five innings.
Barton finished the scoring with a run in the fifth off a Trojan error and one in the sixth on an Allen RBI groundout.
Scott led four Cougars offensively with a 3-for-4 day at the dish while Rodgers, Pracht and Micah Grover all tallied two hit outings.
Thornton improved his record to 3-0 on the year working 5.0 innings allowing two runs (two earned) on five hits striking out five and walking three. Lanik tossed 2.0 innings in relief allowing just one hit and striking out four while walking one.
Game Two – Barton 18, Colby 2
In the nightcap starter Hunter Hesseltine limited the harm in the opening frame holding Colby to two runs after the first four batters reached till a 4-6-3 double play and strikeout ended the Trojan threat. Barton answered back in the home half just like in game one with a two-out two RBI single by Allen plating Rodgers and Scott tying things up at 2-2.
Ensuing a groundout to open the bottom of the second the Cougar's broke through offensively with an eight run inning sparked on a Colter Maldonado solo shot, Grover RBI walk, Scott RBI single and Carson Shively two-run blast giving Barton a 10-2 lead.
Colby trimmed the Cougars margin to six, 10-4 following a pair of solo shot homers in the third and fourth by John Vulcano and Dylan Simmons.
An RBI single from Rodgers ensued by a Trojan wild pitch stretched the Barton advantage to eight at 12-4.
The Cougar advantage grew to double-digits in the fifth on Shively's second homerun of the game lacing a 2-run blast to left scoring Grover.
Adding fuel to the fire, Pracht drove in Sparks with an RBI single ensued by Scott's three-run inside the park homerun, his second homerun of the afternoon extending the Barton lead to 13-4.
Tucker Zdunich added a run for Colby in the top of the seventh blasting the Trojans third solo-shot of the game for the final margin of 18-5.
Rodgers and Shively led the Cougars offensively tallying three hits apiece while Pracht and Scott rounded out the multi-hit outings.
Making his first start as a Cougar, Hesseltine secured his first victory of the season throwing five innings allowing four runs (four earned) on six hits, punching out five and walking two. Carson Cornelius tossed two frames out of the pen allowing one run (one earned) on three hits, walking one and fanning five Trojans.