A number of streaks came to an end Friday night in El Dorado as the Barton Community College softball team took game one 7-2 over 13th ranked Butler Community College but had to settle for a doubleheader split as the Grizzlies came from behind to take the nightcap 15-11 in walk-off fashion.
The results keep the teams tied at the top of the loss column of the Jayhawk East standings with Barton having played four more games to sit in first at 7-1 and 11-8 on the year while the Grizzlies stand at 3-1 and 10-4 on the year.
Lining the Cougars' schedule this week are a trio of doubleheaders in kicking off a four-date home stand. Monday the junior varsity of Sterling College comes to Cougar Field for a 2:00 p.m. non-conference twin bill before a pair of conference dates with Pratt Community College on Wednesday and Dodge City Community College on Saturday. Barton wraps up the home stand a week from Wednesday against Independence Community College.
Game One Recap
The Cougars plated four runs in the second and three in the third to threaten run-ruling the hosts in the opener. The Grizzlies escaped a two-on one-out situation to get out of the fifth unscathed before getting a two-run home run to avoid the shutout.
The victory was the first in El Dorado since 2015 and snapped a fourteen game losing streak to the Grizzlies, sending Butler to its first home loss in twenty-five games. The loss also snapped the Grizzlies' impressive 77 conference game winning streak dating back to a 4-2 loss ironically to Barton at Cougar Field in 2016 and a 51 game unbeaten streak on Butler's home turf.
It wasn't a pretty way to grab a four run lead but the Cougars earned it with Betsy Parmley leading off the inning with Maggie Schuetz and Jayden Solberg drawing walks to load the bases. Alexis Sharples' badge of honor forced the first run in with Jaelyn Carter's fielder's choice plating the next as a Butler error would deliver two more across the dish.
Barton loaded the bases again in the third behind Parmley and Schuetz singles before a Jade Phillips walk. Sharples drove two home on a double to left center with a wild pitch plating the third run of the inning.
Getting all the run support she needed, Tia Kohl improved to 5-3 on the year in allowing just the two runs on six hits while striking out three, two coming in consecutive fashion to strand a second inning single.
Kohl also received good defensive play from her teammates with Solberg's missile from left field cutting down a runner at the plate in the fourth being the first defensive highlight with Kohl fielding her position with quick reflexes on liner up the middle to double up a runner at first with Brooke McCollough alertly covering the bag to end the fifth.
Game Two Recap
Butler took the early edge in what would be wild game two, plating a trio of runs in the first inning before tacking on a solo run in the third and four spot in the fifth to lead 8-3.
An infield error would eventually plate Carter in the third inning for Barton's first run but Anna Icenhower's leadoff home run answered in the home half. In a similar scenario the ensuing inning, Solberg's one-out single would score on an error and for the third straight inning Barton tacked on a solo run as Hailey Pop blasted her second home run of the season drawing the Cougars to within 4-3.
The Cougars and game two starter Emma Horsch were an out from stranding a leadoff walk in the home half of the fifth until the Grizzlies erupted for four runs. Beginning with a ground hugging ball escaping third baseman Sharples scoring the leadoff runner, another single followed by an infield error loaded a bases with a double clearing the paths increasing the score to 8-4. Butler would reload the bases on reliever Karsyn Smith with a single and walk but a ground out ended any further damage.
Barton countered in the top of the sixth getting a Solberg walk and Phillip double with Sharples driving in her third of the game in plating the pair. The Cougars went down on the next two at-bats before consecutive Pop and McCollough walks reignited the frame with Parmley delivering an RBI single with Schuetz and Solberg each driving in another pair of runs on singles putting Barton out front 10-8.
Butler cut the deficit to one with a one-out double scoring on a single and threatened again on loading up the bases but Smith induced a ground out to Pop at second protecting the lead of one.
Nasadiya Salazar set up a potential insurance run in the Cougars' final at-bat, fighting off a pair of 0-2 two-out pitches before lining a double to center. Pop then connected for her second hit and RBI of the game with a single through the right side giving Barton an 11-9 lead.
Walks plagued the Cougars throughout the doubleheader with a combined nineteen free passes, with the eleventh of game one leading off the Grizzlies last at-bat. A pair of hits loaded the Grizzly bases for the eighth time of the contest with Barton's fourth error of the game allowing one to cross cutting the margin to one. Barton got the first out on a force out at the plate but the twelfth Barton pitching walk pushed across the tying run. One pitch later the Grizzlies celebrated as Icenhower connected on her second long ball of the game, a no-doubt crushed grand slam to the left center night sky for the 15-11 victory.
The loss snapped Barton's seven game win streak while preventing the first conference home sweep defeat under Butler Head Coach Doug Chance.
Combining for fifteen hits in the opener, the teams lit up the opposing pitching staffs in game two for twenty-eight hits. Five Cougars had multi-hits in Barton's thirteen hits with four driving in two or more runs with Sharples' three RBIs leading the squad.
Smith took the loss pitching the final 1.2 innings dropping to 3-3 on the season.