Shepherd hits grand slam, Cougars drop Lamar

               Mariah Shepherd had a grand slam and the 15th-ranked Western Nebraska Community College softball team picked up two conference wins over Lamar Community College Friday afternoon at Volunteer Field.

               Bianca Duran had a complete game shutout in the opener, striking out three in leading the team to an 8-0 win. WNCC came from behind in the second game, spearheaded by a 2-run home run by Jennifer Cottle and Shepherd's grand slam to register the 11-4 win.

               WNCC coach Maria Winn-Ratliff said it was nice to get the conference wins against a scrappy ball club like Lamar.

               "The first game I thought we played pretty well. Bianca game up four hits and when we went down there she no-hit them, so they put the ball in play but we came up with some good defensive plays," she said. "Offensively, we strung things together and won in five.

               "The second game Shelby [McGraw] came out and showed a lot of composure, but unfortunately we had a momentum change in the third inning. We thought Bianca's pitch count was low enough that we went back to her. It was nice for Mariah Shepherd to come up with a big hit for us. We still have to clean some things up defensively and it was nice for us to get down in the third inning and then we just chipped away, kept believing in ourselves."

               The Cougars continued to show authority on the offensive side, pounding out 25 hits in the two games, including nine extra base hits. Winn-Ratliff said it was nice to see other players get the clutch hits.

               "We had some other people come up and do things today," she said. "Angel [Council] starts off an inning with a double and everyone expects Bianca and Kasey to come up with those big hits. Some good things happened for us. We will take these two wins and go enjoy Easter with our family and come back Monday and get back after it."

               The Cougars had five doubles, a triple and three home runs on the day. Cottle and Shepherd had the big games for the Cougars. Cottle had a triple and home run in the second game. Cottle finished the game with four RBIs and two runs scored. Her home run came in the fifth inning to put WNCC up 5-4.

               Shepherd also hit well, collecting a double and home run in the second game to finish with four RBIs and two runs scored. Shepherd's grand slam came in the sixth inning as the sophomore fought off pitch after pitch before depositing the ball into centerfield.

               Duran and Shelby McGraw also collected two hits on the day. Duran had a double and two runs scored, while McGraw had a RBI and run scored.

               Duran got the second-game win, tossing the final five innings in allowing six hits, one run and striking out eight. McGraw started the contest, going just two innings in allowing three runs on five hits.

               The first game saw WNCC open up the contest with two runs in the third and then three runs each in the fourth and fifth inning for the win. The Cougars pounded out 13 hits in the contest. WNCC went up 2-0 in the third on three hits, including run-scoring singles by Cottle and Shepherd.

               WNCC added to the lead with three in the fourth all with two outs. Haley Paxton started things with a single followed by a run-scoring double by Duran. Cash then blasted her 16th home run of the season to put the Cougars up 5-0.

               WNCC ended the game in the fifth with three runs on five hits. Shepherd had a run-scoring double, Lindsey Shiels-Brophy had a run-scoring single, and Danielle Hearn ended the game with a 2-run single

               Cash, Cottle, Shepherd, and Hearn all had two hits for the Cougars. Cash had two RBIs, two runs scored and a home run. Shepherd finished with two RBIs and a double, while Cottle had two runs scored and a stolen base.

               WNCC, 30-7, will be back in action Wednesday when they travel to North Platte for a doubleheader. WNCC will then be back at home for conference games on Friday and Saturday against Otero Junior College and Trinidad State Junior College.

First Game

Lamar                   000 00 -- 0 4 1   

WNCC                  002 33 -- 8 13 0

WP -- Bianca Duran; 2B -- Duran, Mariah Shepherd; HR -- Kasey Cash.        

Second Game

Lamar                   013 000 0 -- 4 11 0

WNCC                  111 035 x -- 11 12 1

WP -- Duran; 2B -- Duran, Shepherd, Angel Council; 3B -- Jennifer Cottle; HR -- Cottle, Shepherd.