Region IX Softball Tournament set to kick off Thursday

With the regular season behind them, the Western Nebraska Community College softball team is ready to embark on the most important part of the season, the Region IX Tournament.

And, for the Cougar women, their record-setting season of winning the league title with an impressive 51-8 overall record, earned them the right to host this year’s tournament which begins Thursday at Volunteer Field.

“The girls are excited to be playing at home and playing in front of their friends and family,” WNCC coach Maria Winn-Ratliff said. “It is always nice when you play on a field that you are familiar with. No matter where the tournament is, you have to go out and make sure you control the controllables and do the little things right.”

Action is slated to kick off at noon Thursday with the championship game slated for 4 p.m. on Saturday in the double-elimination tournament. First-day contests pit Lamar Community College facing Dawson Community College at noon; Trinidad State Junior College facing McCook at 2 p.m., Otero Junior College meeting North Platte Community College at 4 p.m., and WNCC battling the winner or the Lamar and Dawson game at 6 p.m. WNCC’s contests can be heard on KOZY 101.3 FM and the Internet.

Winn-Ratliff says her team needs to just play their game to be successful.

“We will need to have good production in the circle,” she said. “Our pitchers will really need to work hard. Anyone in this league can score runs, so we will have to really contain them offensively. I am a firm believer that defense wins championships, so obviously you will need to make plays and find a way to push runs across. I don’t think anyone will win this tournament with 1-0 or 2-0 games; it will be a run-production tournament. We will have to put four or five runs on the board to feel comfortable and put us in a good situation.”

WNCC, however, is playing with plenty of saavy, after finishing the regular season at 51-8 and No. 20 in the NJCAA polls. Winn-Ratliff said this team has really come together and now they want to compete at the national tournament in Plant City, Fla., May 15-17. But, it won’t come easy as Otero comes in having won nine of the 10 regional titles, including eight straight.

“I knew this team was special and we tried to go out and face some really good competition in the beginning of the season so see where we matched up and played very well,” she said. “Our Sophomores have done a great job for us this year and wow what production we have gotten out of the circle. We have had some freshman really step and are a balanced attach.”

The Cougars finished the regular season splitting with Iowa Western Community College, the No. 19 team in the nation and the way they played against the Reivers, does bolster the team’s confidence a little bit considering they split the doubleheader. WNCC won the opener 4-1 behind another stellar pitching performance from Kelsey Garner.

“I thought Kelsey did a nice job in the circle containing their hitters,” Winn-Ratliff said. “We were putting the ball in play a lot the first game and just leaving to many runners on but found a way to score in the top of the 7th. In game two, I thought Ashley Patton did a great job for us giving us a 4-1 lead going in to the bottom of the 5th but their offense started to come alive and we couldn’t contain them anymore.”

WNCC lost the second game to Iowa Western 9-5, but played well at the beginning, according to Winn-Ratliff, who is in her fourth year at the helm of the Cougars.

“Offensively for us we swung the bats very well in the first inning to take a 3-0 lead but then I felt like we tried to just coast after that and couldn’t over come their one big inning in the 5th.”

The recent losses should help the Cougars in a way to refocus for the regional tournament. And, losing to or playing a team like Iowa Western, can only be good for the Cougars in the long run as they prepare for the most important part of the season.

“I was not displeased with our team,” she said. “IWCC is a great ball club and they score a lot of runs so I think we did what we had to do in the first game, but need to score more runs in the second game to support our pitching staff. They are the 19th team in the country and to go and split with them at their place is a positive for us. They also lead the country in home runs so I was pleased with our staff that we didn’t allow them to hit any off of us.”

WNCC, on the other hand, has been an extra-base hitting machine this season. The Cougars have already slammed 56 home runs, 21 triples and 124 doubles.

Lauren Mills paces the team in home runs with 12th, which she hit in the win against Iowa Western. Mills also became the career home run leader with the home run on Sunday.

Right behind Mills, through, is Kara Ryman with eight, Amanda Hensley and Alec Voci with seven, Lauren Bourdon with six, and Amanda Torimaru and Jessie McNabb with five.

As for doubles and triples, Torimaru leads the team with five triples followed by Hensley with four. Ryman has a commanding lead with 25 doubles followed by Torimaru with 18 and McNabb with 17 and Bourdon with 15.

While the Cougars are hitting the ball well, they are also getting fine pitching performances. Garner leads the staff with a 28-2-1 record, including 229 strikeouts and an earned run average of 1.17. Garner also had a near-perfect game against North Platte when she faced 22 batters in seven innings. The only blemish to the feat was a fifth-inning lead-off single. Also in the game, she fanned 15 batters, including nine straight at one time.

Right behind Garner, though, is sophomores Ashley Patton and Natasha Dypchey, who have also game up big. Patton has a 6-2 record in 49.67 innings pitched. Patton’s strength is her ability not to walk batters, as she has a kanck for getting ground outs. Patton has an ERA of 1.69, while allowing just 22 runs and striking out 23.

Dypchey comes into the regional tournament with a 12-3-2 mark, and has thrown 91 innings with an ERA of 2.31. Dypchey has struck out 58 batters so far, while walking 30. Dypchey came up big last week in a win against Lamar 12-0, where the Cougars wrapped up hosting the regional tournament.

The key to doing well at the tournament will be staying out of the loser’s bracket and avoiding playing back-to-back-back contests.

“Every coach’s goal is to stay in the winner’s bracket and if you can do that, you are looking at one game a day. For us, if we fall in the loser’s bracket, we are not looking at back-to-back games until Friday or Saturday,” she said. “But we are going to do everything we can to stay in the winner’s bracket and keep doing things we have done all year long.

Admission to the Region IX tournament will be $5 for adults and $3 for students and senior citizens.

