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Indians sweep baseball games vs. York JV
After a short spring break, a pair of victories for the McCook Community College men's baseball team was a dose of good medicine for the Indians.
The MCC squad claimed a double-header sweep over the York College junior varsity team in action Tuesday, March 19, at the Jaycees Complex. McCook used an exciting final at-bat to claim a 6-5 win in the opening game. The Indians used a strong start in the nightcap to earn a 9-6 victory.
The contests were added to the MCC schedule earlier this week after the Indians had lost several games that were postponed or cancelled due to inclement weather.
McCook scored the winning run in the bottom of the seventh inning in the opener. With the score tied 5-5, Isaac Carrel was hit by a pitch, and McCook High School graduate Justin Terry followed with a single. Carrel advanced to third on a passed ball.
With two outs, MCC head coach Jon Olsen went to his bench and sent Manny Perezsta. would single, moving Carrel to second base. A passed ball would advance Carrel to third base with one out. With two outs in the seventh inning, Coach John Olsen would insert Venezuela native Manny Perez to the plate to pinch hit. Perez delivered a single to right field to score Carrel with the winning run.
McCook fell behind 5-0 in the top of the first. MCC came back with three runs in the bottom of the first frame, thanks to a two-RBI double by Casey Philpot and Carrel's RBI single. McCook added a pair of runs in the second on an RBI ground out by Grant Hindman and Philpot's RBI single.
MCC starting pitcher Ryan Bergstrom settled down after the shaky start, allowing just one York baserunner in the next four innings. Michael Lechman relieved Bergstrom and sat down the Panthers in order in the sixth. Relief ace Brad Powell worked the top of the seventh and also retired York in order with two strikeouts and a ground out to set the stage for the last-at bat MCC heroics.
McCOOK GAVE UPa run in the top of the first in the second game, but the Indians got hot at the plate on a blustery cold day. MCC scored twice in the first inning and once in the second, then Carrel drew a bases-loaded walk in the third and Matthew Zarlingo followed with an RBI single to put McCook ahead 5-1.
MCC added four more runs in the bottom of the sixth, then York tallied three runs in the seventh to get within 9-6 before Powell got the final out for the win.
Starter Gordon Kautz threw six strong innings for MCC, allowing three runs before Powell came on in the seventh.
Coach Olsen said the York JV is probably not the caliber of teams MCC sees in Empire League competition, but he complimented Tuesday's foe for a strong effort. Olsen also was pleased that his team was able to pick up two wins.
"It was good for us to get two wins," he said. "We gave up a five-spot (five runs) in the first inning of the first game, you kind of wonder what's going to happen on the day. Obviously our pitching settled down for the next 12 innings or so and did a nice job shutting them down.
"We were able to do some things offensively that we've been working on to get a little bit better."
MCC IMPROVED to 10-12 overall with a trip to Kansas on tap Wednesday, March 29=0, to face Colby C.C. The teams were scheduled to play a single nine-inning game.
McCook has a four-game series scheduled against league foe Trinidad State (Colo.) Junior College Saturday and Sunday, March 22-23, but those games may be called off if the forecasted inclement weather comes true.