by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC
Two crushing innings have ended Kansas City Kansas Community College’s softball season.
Beaten 6-1 in opening round Region VI softball play at Hutchinson Tuesday, the Lady Blue Devils rebounded with an impressive 8-1 win only to have the Lady Blue Dragons snap a 0-0 deadlock in the decisive third game with an 8-run fourth inning in a 9-1 win. The two losses ended the Blue Devils’ season at 23-22.
Shannon Greene scattered six hits, walked none and struck out one as KCKCC bounced back for an 8-1 win after the opening 6-1 setback. The Blue Devils backed Greene with 13 hits including three each by Kaylynn Stratton and Hannah Bishop and two apiece by Allison Kasick, Candice Jennings and LaTisha Thomas.
The Blue Devils jumped in front 1-0 in the first on a double by Bishop and an error and added three runs in the third on consecutive singles by Stratton, Bishop and Kasick and a double by Jennings. Doubles by Sudac and Thomas and a single by Kasick made it 6-0 in the fourth and the final two runs came in the sixth on singles by Thomas, Stratton and Bishop.
Forcing a third game, the Blue Devils put two runners on base in each of the first three innings while Megan Mason limited the Blue Dragons to one hit. But Hutch broke the game wide open in the fourth, scoring eight runs on eight hits off Mason and Greene before Cheyenna Owens got the final two outs.
The Blue Devils’ lone run came on singles by Bishop, Kasick, Stringer and Jennings in the fifth. Kasick finished with three hits and Jennings two as the Blue Devils were only out-hit 10-8.
Hutchinson took the opening game 6-1 by scoring five runs in the fifth inning. The Blue Dragons took a 1-0 lead in the first on a passed ball and then broke the game open in the fifth, scoring five times on four hits, a hit batsman and a pair of errors. Held without a hit for five innings, the Blue Devils broke through in the sixth on back-to-back doubles by Jennings and pitcher Megan Sumonja. Only one other runner reached first base. Sumonja allowed seven hits and four earned runs while striking out two and walking two.