Tournament Team Capsules
Western Nebraska C.C.
Location: Scottsbluff, Neb.
Mascot: Cougars
Overall Record: 51-8
Conference Record: 23-1
Key Pitchers: Kelsey Garner, 28-2-1 with 229 strikeouts and an ERA of 1.17; Natasha Dypchey, 12-3-2 with 58 strikeouts and ERA of 2.31; Ashley Patton, 6-2 with 23 strikeouts and ERA of 1.69.
Key Players: Jessie McNabb, batting .500 with 17 doubles and five home runs; Lauren Mills, batting .465 with 12 home runs, 51 RBIs and 10 doubles; Amanda Torimaru, batting .440 with 54 RBIs and five home runs; Kara Ryman, batting .438 with eight home runs, 25 doubles and 67 RBIs; Lauren Bourdon, batting .407 with 15 doubles, six home runs and 48 RBIs; Amanda Hensley, batting .364 with seven home runs and four triples, Whittany Foster, batting .359; Lauryn Smith, batting .352 with two home runs and two triples; Mandy Pounds, batting .322; and Alec Voci with 30 RBIs and seven home runs. McNabb, Ryman and Hensley are all headed to Northern Colorado to play next year.

Otero Junior College
Location: La Junta, Colo.
Mascot: Rattlers
Coach: Melissa Perea
Overall Record: 40-12
Conference Record: 21-3
Key Pitchers: Jessie Lessard, sophomore from Elizabeth, Colo., who is headed to Western Oregon, and Stacey Ortiz, freshman from Pueblo, Colo.
Key Players: Becca Diede, shortstop who is headed to Portland State, Alena Martinez, freshman third baseman from Greeley, Colo., Ally Goniea, freshman catcher from Falcon, Colo., Amber Ray, sophomore outfielder who is headed to Colorado State, and Noel Wees, sophomore outfielder who is headed to Northern Colorado.

McCook Community College
Location: McCook, Neb.
Mascot: Indians
Coach: Tyrone Robinson
Overall Record: 29-28
Conference Record: 3-19
Key Pitchers: Erin Kinsey, freshman from Arvada, Colo., with a 9-9 record and a 2.95 ERA; Jessica Martinez, freshman from Los Angeles with an 8-9 record and a 1.32 ERA; and Jennifer Deal, freshman from Sacramento, Calif. With an 8-7 record and 2.37 ERA.
Key Players: Tiffany Lokken, freshman shortstop batting .538 with 12 home runs; Amber Thompson, freshman outfielder batting .480 with 14 home runs and 77 RBIs; Kendra Carmouche, freshman third baseman batting .393 with 47 RBIs; Lauren Leiva, freshman outfielder batting .439 with 19 doubles and 56 RBIs; Jessica Adler, freshman outfielder batting .383 with five home runs and 40 stolen bases; and Jessica Martinez batting .425 with 20 doubles.

Lamar Community College
Location: Lamar, Colo.
Mascot: Lopes
Coach: Craig Brooks
Overall Record: 34-25
Conference Record: 12-12
Key Pitchers: Emily Huhta, freshman from Albuquerque, N.M., with a 16-15 record and a 2.62 ERA, and Brittany Bourque, freshman from Aurora, Colo., with a 15-9 record and a 2.15 ERA.
Key Players: Ashley Duffy, sophomore shortstop, batting .446; Amy Holt, sophomore first baseman batting .490; Samantha Lopez, freshman outfielder batting .476; and Reggie Cadwallader, sophomore outfielder batting .336.

Trinidad State Junior College
Location: Trinidad, Colo.
Mascot: Trojans
Coach: Steve Swazo
Overall Record: 29-20
Conference Record: 13-11
Key Pitchers: Julia Diehl, freshman, has an 8-5 record with 46 strikeouts; Katie Smith, freshman, has an 8-6 record with 55 strikeouts; Jenni Trujillo, sophomore, has a 5-4 record with 32 strikeouts; Rachel Brug, sophomore, has a 3-5 record with 35 strikeouts; Rachel Lovato, freshman had a 3-0 record with 22 strikeouts; and Kelsey Apodaca, freshman, has a 2-0 record. “
Key Players: Kendace Bonner, freshman shortstop, is batting .333 with 14 doubles; Anneliese Lange, sophomore third baseman, is batting .356 with 11 doubles; Nikole Morgan is batting .408 with four home runs and 34 RBIs. Diehl leads the team in hitting (.441) and home runs(9), as she set single season records for hits in a season, at bats, runs scored, RBIs and batting average. Morgan set the single season record for doubles.

North Platte Community College
Location: North Platte, Neb.
Mascot: Knights
Coach: Jack Daniels
Overall Record:
Conference Record: 3-19
Key Pitchers: North Platte has four pitchers listed on their roster. They include sophomores Amanda Brown of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., Cristen May of Vidor, Texas, and Ali Hillman of Mountain Home, Idaho, as well as freshman Leigh-Ann Kuwicka of Maple Ridge, British Columbia.

Dawson Community College
Location: Glendive, Mont.
Mascot: Buccaneers
Coach: Dan Harrison
Overall Record: 13-28
Conference Record: 7-17
Key Pitchers: Dawson has three pitchers listed on their roster, including sophomore Debbie Donsbach of Glendive, Mont., and freshmen Brittany Fedler of North Battleford, Saskatchewan, and Meghan Dewar of Richmond, British Columbia.

WNCC softball splits doubleheader with Iowa Western, finishes regular season at 51-8

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – The No. 20-ranked Western Nebraska Community College softball team finished the regular season with a 51-8 record after splitting a doubleheader with No. 19 Iowa Western Community College on Sunday.

The Cougars and Reivers were hooked in a pitcher’s dual through six innings until WNCC scored four runs in the seventh inning, including a Lauren Mills leadoff home run to give the Cougars a 4-1 win.

Game two was a different story as Iowa Western pounded out 18 hits to come back for a 9-5 win to split the doubleheader among the two ranked teams.

Amanda Torimaru, who hit well all weekend including two home runs in the Southwestern Iowa win on Saturday, said they played well, and that this weekend should be beneficial heading into the regional tournament this weekend.

