The Barton Community College softball team got back into the win column with a pair of victories Tuesday evening in Lindsborg defeating the junior varsity squad of Bethany College 12-1 in five innings before completing the sweep prevailing 10-3.
It took the Cougars a trio of innings to get rolling but once they did, Barton scored in five straight innings spanning the double dip with a hit parade of twenty-four total hits.
Snapping a two game slide improving to 24-11 on the year, the Cougars have little time to rest before heading south to Pratt Community College on Wednesday for a 2:00 p.m. conference doubleheader. With just six games left on the conference slate, Barton sits in third place of the Jayhawk East at 16-4 while Pratt rests in the fifth spot at 4-20 and 4-41 overall.
Tia Kohl improved to 11-4 on the year, striking out eight in the five inning opener, including two in the first inning as the Swedes strung two of their four hits together in plating a run on a fielding error.
The Cougars awoke in the fourth inning, putting eight on the board highlighted by Lia Chan's two-out bases clearing double. Hailey Pop collected both of her two hits in the inning, driving in the first run on an RBI single scoring Nasadiya Salazar's leadoff hit before capping the frame with a two-out double to again drive in Salazar along with Jade Phillips.
Phillips also delivered an RBI in the inning in following Alexis Sharples RBI single as the Cougars sent twelve to the plate in breaking the game open.
Brooke McCollough began the ensuing inning with her second hit of the game with Chan completing her four RBI game with a two-out RBI double. Sharples drove a triple to the fence to join the two-hit multiple RBI club before trotting home on Phillips' second long ball of the year after fighting off a 0-2 count before launching a 2-2 pitch over the right field fence.
In game two the Cougars score in five of the seven innings including the first three frames building a 7-0 lead.
Pop's second double of the evening provided the first of a pair of runs getting the Cougars off to the good start with Kaleigh Peak's first of two hits leading off the second moved around the bases beginning with a stolen base to eventually cross the plate on a passed ball.
Peak earned a bases loaded walk to push across the first of four runs in the third inning with Sharples following with a single to drive home another pair of plate crossers. An at-bat later, Sharples' stolen base resulted in an error allowing Peak to score pushing the margin to seven.
Barton had a chance to end the game in the fifth, doing the offensive part with two runs before Bethany matched it in the home half of the frame.
Consecutive two-out doubles by Sharples and Phillips took the count to eight with Salazar adding a run-rule insurance run on a liner up the middle.
A pair of one-out walks signaled a call to the bullpen ending Emma Horsch's time in the circle with Karsyn Smith getting the second out on a fielder's choice. A walk later and Bethany came up with the big hit they needed to play extra frames cutting the gap to 9-2.
A two-out error helped Bethany add another in the sixth but Barton answered the run in the top of the seventh getting consecutive singles by Maggie Schuetz and Peak before Sharples drove in her third run of the game on her third hit with a single up the middle.
Horsch scattered just two hits while striking out six in her 4.1 innings of circle work improving to 7-4 on the year.
Barton pounded out twelve hits in each of the twin bill contests with Sharples' three and Peak's two the lone multiple hit performances as each of the lineup had at one in the nightcap.