Month: April 2021

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC sports information

Kansas City Kansas Community College’s baseball team got back above the .500 mark with a much-needed sweep of Highland Community College Thursday.

The Blue Devils needed just five innings for an opening 13-3 win, then had to go nine innings for a 6-3 victory in the nightcap. The wins stretched KCKCC’s winning streak to four following 14-7 and 18-0 wins over Rockhurst junior varsity Tuesday, a sweep that snapped a six-game losing skid.

KCKCC wraps up its four-game series Saturday at Highland after Thursday’s wins kept the Blue Devils in the thick of the fight for a first division finish in the Jayhawk East Conference race. At 7-7, the Blue Devils are locked into a battle with Allen County (7-5), Coffeyville (8-8) and Fort Scott (8-10) for third place. Johnson County (17-1) and Cowley College (15-3), teams the Blue Devils were 1-3 against, lead the conference.

Sophomore Palmer Hutchinson swung the big bat in the 13-3 win over Highland, driving in seven runs with a grand slam home run, a two-run home run and a sacrifice fly.

Hutchinson’s 4-run blast in the second gave KCKCC a 9-3 lead and his 2-run bomb to left-center came in a 4-run fourth that also included singles by Caleb Adams, Brendyn Bard, Jaylon Johnson and Camden Karlin.

Raymond Paniagua gave KCKCC a 3-2 lead in the first with a 2-run double. The Blue Devils scored five times in the inning that also included singles by Johnson and Beau Grable and Hutchinson’s sacrifice fly,

Sophomore Park Weddle (3-3) got the pitching win, giving up five hits, walking four and striking out two. After giving up two runs in the first, Weddle returned 12 of the next 13 Scottie hitters and struck out four in a row in one stretch.

The Blue Devils backed Lansing lefthander Logan Barnard with three innings of scoreless relief in the 6-3 nightcap. Barnard (2-1) worked six innings, allowing three runs on five hits and striking out four before Chase Terrell pitched one inning of relief and Eli Tormes two, each giving up one hit.

Ray Paniagua led a 9-hit attack, driving in two runs with a triple and double, Cole Dawson and Brendyn Bard added a pair of singles. Paniagua tripled in KCKCC’s first run in the first and drove in the fifth run with a sacrifice fly in the third. The Blue Devils scored three runs in the second on a single by Caleb Troutt, two walks and Dawson’s 2-run single.

The Blue Devils pounded out 31 hits in 14-7 and 18-0 wins at Rockhurst. Tre Simmons (3-1) allowed five hits and two runs before Britt Owens finished up in the opener. Gabriel Ramos (1-2) allowed just two hits in six innings in the nightcap. Terrell and Tormes each pitched one inning of hitless relief; Hunter Cashero gave up Rockhurst’s third hit in the ninth.

Caleb Adams had three hits; Sole Silbowski and Bard two each and Beau Grable tripled in the first game. Five Blue Devils had a least two hits in the second game led by Paniagua, who drove in four runs with a double and single, and Adams, who doubled and singled and drove in three. Caleb Brown, Ethan Beagle and Dawson each added two hits and Hardy Bergman doubled to lead a 19-hit attack.

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC sports information

For the second time in three seasons, Kansas City Kansas Community College has won more than 30 games.

Improving to 31-7 with wins in 15 of their last 16 games, the Blue Devils of coach Lana Ross stretched their current winning streak to seven in a row with 9-5 and 8-1 wins at Fort Scott Thursday after sweeping Allen County 7-1 and 13-4 on Tuesday.

The wins set up a huge home doubleheader between two nationally ranked teams Saturday. No. 11 ranked Labette (13-1) leads the Jayhawk Conference Division A; No. 12 KCKCC (12-4) is second. The games are at 1 and 3 p.m. The Cardinals (13-1) swept the Blue Devils 10-2 and 5-2 earlier in the season. KCKCC and Johnson County (10-4) are Labette’s only challengers.

Sophomore Bradi Basler (15-3) of Lansing and freshman Breanna Droge (11-4) each got two pitching wins in the four games. Basler gave up five hits and one run, walking one and striking out six in KCKCC’s 8-1 at Fort Scott.

Against Allen County, Basler had a shutout through four innings before giving up five runs in the fifth inning in the 13-5 win. She allowed seven hits, striking out seven and walking one.

Droge had a shutout until the seventh inning in the 7-1 win over Allen County. She allowed five hits, two walks and fanned six. She was backed by two hits each by Savannah Maynard and Jenna Daugherty.

Droge also blanked Fort Scott for three innings before giving up five runs on five hits, walking two and striking out eight. Samantha Reynolds and Nerida Elson worked in relief before Basler finished up.

Alexis Rymer homered, doubled and singled and drove in three runs and Alaina Howe drove in five with a pair of hits and stole two bases in the 13-5 nightcap win. Basler also homered and singled and Madison Pope doubled and singled.

KCKCC jumped out to a 3-0 lead but needed four runs in the fifth to cement the 9-5 first game win at Fort Scott. Jenna Daugherty had three singles and two stolen bases while Lindsey Gettle and Basler each had a double and single and run batted in.

The Blue Devils trailed 1-0 before scoring three times in the fifth in the 8-1 win at Fort Scott. Basler belted her sixth home run of the season, singled and drove in three runs; Gettle singled three times, Devin Purcell doubled and singled; and Pope singled twice.

Six games are on tap for the Blue Devils next week starting Tuesday at Crowder, the No. 19 ranked team in Division I. They go to Cloud County in Concordia Thursday and then return home Saturday to entertain Neosho at 1 and 3 p.m.