“We showed that we have a lot of potential and we did pretty good,” the sophomore first baseman said. “The losses made us realize that we are not going to beat every team. It made us realize that we are human and we are going to lose sometimes. But, it gave us something to push forward to.”

The Cougars gave the No. 19 team in the country all they could handle. In the first game, it was a pitcher’s dual until the seventh inning when Mills blasted her 12^th home run of the season to lead off the inning. It also was Mills 17^th of her career, breaking a school record.

After Mills’ dinger, the Cougars plated three more runs. Amanda Hensley followed with a single. Jessie McNabb and Lauren Bourdon then each drew walks to load the bases. Kara Ryman came through with a run-scoring single, while Amanda Torimaru had a 2-run scoring single for the win.

The Cougars pounded out 12 hits, led by Mills’ 3-for-4 game. Mills had two singles, a home run, RBI, and a run scored. Hensley and Ryman each had two hits, while McNabb and Torimaru finished with a hit apiece.

Kelsey Garner continued her stellar pitching performance with a 10-strikeout performance. Garner also scattered five hits, while allowing one run.

WNCC continued its hot hitting in game two, running out to a 4-0 lead after three innings. The Cougars scored three times in the first as Mills led off with a single, followed by run-scoring doubles by McNabb and Bourdon. Ryman finished off the scoring with a RBI single.

McNabb and Ryman connected on singles in the third inning as Ryman hit scored McNabb for the 4-0 lead.

The lead didn’t last as IWCC scored once in the fourth and five times in the fifth to take a 6-4 lead. WNCC did try to come back slicing the lead to 6-5 in the sixth inning as Ryman doubled and scored on a Whittany Foster single.

WNCC had nine hits in the loss, including a 3-for-3 game from Ryman. Ryman, the sophomore second baseman from Westminster, Colo., finished with two RBIs and a single and a double. McNabb also had two hits, including two RBIs and a double.

Natasha Dypchey suffered the loss, coming in relief of Ashley Patton. Patton pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing 15 hits and striking out three.

WNCC, 51-8, finished the regular season in record setting fashion. Torimaru said it is unbelievable how well this team has gelled together.

“I was surprised that we were doing so well,” she said. “I am proud of my team that we did so well.”

Now, though, comes the second season and the Region IX tournament which begins Thursday at Volunteer Field in Scottsbluff.

First round games will have Lamar facing Dawson at noon, Trinidad meeting McCook at 2 p.m., Otero facing North Platte at 4 p.m. and WNCC meeting the winner of the Lamar/Dawson game at 6 p.m. The tournament continues through Saturday with the championship game slated for 6 p.m. Admission to the regional tournament is $5 for adults and $3 for students and seniors.

“We just need to keep doing how we are doing,” Torimaru said. “I think we have a pretty good team and I think we can go all the way if we want to and try hard enough.”

First Game
WNCC 000 000 4 – 4 12 2
IWCC 000 000 1 – 1 5 0
WP – Garner; 2B – Ryman; HR – Mills.

Second Game
WNCC (51-8) 301 001 0 – 5 9 0
IWCC (44-11) 000 152 x – 9 18 0
LP – Dypchey; 2B – McNabb, Ryman, Bourdon.

WNCC softball win 50th game of season with two wins Saturday in tournament

ALTOONA, Iowa -- The No. 20-ranked Western Nebraska Community College softball team notched win No. 50 with two victories in the Marshalltown Tournament Saturday with a combination of timely hitting and strong pitching.

In the opening game against Southwestern Iowa Community College, Lauren Mills and Amanda Torimaru each blasted two home runs as the Cougars defeated Southeastern 10-1. In the second game, Kelsey Garner struck out 10 and allowed two hits against a good Indian Hills Community College squad 3-1.

“We played well [Saturday],” Maria Winn-Ratliff said. “We need to come out and play well [today against Iowa Western Community College.”

The Cougars opened the day with a 16-hit attack against Southwestern and they started it early with five runs in the first inning. Mills led off the game with a solo home run. Then, after the Cougars loaded the bases, Torimaru unleashed a grand slam for a 5-0 lead.

WNCC added two more runs in the second. Jessie McNabb doubled and came around to score on Torimaru’s second home run of the game for a 7-0 lead.

The Cougars put the game away in the sixth with three runs on five hits. Mills started the rally with a solo home run followed by singles by Amanda Hensley and McNabb, and a double by Kara Ryman. Torimaru then picked up her seventh RBI of the game with a single.

Natasha Dypchey picked up the win, scattering six hits, while striking out one in six innings of work.

Mills and Torimaru each finished with three hits with four at bats. Mills had two runs, two RBIs and two home runs, while Torimaru had two runs, seven RBIs, two home runs and a stolen base.

Also collecting multiple hits were McNabb going 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a double; Ryman going 2-for-4 with three runs scored and a double; Kayli Allen going 2-for-4 with a double; and Whittany Foster going 2-for-3 with two singles.

WNCC finished off the tournament with an impressive performance against Indian Hills, who split a doubleheader with No. 19 Iowa Western Community College on Friday.

Indian Hills struck first, scoring a single run in the first inning. WNCC came back and took the lead in the fourth inning with three runs on four hits – all singles. Torimaru, McNabb and Lauren Bourdon each had RBI singles in the inning.

Garner picked up her 27^th win of the season as she scattered two hits, walked two and stuck out 10.

Hensley and Torimaru each had two hits in the contest.

The Cougars will look for wins number 51 and 52 Sunday when they face No. 19 Iowa Western at 11 and 1 p.m. in Council Bluffs, Iowa, before coming back home to host the Region IX Tournament May 1-3.

First Game
WNCC 520 003 – 10 16 3
Southwestern 000 010 – 1 6 1
WP – Dypchey; 2B – McNabb, Ryman, Allen; HR – Mills (2), Torimaru (2).

