Flushing the memory of a dismal opener at Cougar Field Wednesday, the Barton Community College softball team regrouped in the nightcap to earn a valuable early season split hosting Hutchinson Community College.
Dusting off the record books for both programs, the Blue Dragons sent 23 batters to the plate in the opening inning, erupting for 18 runs on their way to a 21-0 victory.
Behind the pitching of Ellie Crawford, strong defensive plays behind her, and timely production throughout the lineup, the Cougars put the past behind them in salvaging the split with a 5-4 victory in game two.
The results leave both teams at 5-1 in conference play with Barton moving to 13-9 overall while Hutchinson sits at 16-6. The Cougars wrap up their brief two-date homestand Saturday hosting Butler Community College in a 1:00 p.m. first pitch at Cougar Field.
Karter Alvord was the lone Cougar to record a hit in each contest, roping a double in the opener before a leadoff third-inning single in game two extended the sophomore's on-base streak to 28 straight games.
Kahli Fields joined Alvord with the team-high two hits, both coming in the nightcap, including a third-inning single that put the Cougars in front for good at 2-1.
Crawford went the distance to earn the game two victory, the freshman from Hoisington improving to 5-0 on the season after scattering 11 hits while striking out a career-high five.
Hutchinson outhit Barton 27-10 in the doubleheader, recording 16 hits in the opener and 11 in the nightcap.
Emery Benson-Hladik led Hutchinson's game one effort going 4-for-4 while Addi Lutz finished 3-for-4 with seven RBIs, four coming in the opening inning before adding three more on a bases-clearing double. Tailor Golly and Riley Dreher each finished with four hits on the day, collecting a pair in each contest.
Game One – Hutchinson 21, Barton 0 (5 innings)
An opening-pitch hit batsman hardly foreshadowed what was to come as Hutchinson sent 23 batters to the plate in the first inning, erupting for 18 runs.
The Blue Dragons produced 10 hits in the frame while capitalizing on a pair of Barton errors, six walks, and two hit batters to produce the program-record single-inning outburst.
On the flip side, Trista Rogers took over in the circle as Barton's third pitcher of the inning and delivered a key effort, covering the final 4.2 innings to help preserve the bullpen for the nightcap. Making just her third appearance and entering with only two innings pitched on the season, the freshman from Haven scattered nine hits and allowed three runs, those coming in the fourth inning for Hutchinson's final tallies.
Barton's hits came on Thatcher's two-out triple in the second, McCormick's two-out single in the fourth, and Alvord's one-out double in the fifth.
Game Two – Barton 5, Hutchinson 4
Scoreless through the first two innings, Hutchinson broke through first in the third as Lutz doubled to lead off the frame before eventually scoring on O'Connor's sacrifice fly.
Alvord's leadoff single followed by Ella Pomme's walk helped Barton answer in the home half. Shaylee Spears moved the runners with a sacrifice bunt before Laney Wood's sacrifice fly brought home the equalizer. Fields then battled through three 1-2 pitches before driving a single up the middle for the go-ahead run with Carly Erpelding following with a double, her now team-leading 28th RBI of the season.
Hutchinson stranded one in the fourth while Barton left the bases loaded after two-out walks by Alvord and Spears on either side of Pomme's single.
The Blue Dragons threatened again in the fifth during a two-out rally as O'Connor kept the inning alive before Dreher lined a shot into the left-center gap. Spears, making the start in center field in place of Wood, tracked down the drive and relayed to Alvord at the cutoff, who wheeled and fired a strike to Erpelding at the plate to cut down the runner and preserve Barton's lead.
Hutchinson again moved into scoring position in the sixth, advancing a one-out double to third on a wild pitch, but Crawford shut down the threat by striking out the next two hitters.
Freshman production provided Barton valuable insurance in the home half of the sixth. Addison Jones, making the game two start at first base, led off the inning with a liner to center for the Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, freshman's first collegiate hit. Barton caught a break on a potential double-play ball off Alvord's bat as an errant throw allowed runners at the corners.
Seeing a 2-0 pitch she liked, Spears ripped a shot into the right-center gap for a standup double, driving in the Berthoud, Colorado, freshman's first collegiate runs and pushing Barton's lead to 5-1.
Hutchinson mounted one final rally in the seventh as Golly and Stauffer singled before O'Connor delivered her first collegiate home run to trim the deficit to one. The blast did little to rattle Crawford, who induced a pair of groundouts to seal the victory.