The Barton Community College softball team's march through the battle-back side of the Region VI Tournament bracket ended Sunday in the title game with a 10-0 five inning loss to No. 3 Butler Community College.
The Cougars end the season at 21-27 after going 4-2 over the weekend. Barton dropped the first tournament game on Friday before winning three on Saturday, advancing to the final three of the region. Returning to Dodge City's Legends Park Sunday for the 10:00 a.m. loser's bracket final, Barton ended Hutchinson Community College's season in five innings behind a 9-1 victory before returning to the field 25 minutes later for their sixth game of the double-elimination tournament.
Hutchinson Recap
Barton jumped on the Blue Dragons in the second inning, sending eleven to the plate in scoring seven runs.
Teegan Krol and Halie Stoneking singles opened the frame with Madison Faylor following drawing a walk to load the bases. Fighting off a 3-2 count pitch, Adreanna Lance ignited the Barton dugout with a two run producing single as the Cougars had five hits in the inning.
Following an out, Emma Morris restarted the big inning drawing a walk as Hutchinson went to the pen replacing Jordan Galliher with Sadie Loney. Kennedee Lara met the lefty with an RBI single and following the second out of the inning, Brooke McCollough provided the back-breaker with a line drive single to the left field fence clearing the bases. The Blue Dragons then committed their second error in as many innings allowing McCollough to cross the dish putting Barton up 7-0.
Kayla Beers was again masterful in the circle, sending Hutchinson down in order the first three innings, striking out the side in the first and adding another in the third.
Barton pushed the margin past the run-rule mark in the fourth as McCollough drove in her 5th RBI on a single pushing home Morris' hit by pitch and Makayla Chavez' reach on Hutchinson's fourth error.
Hutchinson got their lone run in the home half as a leadoff walk would cross the plate following a single and error.
Beers completed her fourth straight complete game in the circle surrendering just two hits in striking out five for the victory.
Butler Recap
Twenty-five minutes following their fourth victory in twenty-four hours, an eventful unlucky first inning for the Cougars set the tone in the championship game.
The Cougars went down quietly in the top of the inning and appeared to be stranding two Grizzlies on the paths before an early momentum turner went in Butler's favor.
With runners on the corners, Butler speedster Madi Young took off for home as Faylor returned the 1-1 pitch back to Beers. Returning fire back to Faylor, the tag was applied and Young appeared short of the plate but the safe call by the home plate umpire was ruled putting Butler out front.
Following the questioning of the call from Head Coach Tyler Gunelson to no avail, instead of the inning being over Beers lost the batter on an eventual 3-2 pitch with Mariah Wheeler following on a full-count 2-RBI double giving Butler a 3-0 lead.
Krol picked up the first of Barton's four hits in the contest in leading off the second but was doubled up on an infield line drive to end the inning.
A walk and hit batsman would end the workmanlike effort from Beers, ending her tournament with 27.2 innings pitched in three days.
Elizabeth Horsch took over the circle as Butler would add a pair of runs on a fielder's choice and Emily Adler's double. Horsch ended the inning on a strikeout following a walk in surrendering two Grizzlies on the base paths.
Coming off a career high 15 strikeouts in Butler's winner's bracket 3-2 semifinal win over Garden City, Maddie Redman was again masterful against Barton pitching the first five innings in striking out seven while scattering three hits. Kelcie Kippes finished off the remaining two frames with one hit and two strikeouts.
Both teams went down in order in the third with the ensuing fourth Barton stranding a McCollough two-out single and Butler stranding a double and single. The double in the frame came from Young in setting not only the Grizzly program single season two-bag record but etched her name at the top of the chart in single season hits as well.
Lance gave Barton its first runner in scoring position coming in the fifth, lacing a two-out double into the left center gap but was gunned out at third following a wild pitch.
Butler broke the game open in the home half, plating five runs on six hits before a 6-4-3 inning ending twin killing perfectly executed by Morris, Lara, and McCollough.
The Cougars picked up their final two hits in the sixth inning with Lara and Chavez singles.
Ashley Lucero became the third Barton pitcher of the contest, taking the circle in the Butler sixth to send the Grizzlies down in order on a pair of strikeouts and infield pop-up.
Faylor reach on error was the Cougars' final runner, coming with two outs of the final frame.