Second Game
WNCC (50-7) 000 300 0 – 3 7 2
Indian Hills 100 000 0 – 1 2 1
WP – Garner.

Gering's Brost, Johns sign with WNCC soccer

Gering’s Keah Brost and Taylor Johns have been key components in the Bulldog’s turnaround of the soccer program, including a state berth their junior year.

Now, the two seniors will be taking their soccer talents to the next level after signing letter of intents with Western Nebraska Community College. Both are expected to make an impact on a Cougar women’s soccer team that finished 10-7-2 last season.

“Coach {Todd] Rasnic is getting two girls that are surpassed by nobody in work ethic,” Gering girls soccer coach John Scott said. “I have been around these girls since they were 11 years old and had the opportunity to coach them since then. They are two girls that work as hard as any two kids that I have been associated with. They love the game. They love the work that goes a long with it. They are 100 percent dedicated to the team, which in this day and age, it is hard to come by.”

Brost and Johns are excited to continue their soccer playing at the next level. In fact, both talented players are looking at attending WNCC as a stepping stone to the next level.

“I choose to go to WNCC because I thought it would be a good transition to college,” Johns, who has stared every match for Gering since she was a freshman, said. “Living in such a small [city] it would be overwhelming to go someplace else. WNCC will be a good step and the soccer program helped a lot.”

For Brost, who has been playing soccer since she was four and the last two with Gering, is excited to be playing two more years in the Twin Cities area.

“I chose to go to WNCC because of the small classroom atmosphere and to get collegiate soccer experience,” she said. “I would like to transfer to the University of Wyoming to finish my degree. It is my stepping stone, I guess.”

Brost and Johns are also well prepared for the collegiate level.

“I have heard various things from family members [about practice], but I think I can handle it,” Brost, who cousins Coote and Cade Mullory and David Thurin played for the Cougars, said. “I am really excited to play there and follow in my cousin’s footsteps.”

For Johns, who is Gering’s all-time goal-scoring leader, her only thought was to play soccer in college. Johns was the Bulldog’s setter in volleyball through high school.

“I really like the physical contact. It is an aggressive sport and you have more room to play unlike volleyball where you are more confined,” she said. “It probably will be a lot more fast-paced and aggressive, and you will need to be more accurate with everything you do pretty much. It will be a lot harder play.”

Rasnic is excited to get two local athletes that love the physical-side of the game.

“It means a lot to have a pool of local talent to draw from,” he said. “At WNCC, one of my goals is to try to incorporate as many local players as I can and put a team on the field that can compete at a high level.

“I think Keah and Taylor will be players that not only will compete at that level, but will excel in their areas of expertise. I see great things from both of these players. I have seen them play as well and agree with John’s assessment that they are hardworking players who, like Taylor alluded to, are not afraid of contact. They certainly give 110 percent while on the field.”

Both will have at least one more game left for the 9-4 Bulldogs when they face Scottsbluff in the semi-finals of the district tournament on Tuesday. Brost said that it will be hard to leave a team she has grown up with.

“I am really going to miss all the girls,” she said. “I have become good friends with all of them. It will be kind of hard to step on a new team where I will only know Taylor, most likely. It will be fun.”

But, Brost will have Johns next year. In fact, Johns said having Brost at WNCC will make the transition to her new team much easier.

“It will be really helpful [to have a teammate up there] because I will have somebody to fall back on if I need help with anything,” Johns, who had been playing soccer since she was five, said. “It will make the transition easier in getting to know people in having someone there I already know.”

Scott is excited to be able to watch his two stars play soccer for two more years as well.

“The bottom line, they are just two great kids. Their abilities are fantastic and it will be fun to be able to see them play together at the next level. They are both very deserving of that,” he said. “They will be strongly missed and they were a big factor in the turnaround of this program at Gering. They are fun to be around and of all the years that I had an opportunity to coach them, I don’t think I had a situation where they disappointed me.”

The Cougar soccer team will begin pre-season practices Aug 1 and their first scrimmage match is slated for Aug. 16 at the CSU-Pueblo.

WNCC softball splits contests at Marshalltown tournament

MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa – The Western Nebraska Community College softball team battled the elements Friday at the Marshalltown Tournament, splitting a pair of games.

WNCC fell 3-1 to NCAA Division III Simpson College despite a fine pitching performance from Ashley Patton. The Cougars came back and defeated Marshalltown Community College behind a 12 strikeout performance from Kelsey Garner.

Head coach Maria Winn-Ratliff said that the weather conditions were not favorable as they battled 30 degree temperatures and a wind gusts of 40 to 50 mph blowing straight in.

In the opening game, Simpson College scored three runs in the opening inning on three hits. The big blow was a error with the bases loaded.

WNCC, who are ranked 20^th in the latest NJCAA poll, came back to slice the lead to 3-1 in the third inning as Amanda Hensley and Jessie McNabb singled. Lauren Bourdon followed with a run-scoring single to score Hensley.

The Cougars couldn’t get any closer, despite Patton shutting down the Storm’s offense the rest of the way, allowing one hit after the first inning.

Offensively, WNCC managed just five hits, led by Whittany Foster with a 1-for-1 game, followed by McNabb going 1-for-2.

WNCC found the going a little bit better in the second game against Marshalltown. However, both teams were hooked up in a pitcher’s dual until the sixth inning when the Cougars plated six runs on four hits.

Amanda Torimaru got the offensive started with a double, followed by Kayli Allen reaching base on a fielder’s choice and error to put two runners. The Cougars then had three straight singles by Foster, Hensley and Alec Voci to give WNCC a 4-0 lead.

That was all they needed as Garner had another outstanding outing in the circle, picking up her 26^th win of the season allowing one hit, in the first inning. Garner also struck out 12 and walked three in the game.

Natasha Dypchey and Voci paced the Cougars with two hits apiece. Voci went 2-for-2 with a run scored, RBI and two singles, while Dypchey went 2-for-4 with a RBI, two singles and a stolen base.

