CONCORDIA, Kan. – A second-straight extra-innings walk-off win would allow the Cloud County Community College softball team to earn a two-game split to close out the Cloud County Spring Classic at the Concordia Sports Complex in Concordia, Kansas on Sunday, March 8th.

Cloud County's win would come by a score of 4-3 in eight innings over Central Community College before dropping their final game of the tournament to Iowa Central by a score of 7-6 to finish the tournament 2-3 overall. With a season-opening nine-game home stand now in the books, Cloud County will enter Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference play with a 5-4 record.

Against Central CC:

Following a scoreless inning to open the game, it would be the Raiders who would strike first with an infield single, standup double, and RBI groundout to plate a run in the top of the second. Cloud County would respond with a leadoff Sarah McCown single and wild pitch to move the freshman into scoring position for Mikayla Bletscher to drive her in with a triple to the right center field gap.

Things would remain a 1-1 deadlock until the bottom of the fifth when CCCC would put together a two-out rally beginning with a Bletscher single and Taylor Burks hit-by-pitch. Kennedy Doherty would drive Bletscher home with a single to center field. The 2-1 lead for Cloud County would grow once more in the inning as a fielder's choice by Kayla Lee would see Burks move to third on a throwing error by the Central shortstop and end up scoring with the ball ending up in foul territory along the third-base side.

Two errors would then become an issue for the T-Birds in the top of the sixth as Central would get both runs back with two hits and two errors allowing the inning to continue and eventually tie things up at 3-3. It would appear as though Cloud County would be in position to reclaim the lead in the bottom half of the inning, but CCCC would see the bases left loaded after putting filling all three bases with runners with just one out. Neither team would score in the seventh to send things to extra-innings where the Raiders would be held scoreless to allow Cloud County their opportunity with the international tiebreaker in effect. Emily Dunaway would lay down a sacrifice bunt to move Jacie Marcotte into scoring position as McCown would end the game with a gap double that Central would have no chance at making a play on.

Tossing a complete game, Mattison Hogrefe would allow three runs (one earned) on eight hits while fanning five batters to earn the victory and improve to 3-2 in the circle while also going one-for-one at the plate with four walks. Bletscher and Doherty would lead the T-Birds offensively, with each going two-for-four with an RBI.

Against Iowa Central:

A disastrous start for the T-Birds would see the Tritons put each of their first three batters of the game on base and four of their first five as the opening half inning of the game would see ICCC score five runs on three hits and one error to go up 5-0. Cloud County would get a run back in the bottom of the inning with a leadoff walk from Lee and Emily Wells single would allow for Hogrefe to put the ball in play and force an error by the Iowa Central infield that would bring Lee home from second as CCCC would get on the board but strand two runners.

CCCC would then hold the Tritons scoreless in the top of the second and flip momentum by breaking out for a big inning of their own as Burks, Doherty, and Kylie Hopkins would all reach base safely to start the inning to flip the lineup over and bring up Lee with no outs. Finding a pitch to drive, Lee would square up a pitch to send things through a stiff wind and over the right center field fence to record her first career grand slam and tie things up at 5-5 going to the third.

The T-Birds would then take their first lead of the game in the bottom of the third on a Hopkins RBI single to score Bletscher as the first four batters of the inning would safely reach base before seeing a fielder's choice, infield fly, and lineout end a potential big inning for CCCC. More errors by Cloud County would allow the Tritons to reclaim the lead as a fielding error to start the inning and then one-out fielding error on a fly ball would allow Iowa Central to push across two runs and go up 7-6.

Cloud County would then be held hitless in the bottom of the fourth, fifth, and sixth inning, but hold the Tritons to just a single hit in the fifth and sixth to keep things at a one-run deficit and still have a chance going to battle back in the seventh. Iowa Central would get a leadoff single in the top of the seventh before going down on a pair of groundouts and strikeout, but keep the T-Birds from mounting any type of comeback by retiring Cloud County in order as part of the final 14 batters of the game for CCCC going down in order.

Four of Cloud County's five runs would be driven in courtesy of Lee as the Kearney, NE native would have the only extra-base hit of the game for the T-Birds. Wells, Doherty, and Hopkins would account for six of CCCC's eight hits in the game as Cloud County would be unable to come up with a clutch hit to strand six runners in the game.

What's Next?

Cloud County will make their first road trip of the season on Thursday, April 12th for a 2 p.m. doubleheader at Cowley Community College in Arkansas City, KS. The Tigers have already played 20 games this season and are off to a 9-11 start after having last played on Friday, March 6th.