Great Bend Post
The end of the regular season was not kind to the Great Bend High School baseball team. After opening the season at 10-4 and climbing to No. 4 in the Class 5A west regional standings, the Panthers dropped five of their final six games. Manhattan, with just one loss on the season, downed Great Bend 6-0 and 12-0 Wednesday at the Sports Complex.
The Panthers managed just three hits in game one against the Indians. Manhattan, meanwhile, scored a run in the third and added runs in each of the final three innings of game one, including a three-run fifth.
Hunter Herrman tamed the Indian bats most of the way, throwing 4.1 innings and allowing four earned runs on five hits. He struck out seven and walked one in the loss. Edwin Chavez pitched the final 2.2 innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits with a strikeout.
Koehn Ribordy provided two of the three Panther singles in game one, and Chavez added the other hit. The Panthers struck out seven times.
Game two lasted just five innings as the Indians opened a 3-0 lead after two frames, then scored three runs in each of the third, fourth, and fifth innings.
Great Bend again managed just three hits with seven strikeouts. Ribordy, Trenton Kern, and JJ Grove provided the singles. Kern and Bradley Hopkins reached on walks.
Carson Umphres picked up the loss on the mound after allowing four earned runs on three hits in three innings. He struck out four and walked give. Tyler Stuhlsatz allowed four earned runs on six hits with a pair of walks in his two innings.
At 16-1, Manhattan has locked up the No. 1 seed in the 6A west regional. Great Bend is one of three teams in the 5A west regional sitting at 11-9. Based on tie breaks, the Panthers should enter the playoffs as the No. 9 seed against Salina South. Great Bend defeated the Cougars 4-0 last Friday.