WNCC, 48-7, is scheduled to play three games today in the Mashalltown tournament, weather permitting.

First Game
WNCC 001 000 0 – 1 5 1
Simpson 300 000 x – 2 4 1
LP – Patton

Marshalltown 000 000 0 – 0 1 3
WNCC 000 004 0 – 4 7 2
WP – Garner; 2B – Torimaru.

NJC topples WNCC baseball; Cougar end season out of regional playoffs

Submitted by By Kevin Klaman, Star-Herald Sports Reporter

The bad news came early for the Western Nebraska Community College baseball team when the Cougars played host to Northeastern Junior College in a doubleheader at Cleveland Field in Scottsbluff on Wednesday.

WNCC, which was battling both Otero Junior College and Trinidad State Junior College for the final spot in next week's conference tournament, received word that Otero had already swept Trinidad State in a doubleheader earlier in the day.

That meant the Cougars would have to sweep its doubleheader against NJC in order to earn the a spot in the conference tournament.

Although the Cougars took the field with that ultimate goal in mind, NJC proved too much to overcome as the Plainsmen swept both games by scores of 4-2 and 6-5.

"It's extremely disappointing," WNCC coach Mike Jones said. "It's been a season of ups and downs, and down the stretch we just didn't play very well."

WNCC will miss the tournament this year after winning the tournament championship last year.

In the first game on Wednesday, the teams battled to a scoreless tie through four and a half innings before the Cougars finally took the advantage in the bottom of the fifth as Josh Guber singled in Greg Crowe.

WNCC plated another run in the sixth inning when Crowe blasted a run-scoring single to score Rich Miller, which gave the Cougars a 2-0 lead.

However, in the final inning, the game changed for the worse for the Cougars as NJC plated four runs on five hits to take a 4-2 lead.

The Plainsmen tied the game thanks to a two-run home run by Josh Warren and added two more runs before the inning was over.

"In the first game, I thought we played a really good ball game," Jones said. "I thought our intensity was good, our attitude was good and our approach to the game was real good. We just came up short."

Rudy Soto threw six scoreless innings for WNCC on the mound before allowing the two-run home run in the seventh. He allowed seven hits, walked three and struck out six.

"I thought Rudy pitched an excellent game for us," Jones said. "I thought he pitched with a lot of heart and gave us everything he had. He held them scoreless all the way into the seventh and then they got to him in the seventh inning. That's unfortunate for us."

Crowe finished the first game going 3-for-3 with one RBI. However, he was the only Cougar with multiple hits in the game.

In the second game, emotions boiled over as the Cougars struggled in what became a meaningless game because of Otero's wins.

The Plainsmen quickly jumped ahead with two runs in the first inning.

WNCC battled back and took the lead in the third inning, but allowed four runs in the fourth and fifth innings as NJC pulled ahead 6-3.

The Cougars managed to bring the game within one in the final frame, 6-5, but it would be the closest they would come as the Plainsmen earned the win.

"We had a lot of guys that emotionally were spent," Jones said. "Everybody was disappointed from losing the [first] ball game, knowing that was going to put us in fifth place in the conference and out of the playoff chase. It was tough to come out and even play the second game."

WNCC's Carlos Garcia went 2-for-3 in the second game and Guber went 2-for-4 with two RBI. Aurelio Monteagudo finished with a home run and three RBI.

With WNCC now out of the playoff race, Jones said his team will not play its final scheduled regular-season contest against the Colorado State club team on Tuesday. But, although the Cougars have now played their final game of the season, Jones is confident that none of his sophomores have played the final game of their careers.

"I think every single one of them is going to go on and play," Jones said. "They've got some scholarship offers out. Some guys are still looking for a place, but they're all going to find a place to play."

First Game
NJC 000 000 4 - 4 11 1
WNCC 000 011 0 - 2 6 2
LP -- Soto.

Second Game
NJC 200 130 0 - 6 6 1
WNCC 003 000 2 - 5 9 4
LP -- Javins; HR -- A. Monteagudo.

WNCC defeats Lamar in five innings 12-0, will host regional tournament May 1-3

LAMAR, Colo. – It’s official. The Western Nebraska Community College softball team claimed their first league title and the right to host the Region IX softball tournament beginning May 1 with a dominating performance over Lamar Community College Tuesday.

The Cougars pounded out 14 hits in shutting out the Lopes 12-0 as Natasha Dypchey sparkled from the circle tossing a four-hitter. It was the Cougars 45^th win of the season and gives WNCC a 21-1 conference record with two conference games left.

“The girls are really excited about hosting the regional tournament,” coach Maria Winn-Ratliff said. “But, we just don’t want to host it now. We try to win every time that we play.”

Winn-Ratliff, though, couldn’t be prouder of what this team has accomplished this season.

“We came out and played very well. I am very proud of these girls,” she said. “[Today] we came out and put the ball into play and pushed runs across the plate. Natasha did a great job in the circle. She worked real hard and got the shutout today.”

The Cougars wasted little time in taking care of business, scoring at will Tuesday afternoon. WNCC scored five times in the first inning on seven hits, including leading off with back-to-back bunts for singles.

WNCC pushed the lead to 8-0 in the second inning as Alec Voci belted a 3-run home run to open the flood gates even more. It was the team’s 23^rd home run in the last six days.
WNCC put the game away in the fifth inning, scoring four times. The big hits included doubles by Lauryn Smith and Jessie McNabb, and a triple by Mandy Pounds that scored two runs.

Dypchey collected her 10^th win of the year by scattering five hits, walking two and striking out one.

Amanda Torimaru paced the Cougars with a 3-for-3 game, including three runs scored and an RBI. McNabb followed by going 3-for-4 with two RBIs and a double, followed by Mills going 2-for-3 with a run scored, two singles and two stolen bases, Smith going 2-for-3 with a runs scored, a RBI and a double, Mandy Pounds going 2-for-3 with two RBIs, a run scored and a triple, and Voci going 1-for-2 with a home run, four RBIs and a sacrifice.

