Softball | 2/26/2025 8:50:00 PM

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 The Cloud County Community College softball team dropped its double header to the Southeast Community College Bobcats at Bill Burke Park in Salina on Wednesday, February 26.

The T-Birds fell to the Bobcats 6-5 in seven innings in game one, before dropping the second game by a final score of 18-8 in five innings.

Southeast Community College opened game one with two runs in the top of the first. Freshman Ashlyn Acree led off the game with an infield single, before scoring on an RBI double to right-center by freshman Gracie Moe. A two-out error on Cloud County led to Moe scoring the second run of the game.

In the bottom of the first inning, Cloud County freshman outfielder Kia Stokes reached on an error and then stole second. Following a ground out by freshman short stop Maliyah Koster, sophomore catcher Camille Stauffer reached on an error to score Stokes for the only run for the T-Birds in the inning. 

Southeast Community College proceeded to add a run in the top of the third when Moe drew a lead off walk and eventually scored to extend the lead to 3-1.

Koster connected on a solo home run in the bottom of the third to trim the deficit down to one run.

Sophomore pitcher Paige Mahler kept the momentum on Cloud County's side, retiring the Bobcats in order in the top of the fourth inning. Mahler pitched five innings, allowing five earned runs on six hits with five walks and two strikeouts.

Sophomore Harley Smith led off the bottom of the fourth with a single to center, while sophomore Shaylee Keslar followed with a double to left. Three batters later, Koster delivered a two-out, three-RBI double to left to give Cloud County the lead at 5-3.

Freshman infielder Tyra Martin provided the necessary answer for Southeast, launching a three-run home run in the top of the fifth, scoring Moe and sophomore Sydnee Nickels and the Bobcats retook the lead at 6-5.

Cloud County received a one-out base hit from freshman Hailey Garcia in the sixth, and a one-out single from Stauffer in the seventh, but Southeast Community College left the T-Birds scoreless the rest of the game to pick up the one-run victory.

Cloud County collected ten hits but left seven runners on base in the loss. Koster, Smith and Stauffer finished with two hits each.

Southeast Community College opened the second game with 11 of its first 13 batters reaching base, scoring nine first-inning runs to all but end the game before it started. Stauffer smashed a one-out, three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning, scoring Stokes and Koster, to chip away at the lead. Koster later crushed a three-run home run in the bottom of the fourth, driving in Garcia and freshman Bella Santin, but the Bobcats found ways to capitalize on every opportunity, scoring three runs in the third and six runs in the fourth on their way to the 18-8 win in five innings.

Southeast Community College scored 18 runs on 18 hits in 34 at-bats. The T-Birds, meanwhile, finished with eight runs on 13 hits. Koster went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and 3 RBI. Stauffer went 3-for-3 with 3 RBI and one run scored. Smith was also 3-for-3.

Freshman Olivia Becker took the loss, pitching just two-thirds of an inning and allowing nine runs on five hits with two walks. Sophomore Brecken Whitney threw the final 4.1 innings, holding the Bobcats to five earned runs while allowing two walks and striking out three.

The T-Birds will be back in action on Friday, February 28 as they will be heading to Columbus, Nebraska to face the Central Community College Raiders in a double header. First pitch is scheduled for 1 pm at Raider Field.