Baseball | 4/27/2025 10:35:00 AM

Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 The Cloud County Community College baseball team split its doubleheader against Colby in Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference play on Saturday, April 26.

Freshman Cole Linton pitched seven strong innings in a complete game 1-0 victory in the second game of the doubleheader to improve to 5-1 on the mound this season. It marked Linton's third complete game pitched this season.

Linton allowed just four hits while striking out five and walking one for the T-Birds, who have moved to 37-13 overall and 20-7 in conference action.

Cloud County scored the only run of the game in the bottom of the third inning on an RBI single to center field by sophomore Cam Macleod that brought home sophomore Nolan Freund from second base.

The T-Birds were limited to three hits in the contest. Sophomore Eric Bradicich had a two-out double in the second inning, while Freund had a base-hit in the third.

Colby loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the first inning but failed to score when Linton struck out freshman Charlie Langford to end the frame. Colby also had two reach with one out in the top half of the sixth inning, but Linton managed to get freshman Caden Clifford to fly out before striking out pinch hitter Karson Cassidy to close out the inning.

Cloud County held a 7-5 lead going into the sixth inning in the first game of the afternoon but could not hold on, falling 14-10 in eight innings.

The T-Birds went through eight pitchers in the game.

Offensively, the T-Birds were led by redshirt freshman Matthew Evans. The current Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference West Division Player of the Week, Evans hit a bases-clearing triple in the bottom of the fourth to give Cloud County the 7-5 advantage. Evans later added an RBI single to left in the bottom of the seventh inning to tie the game at 10-all and force extra innings.

Macleod drilled a two-run home run in the third for his team-leading 11th homer of the season. He also added a lead-off double in the fifth.

Freshman Lucas Laukkanen went yard for the sixth time this season with a two-run shot in the bottom of the seventh.

Bradicich and sophomore Gannon White both had two hit games. Bradicich scored a pair of runs, while White added one run scored and an RBI.

Colby scored four runs in the top of the eighth, beginning with a lead-off home run by redshirt sophomore Adam Vulcano. Sophomore Isaiah Padilla later drove in three runs on a double to center field to push the lead to 14-10. Padilla led the Trojans by going 4-for-4 at the plate with two doubles, two runs scored and three RBI.

The T-Birds will be back in action against Colby on Monday, April 28 to finish a game previously paused in the top of the third inning with Cloud County leading 3-1. First pitch is scheduled for 2 pm at Young Memorial Field in Colby, Kansas.