The Cougars will return to action Thursday when they host North Platte Community College in a doubleheader at 1 p.m. at Volunteer Field. WNCC wraps up the regular season over the weekend as they play in the Marshalltown, Iowa, Tournament, before meeting up with Iowa Western and Iowa Lakes Community Colleges on Sunday.

WNCC (45-6) 530 04 – 12 14 1
Lamar 000 00 – 0 5 0
WP – Dypchey; 2B – McNabb, Smith; 3B – Pounds; HR – Voci.

WNCC softball sweeps Hutchinson, runs record to 44-6

HUTCHINSON, Kan. -- The Western Nebraska Community College softball team hit five more home runs as the 44-6 Cougars swept a doubleheader from Hutchinson Community College on Sunday 8-3 and 9-5.

The Cougars also finished the doubleheader with 26 hits and they needed everyone against a Hutchinson squad that entered the contest winners of seven straight and sported a 30-14 record.

WNCC, on the other hand, pushed their winning streak against junior college teams to 23 games and they have won 35 of their last 37 games. Over the last eight games on the four-day road trip, the Cougars blasted 22 home runs in winning all eight games.

Sunday, the Cougars quickly took control of the game behind the pitching of Kelsey Garner, who threw 4 2/3 innings of no-hit ball. Garner finished the contest scattering nine hits and striking out six.

WNCC quickly got things started as Lauren Bourdon blasted a solo home run in the second inning. WNCC added three more runs in the third and two in the fourth to grab a 6-0 lead.

Amanda Torimaru then connected on a solo home run in the fifth for a 7-0 lead. WNCC led 8-0 before the Blue Dragons scored three times in the sixth inning to make the game a tad closer, but not enough for the win.

Torimaru went 3-for-4 for the game including two RBIs, two singles and a home run. Jessie McNabb finished the game 3-for-4 with two runs, two RBIs and three singles, while Bourdon went 2-for-4 with two runs and a home run.

WNCC continued its home run parade in the second game with three solo home runs. After the Cougars grabbed a 5-2 lead, Amanda Hensley blasted a shot in the fourth inning. Then, Alec Voci added another home run in the fifth.

Finally, Garner delivered a pinch hit home run in the seventh inning to push the Cougar led to 9-2 before Hutchinson scored three runs in the final at bat.

Natasha Dypchey picked up the win in the circle pitching 6 2/3 innings. Dypchey allowed two runs, while scattering eighth hits and striking out three.

WNCC had a multitude of players come up big at the plate in the contest. Mandy Pounds finished the game going 2-for-2 with an RBI and two singles, while Garner went 1-for-1 with a home run.

Hensley and Kara Ryman each went 2-for-4. Ryman had a RBI and a double, while Hensley finished with a double and home run. Voci also went 1-for-2 with a home run, while Lauren Mills scored a run and had an RBI without an official at bat.

WNCC, 44-6, will return to conference play on Tuesday when they travel to Lamar Community College for one game. If the Cougars win, they will clinch hosting the Region IX tournament which begins May 1. If they lose, they need to win just one game on Thursday at home when they face North Platte Community College.

First Game
WNCC 013 211 – 8 14 1
Hutchinson 000 003 0 – 3 9 2
WP – Garner; HR – Bourdon, Torimaru.

Second Game
WNCC (44-6) 221 120 1 – 9 12 0
Hutchinson (30-16) 101 000 3 – 5 11 0
WP – Dypchey; 2B – Ryman, Hensley; HR – Hensley, Voci, Garner.

WNCC drops doubleheader to Lamar, falls to fourth in conference standings

The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team’s seventh inning rally fell short as Lamar sweep a doubleheader from the Cougars Sunday 7-2 and 7-5.

The Cougars lost all four games over the weekend to Lamar and put themselves behind the eight-ball in making the Region IX playoffs.

"We put ourselves in a bad spot now,” WNCC coach Mike Jones said. “Dropping all four of these games puts us in a bad, bad position. We will have to find out what is going on around the conference after this weekend. We are in a bad spot and our backs are against the wall now.”

WNCC, however, is not out of the race just yet. The Cougars are tied with Otero Junior College for fourth with 12-16 records in conference play. Trinidad State is third with a 14-14. WNCC, however, holds the tiebreaker over both teams.

That makes Wednesday’s games vital when Northeastern Junior College visits Cleveland Field and Trinidad State travels to Otero. The WNCC contest Wednesday begins at 4 p.m.

“Those games will be everything we have left,” Jones said. “We are definitely hoping for some help from other teams. We need help from NJC to take care of Otero, and Trinidad and Otero will have to hook it up on Wednesday.

The Cougars had an opportunity to earn a split of Sunday’s games, staging a fierce rally in the seventh inning of the second game that left the tying run stranded at third and first base.

Before that rally came up short, it was how the Cougars came back. Trailing 7-2 entering the bottom of the inning, WNCC’s put on their rally caps and did all their scoring with two outs.

Carlos Garcia started things by drawing a one-out walk, followed by a double by Chris Hook. After a groundout, Greg Crowe delivered a line-drive single to right field to score one run. David Monteagudo followed with a double to left field to score two runs to cut the lead to 7-5.

Alex Mueller then advanced to first after being hit by a pitch to put runners on the corner. After a pitching switch, Rudy Soto grounded out to second base to end the rally.

“We put together a decent rally in the seventh. It was just a little bit too late,” Jones said. “We had opportunities early in the ball game with guys in scoring position and couldn’t come up with the big hits. We had trouble all day coming up with the big hits when we needed them. In the past our offense has been able to produce when we needed it. We cam up short this game."

The game, however, was intense from the get-go. Lamar took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third, only to see the Cougars tie the game in the bottom of the inning. Soto started things with a double followed by Norbert Susini drawing a walk. Then, with two outs, Hook delivered a clutch, two-out double to score both runs.

