The Jayhawk West champion Barton Community College baseball team concluded the regular season with a road doubleheader split against Colby Community College Saturday afternoon at Memorial Field falling in the opener 7-3 before taking the series finale 7-6 in the nightcap.
Not dropping a conference series all year long and claiming seven of the eighth conference series, the Cougars captured the Jayhawk West by three games with a record of 24-8 and sit 39-19 overall heading into the postseason. The Trojans conclude regular season play with the second-best mark in the KJCCC West at 21-11 and 35-19 on the year.
Sitting as the top seed from the Jayhawk West, Barton will host a best-of-three series in the first round of the Region VI playoffs against the eighth-place finisher from the KJCCC East in Labette Community College. Action begins Wednesday and runs through Friday, if necessary with each nine-inning contest set for 1:00 p.m. from Lawson-Biggs Field.
Game 1 Recap
It was a rocky start for the Cougar pitching staff surrendering five of their seven issued walks in the opening three frames helping the Trojans jump out to a 6-0 lead.
The Cougars would break through on the scoreboard in the fifth as a two-out rally began on an Alex Rodgers double and Ricardo Sanchez walk would lead to an RBI Henry Hayman double cutting the deficit to 6-1.
Colby answered the run in the bottom of the sixth to extend the lead back to six when a leadoff walk and single setup an RBI sacrifice fly.
Down to their final three outs, Barton pushed closer adding a pair in the top of the seventh as one of three Trojan errors in the contest allowed a Riley Silva leadoff walk and Joel Nieves single to cross with Hayman reaching first on his pop-up misplayed in left resting the final score at 7-3.
Suffering his first loss of the season, Owen Reynolds fell to 6-1 on the season working one-inning allowing three runs on three hits and walking four.
Jordan Ellison was solid out of the bullpen tossing two scoreless innings issuing just one hit and walk.
Offensively Nieves carried the Cougar bats producing a 2-for-3 day from the plate and scoring a run.
Game 2 Recap
Barton took an early 1-0 lead on Sanchez' ninth blast of the season.
A pair of two-out hits in the bottom of the third supplied Colby their lone lead of the day as an AJ Courtese single drove in a leadoff Cleary Simpson single with Johnny Vulcano's double succeeding bringing in Courtese from first.
Battling back in the top of the fourth, a leadoff Shawn Marquis single and Jackson Hartley one-out single had the Cougar offense back in business, with Silva delivering the key hit lacing his first collegiate triple furnishing Barton the lead back.
Adding to the lead Barton manufactured a run in the fifth and sixth. In the fifth Caden Bressler drove in a one-out Sanchez single with a Trojan error in the sixth allowing Ethan Haufler to reach bringing around Silva's leadoff single.
Holding a three-run lead with three frames to play, the Trojans answered back utilizing the long ball as a Blake Harsulla solo-shot in the sixth and Jake Ticer two-run shot in the bottom of the seventh knotted it back even at 5-5.
Tied up for the first time since the third, the Cougar bats answered the call in the eighth. A leadoff Haufler single would be wiped away with Rodgers reaching on a fielder's choice. Advancing to second following an errant pickoff attempt throw at first, Rodgers would extend his single season steals record to 55 swiping third before scoring the eventual game winning run-on Sanchez 86th RBI of the season singling to center.
Generating the final two outs of the seventh, Kade Walker remained on for the home eighth sending the Colby bats down in order giving way to closer Carson Cornelius for the ninth.
Unable to get the final three outs in the series opener on Friday, Cornelius was nails locking down his fifth save of the year recording a pair of strikeouts in his perfect outing.
Notching his first collegiate victory, Walker was outstanding in his 1.2-innings allowing just one hit and recording a pair of punchouts.
Starter Tegan Cain fell one strikeout off his career high eighth working four-innings allowing two runs on five hits and walking a pair in the no-decision effort
Four different Cougars recorded multi-hit performances with Sanchez leading the charge turning in a 3-for-3 day driving in a pair, scoring twice and drawing a pair of walks.
Marquis, Silva, and Haufler each produced a pair of knocks.