The Barton Community College baseball team opened its conference schedule on Wednesday hosting Butler Community College at Lawson-Biggs Field as the teams split the day's results with the Grizzlies winning game one 4-3 while the Cougars grabbed the nightcap 3-2.
Tied at two with two outs in the top of game one's seventh inning, the Cougars opened the door behind a two-out walk and hit batsman. Butler took advantage with an RBI single as a Cougar fielding error allowed a second run to cross for the eventual game winner. Barton countered in the home half with Robby Bolin's one-out triple scoring an out later on Ayden Hadley's single but fell a run shy of the comeback.
In the back end of the doubleheader Barton scored in three of the first four innings as Aidan Sowers and Colton Wahlstrom combined for 7 strikeouts and surrendered just five hits preserving the Cougars 3-2 salvage of the twin bill.
The game one setback snapped the Cougars' five-game win streak in moving to 12-5 on the season with Butler's record sitting at 9-7.
Moving the series finale from Saturday to Sunday due to weather, the teams resume the four-game set in El Dorado with a 1:00 p.m. doubleheader at McDonald Stadium.
Surrendering a pair of first inning runs, Week five KJCCC Pitcher of the Week Reece Hemmerling sent the Grizzlies down in order four straight innings keeping the Cougars in the game and tied at two into the top of the seventh. Opening the door with the hit batsman and walk, Hemmerling (2-1) would give way to Nathan Bowman on the hill as the Grizzlies produced just their fifth hit of the opener dealing the eventual game winning plate crossers.
On the flip side, the Cougars mustered just six hits, two each coming from Bolin and Jaron Cotton.
Barton put the first two batters aboard to begin the fourth frame, Owen Clyne drawing a leadoff walk with Hadley joining the bags after being hit by a pitch. Grant Nottlemann's groundout produced the first plate crosser with Hadley speeding home on Cotton's two base knock.
Bolin, whose two-out double was stranded along with Clyne and Hadley consecutive walks in the home half of the fifth, gave the Cougars life in their last at-bat connecting on his 6th triple of the season with one-out to score an out later on Hadley's two-out RBI for Barton's final run.
The Cougars again outhit the Grizzlies by the slim 6-5 total in the nightcap as the teams combined for fifteen strikeouts scattered amongst five pitchers.
Sowers improved to 3-0 following his 5.2 innings on the bump with five strikeouts as Walhstrom picked up his third save of the season working the final 3.1 frames in striking out two.
Bolin's lone hit of the nightcap to lead off the first would plate the Cougars first run coming on Cotton's fifth double of the season.
Cesar Gomez' single to begin the third inning would become Barton's second run as the Grizzlies misplayed Bolin's connection with another Butler error on Hank Orr's ground ball om the fourth allowing Owen Bailey's one-out single prior to score.
Butler produced their lone runs in the top of the 6th on a two-run home run plating a leadoff walk to end Sowers' afternoon with Wahlstrom keeping Butler off the board the rest of the way.