WNCC couldn’t hold the lead as Lamar scored three times in the fourth to take a 5-2 lead, followed by single runs in the sixth and seventh for the win.

Jake Vulk took the loss on the mound by giving up five runs and eight hits and striking out three.

Offensively, Hook went 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs, while Crowe went 3-for-4 with three singles, a runs scored and a RBI.

In the opening game, the Cougars couldn’t find that rally to bring come back as Lamar took control of the game from the opening inning, going up 2-0. WNCC did cut the lead to 3-1 with a one in the fourth as Garcia doubled and scored on a Crowe sacrifice fly. But, the Cougars couldn’e get any more runs across the plate stranding two runners on base.

Lamar added insurance runs in the fifth and sixth with two runs each to salt the game away. WNCC managed just seven hits in the contest, while Lamar had six hits, but three errors cost the Cougars.

Jackson Salazar suffered the loss despite pitching well.

Aurelio Monteagudo finished the game going 2-for-3 with a double. Garcia and Susini also featured doubles in the contest.

First Game
Lamar 200 122 0 – 7 6 1
WNCC 000 110 0 – 2 7 3
WP – Kyle Gurnieny, LP – Salazar; 2B – WNCC (Susini, Garcia, A. MOnteagudo), Lamar (Daniel Neumann, John Callahan).

Second Game
Lamar 002 301 1 – 7 13 0
WNCC 002 000 3 – 5 8 1
WP – Mychal Rahnich, LP – Vulk, S – Mike Ramirez; 2B – WNCC (Soto, Hook 2, D. Monteagudo), Lamar (Sam Sena); 3B – Lamar (Sena); HR – Lamar (Josh Payne).

WNCC, Lamar combine for 37 runs, 40 hits in game one; Cougars fall twice to Lamar

The Western Nebraska Community College and Lamar Community College baseball teams combined for 37 runs and 40 hits in game one of their doubleheader at Cleveland Field Saturday.

Unfortunately for the Cougars, they were on the wrong side of the scoreboard as Lamar claimed a action-packed first game 21-16, scoring five runs in the seventh inning for the win.

Lamar continued swinging a hot bat in game two, claiming a 9-2 win to sweep the doubleheader. WNCC, though, still is third in conference standings, tied with Otero and Trinidad, who all have 12-14 records. Lamar is second at 18-10, while Northeastern Colorado is 18-6, after play Saturday, which also featured NJC sweeping Otero, and Trinidad splitting with McCook.

WNCC, however, could have easily earned a split with the offensive production they produced in the opening game.

“When you score 16 runs in a ball game, that should be a win for sure,” coach Mike Jones said. “Unfortunately for us, we didn’t pitch real well and didn’t play very good defense in that first game and it got away from us. Offensively, though, we did a great job.”

WNCC finished the game with 19 hits compared to 21 for Lamar. The Cougars also left just seven base runners on base and were in control of the game several times, including leading 11-5 after three innings, after the Cougars put up six runs on seven hits in the third inning.

Most of the damage the Cougars did in the third inning game with two outs. The Cougars rattled off five straight hits to open up the game, including RBI singles by David Monteagudo, Norbert Susini and Carlso Garcia, and a two-run scoring double by Rich Miller to put the Cougars up 11-5.

WNCC added to the score by scoring two more runs in the fourth inning to go up 13-7. The Cougars, however, couldn’t hold the lead as Lamar scored nine runs in the fifth inning on just three hits. Zach Krueger, who played for the Chappell American Legion baseball team, picked up two hits in the inning including a double and four RBIs. Lamar led 16-13 at that point.

The Cougars, however, rallied back tying the game with two runs in the fifth and a single run in the sixth. In the fifth, Chris Hook started things with an one-out single followed by singled by Aurelio Monteagudo and Greg Crowe to slice the led to 16-15.

Susini then gave the Cougars live in the sixth as he smacked a solo home run to tie the game. But, WNCC couldn’t hold the lead as Lamar scored five times in the seventh inning for the victory.

WNCC had plenty of offensive heroes in the game. Susini went 4-for-4 with three runs scored, four RBIs, two singles, a double and a home run. Hook finished the game going 3-for-4 with two RBIs, three runs scored and three singles, followed by Crowe with a 3-for-4 game, including two doubles, two RBIs and two runs scored.

Also collecting multiple hits for the Cougars were Rudy Soto with a double and single, and David Monteagudo with two singles, two runs scored and two RBIs.

Lamar was paced by its eight and nine hitters. Sam Sena scored five times, while going 3-for-3 with two walks and four RBIs, while Evan Claus went 3-for-4 with a double, two singles, four runs scored and two RBIs.

Marco Jimenez took the loss, throwing 2 2/3 innings and giving up six runs and seven hits.

In the second game, WNCC had trouble keeping that first-game offensive attack alive as Lamar’s pitcher Brandon Van Riper shut down the Cougar bats, holding them to two runs and eight hits, while striking out six.

“There did a nice job of shutting us down in the second game,” Jones said. “Unfortunately for us, I think it was carry over from the first game. I think after putting up the 16 runs and still not coming out with the win, I think it really deflated us. You shouldn’t be like that. But as young ball players, they get down on themselves at times and I think it took a toll on us. Lamar did a great job of following up the first game and sticking it to us.”

WNCC took an early 1-0 lead as Crowe belted a solo home run in the second inning. That, though, was the end of the party for the Cougars as Lamar added three runs in the third and fifth inning to grab a 6-2 lead. The Runnin’ Lopes, then, added three insurance runs in the sixth for the victory.

Kyler Edgehouse took the loss despite giving a gutsy effort. Edgehouse went five innings, scattering six hits and striking out four.

Offensively, Crowe went 2-for-2 with a home run, single and a walk, followed by Miller with a 2-for-4 game, including a double.

