Category: KCKCC

KCKCC baseball back above .500 with sweep of Rockhurst junior varsity

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC sports information

Kansas City Kansas Community College climbed back over the .500 mark with a sweep of Rockhurst junior varsity Tuesday.

The Blue Devils rallied in the sixth inning for a 5-2 win in the opener and completed the sweep with a 14-4 breeze in the second game.

The win lifted KCKCC’s record to 4-3 heading into a road game against Benedictine junior varsity in Atchison Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. and home contests Saturday with Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) at 2 p.m.

Trailing 2-1 in the fifth inning of the opener, the Blue Devils exploded for four runs on five hits for the 5-2 win.

Samuel Juarez ignited the winning rally with a one-out triple and scored on Cole Dawson’s game-tying single.

Brendyn Bard doubled to put the Blue Devils in front and Caleb Adams and Raymond Paniagua closed out the 4-run uprising with run-scoring singles.

Palmer Hutchinson provided the Blue Devils’ first run with a solo home run in the fourth, his fourth of the season.

Tyler Kapraun got the pitching win, giving up two runs on five hits in five innings. He struck out five. Sebastian Velez finished up, allowing one hit and striking out four in two innings.

The Blue Devils scored in every inning in the 6-inning 14-4 nightcap.

Five of KCKCC’s 11 hits were for extra bases led by Dawson, who drove in four runs with a 3-run home run and a triple.

Paniagua also tripled and Bard and Darius Freeman both doubled. Hutchinson chipped in with a pair of singles and Ivan Ortiz singled in two runs in the sixth.

Three KCKCC pitchers combined on a 5-hitter.

Tre Simmons pitched the first 3.1 innings, allowing four runs on four hits, walking three and striking out four.

Chase Terrell struck out two in 1.2 hitless innings and Hunter Cashero allowed one hit and fanned two in the sixth inning.

Frigid shooting foils Lady Blue Devils at No. 3 Johnson County

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC sports information

Kansas City Kansas Community College’s No. 4 ranked women picked the worst possible time for their worst shooting performance of the season.

Facing No. 3 ranked Johnson County on Saturday, the Blue Devils were 17-of-58 for a season worst 29.3 percent – and only because they scored eight of their 17 field goals in the fourth quarter. For the first three quarters, the Blue Devils were just 9-of-42 for 21.4 percent in a 65-53 loss.

The loss was the first for the Blue Devils in 10 starts while the Cavaliers improved to 10-0. After the Jayhawk Conference opener, KCKCC will be right back in action at Southeast Nebraska Tuesday at 6 p.m. and then will play host to Hesston Wednesday and Highland Saturday afternoon.

Long scoring droughts sabotaged the Blue Devils, more than 15 of scoreless playing time, KCKCC took a 5-0 lead but went scoreless the next 3½ minutes as JCCC went ahead for good 11-5. Trailing 12-10 at the quarter, the Blue Devils went more than 5 ½ minutes before their first field goal and trailed 24-14.

Even then the Blue Devils trailed only 27-22 at the half only to be outscored 26-7 in the third quarter as the Blue Devils went 6:45 without a field goal in falling behind 49-28. Thanks to six 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, KCKCC closed to within 10 points but by then it was too little, too late.

“We can’t decide to play with urgency once we’re down by 24 points with only 10 minutes remaining in the game. At that point it’s too late,” KCKCC coach Joe McKinstry said. “I do appreciate our fight. We obviously could have quit and given up so I’m proud of them for choosing to push hard and competing until the end.

“But if we’re going to have execution and mental mistakes like we did today, then we have to play with the same kind of urgency for a full four quarters so we have a chance to offset those mistakes.”

Aliyah Myers and DeQuaria Guillory had 11 points and Tiaira Earnest 10 to lead the KCKCC scoring. Hannah Valentine had five rebounds to lead the Blue Devils, who lost the battle of the boards 40-33. Myers also had four assists and Guillory three. The Blue Devils had 12 steals in forcing 19 JCCC turnovers while committing 15 of their own.

Four Cavaliers finished in double figures led by LaJahda Boyland with 12 points. JCCC shot 41.4 percent thanks to a 53.3 percent in the 26-point third quarter. The Cavaliers were 5-of-11 from 3-point (.455); KCKCC 8-of-28 (.286).

In other Jayhawk action Saturday, Highland defeated Fort Scott 57-46 while Labette’s game at Hesston was postponed.

KCKCC volleyball rebounds with 3-0 defeat of Coffeyville

by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC sports information

Kansas City Kansas Community College rebounded from a five-set loss Thursday with a 3-0 thumping of Coffeyville Saturday.

Down two sets to one, Cloud County came back for a 3-2 win Thursday before the Blue Devils blitzed Coffeyville in three sets.

The Blue Devils (7-5) are right back in action Tuesday at No. 7 ranked Johnson County at 6 p.m. and then return home to play host to Allen County Thursday at 6:30 p.m. and No. 6 Highland Saturday at 11 a.m.

The win over Coffeyville gave the Blue Devils a sweep of the long-time Jayhawk power. After winning 3-2 at Coffeyville earlier, KCKCC make quick work of the second meeting, winning 25-20, 25-25, 25-14.

“After the loss to Cloud, the group decided they didn’t want to feel like that again and hit another level,” KCKCC coach Mary Bruno-Ballou said. “We had heart, executed our game play well and played excellent volleyball as a group. An absolute team win; proud of them and the success they’ve had as a group.”

Cassidy Crist led the Blue Devils with 17 kills in the swift 3-game match. Nicole Hughes and Mia Tomasic added seven and Michelle Dvorak six. Adriana Velez had 33 assists while Kelcey Hund had 14 digs, Velez 10 and Crist 8.

After dropping the opening set to Cloud 25-18, the Blue Devils bounced back with 25-24 and 25-22 wins only to drop the final two sets 25-22, 15-8. Four Blue Devils had 10 or more kills and five had double digits in digs.

Crist led in kills with 17 followed by Dvorak with 12 and Hughes and Tomasic with 10 each. Hund led in digs with 17 with Velez adding 15, Crist and Tomasic 13 each and Abigail Marcouillier 10. Velez had 47 of KCKCC’s 51 assists.

Johnson County and Neosho County share the Jayhawk Conference lead at 7-1 followed by Highland, 6-1; Fort Scott, 7-4; KCKCC, 6-4; Cloud County, 6-5; Coffeyville, 3-4; Allen County, 5-7; Cowley College, 4-7; Labette, 1-9; and Hesston, 0-9.