Softball | 5/7/2026 6:49:00 PM
Box Score A day after the Cloud County Community College softball team dropped a one-run decision in ten innings to Kansas City Kansas Community College in their opening round game of the 2026 NJCAA Division 2 Plains District Softball Tournament, the T-Birds narrowly snuck past the Neosho County Panthers 4-3 in eight innings on Thursday, May 7 to pick up their first postseason victory since 2017.
Freshman short stop
Jaci Vonlintel came through in the top of the eighth inning, driving a double down the right field line to score sophomore outfielder
Berkleigh Curtis for the go-ahead run. The victory improves the T-Birds to 20-20 on the season.
After throwing eight innings against Kansas City Kansas on Wednesday, May 6, freshman
Maddie Harold returned to the circle Thursday, allowing just two earned runs on seven hits with two walks and three strikeouts in her 11th complete-game performance of the season. Harold is now 10-9 on the year.
The T-Birds have played in six extra-innings games this season and are now 8-7 this year in games decided by one run.
Neosho County got on the board in the bottom of the first inning with sophomore catcher Brenna Kolhmeier's RBI single that scored freshman second baseman Jayden Willard.
Cloud County took the lead with a third inning rally. Freshman outfielder
Ava Boden's sacrifice fly scored Vonlintel, while freshman second baseman
Allison Adams drew a bases-loaded walk, scoring freshman outfielder
Brooke Lougheed to make the score 2-1.
The Panthers tied the game in the bottom half of the fourth inning on a RBI sacrifice fly by sophomore outfielder Faith Jones.
The T-Birds pulled ahead again in the sixth. Sophomore designated player
Emalee Johnson led-off the inning with a single to right field. Lougheed later connected on a two-out infield single to bring home Johnson to give Cloud County a 3-2 edge.
Neosho County freshman third baseman Rian Stainbrook opened the seventh inning with a triple to right field. Freshman outfielder Sadie Bowyer followed with a RBI ground out, scoring Stainbrook to send the game to extra-innings.
Curtis led-off the top of the eighth inning with a single to left. Curtis later stole second, setting up Vonlintel's eighth inning heroics.
The Panthers had the tying run at third base and the go-ahead run at first base in the bottom of the eighth, but Harold managed to get Stainbrook to fly out to left field to end the game.
Vonlintel, Lougheed and freshman third baseman
Hannah Gardner all had two hit games. Vonlintel finished 2-for-3 with a double, one run scored and one RBI. Lougheed went 2-for-5 with one run scored and one RBI. Lougheed also stole one base. Gardner went 2-for-4.
Cloud County next will play an elimination game against Allen Community College (21-26) at 12 pm Friday, May 8. After opening the tournament with a 6-3 win over Labette Community College, the Allen Red Devils dropped a 7-1 decision to top-seed Johnson County Community College on Thursday.
Earlier this season, the T-Birds dropped two games at Allen on April 27 by final scores of 7-6 and 11-5. Cloud County led 6-2 in game one before Allen scored five runs on four hits in the bottom of the sixth inning to take a late lead.
Allen has won five of its last six meetings with Cloud County.