Both teams will be back on the diamond Sunday in a doubleheader at noon at Cleveland Field. Jones said that Jackson Salazar and Jake Vulk will get the nods on the mound.

“We have to try put this behind us and come out and play better tomorrow. We will need better pitching. We gave up 30 runs in two games and that can’t happen. We have to come out and pitch a lot better tomorrow and let our offense settle in.”

First Game

Lamar 142 090 5 – 21 21 0

WNCC 416 221 0 – 16 19 2

WP – Mike Ramirez, LP – Jimenez; 2B – WNCC (Soto, Susini, Miller, Garcia, Crowe 2), Lamar (Krueger, Jim Morgan 2, Josh Payne, John Callahan, Sena 2, Claus); HR – WNCC (Susini), Lamar (J. Morgan, Sena).

Second Game

Lamar 003 033 0 – 9 11 1

WNCC 010 010 0 – 2 8 1

WP – Mike Ramirez, LP – Edgehouse; 2B – WNCC (Miller); HR – WNCC (Crowe), Lamar (Daniel Neumann).

WNCC softball hits five more home runs, sweeps Friends College

WICHITA, Kan. – The Western Nebraska Community College softball team connected on five home runs Saturday as they won games 41 and 42 on the season over Friends College junior varsity.

WNCC’s Jessie McNabb had two home runs in game one as the Cougars won 6-0, while Kara Ryman had two jacks in game two in WNCC’s 6-2 win. Lauren Mills had the other home run for the Cougars in game one.

The Cougars’ home run fest has been outstanding in the last three days, where they blasted 17 home runs. Ryman has had four home runs in the last two days, while Mills has connected on four in the last three days. McNabb, with her two on Saturday, has hit three home runs.

Even with the wins, coach Maria Winn Ratliff said they didn’t play overly well.

“We did not show up to play,” she said. “Their pitchers did a good job of keeping us off balance and we needed to make some adjustments.”

Still, the Cougars were the better team on the day. In the opener, McNabb started the home run fest with a solo shot in the first. WNCC went up 3-0 in the third as McNabb doubled and scored on a Ryman single.

McNabb added to the lead in the fifth with a 2-run bomb. McNabb finished the game 3-for-4 with three runs scored, three RBIs, a double and two home runs.

Bourdon went 3-for-3 on the day with a double and two singles, while Ryman went 2-for-3 with two RBIs.

Ashley Patton continued throwing well in the circle, picking up the win. Patton faced just 27 batters in seven innings of work, giving up five hits and walking just one.

Kelsey Garner picked up the win in game two, as the freshman hurler struck out six while allowing a run in five innings of work. Allie Griffin finished off the game throwing two innings, while striking out four.

Offensively, WNCC was paced by Ryman with a 3-for-4 game, including two RBIs, a double, two home runs and two runs scored. Ryman’s homers were solo shots in the second and seventh innings.

Mills also went 3-for-4 on the day, with four RBIs and a home run, while Kayli Allen went 1-for-1 with a single and stolen base.

The Cougars, 42-6, will face Hutchinson Community College Sunday on the final day of the four-day road trip.

First Game
WNCC 101 021 1 – 6 10 0
Friends 000 000 0 – 0 5 1
WP – Patton; 2B – McNabb, Bourdon; HR – McNabb (2).

Second Game
WNCC 011 012 1 – 6 12 0
Friends 001 000 1 – 2 4 1
WP – Garner; 2B – Ryman; HR – Ryman (2), Mills.

wncc softball hits seven home runs including to grans slams in doubleheader sweep of Sterling College

STERLING, Kan. -- The Western Nebraska Community College softball team blasted seven home runs, including grand slams by Kara Ryman and Alec Voci to register a double header sweep over Sterling College Junior Varsity Friday afternoon.

The Cougars blasted three home runs in a 21-0 win in the first game, and then had four home runs in the second game as the Cougars won 18-2. The wins give the Cougars 40 wins on the season.

“We swung the bats real well,” WNCC coach Maria Winn-Ratliff said. “Natasha [Dypchey] and Jessica [Pexton] did a nice job in the circle.”

WNCC had little trouble with Sterling College on the day. In the opener, the Cougars had 24 hits in the 21-0 win. Natasha Dypchey picked up the win, going five innings while scattering four hits and striking out four.

The Cougars started the hit parade with a bang as lead-off hitter Lauren Mills led off with a home run. Two batters later, Jessica McNabb blasted a 3-run shot for a 3-0 lead. In the fifth, Ryman recorded the third home run of the game as she blasted a grand slam in a 10-run inning.

Ryman paced the team with a 4-for-5 performance, including three runs scored, five RBIs and three singles. Also Mills went 3-for-3 with a single, double, home run, three runs scored and two RBIs, Lauren Bourdon going 3-for-4 with three singles and two runs scored, Lauryn Smith going 2-for-2 with a double, Voci going 2-for-3 with two runs scored, and Whittany Foster going 2-for-3 with two runs scored, two RBIs and a double.

WNCC continued their hitting in game two, collecting 17 hits and scoring 18 runs. The Cougars had four home runs, as Voci finished with two homers. Voci had a grand slam in the first inning and then hit another dinger over the 275-foot slow-pitch fence in the fifth inning. Also collecting home runs were Ryman in the fourth and Smith in the fifth.

Mills and Bourdon each went 3-for-4. Mills had a double and two runs scored, while Bourdon had four RBIs, two runs scored and a double.

Amanda Hensley finished with a 2-for-4 game with three runs, while Ryman went 1-for-4 with the 2-run home run. Kayli Allen also finished 1-for-1 with a double, while Smith went 2-for-2 with a triple, home run and two RBIs.

Pexton picked up the win going five innings and striking out three.

WNCC, 40-6, will continue it’s Kansas swing with a double header at Friends College Junior varsity today.

First Game
WNCC 342 2(10) -- 21 24 3
Sterling 000 00 -- 0 4 0
WP -- Dypchey; 2B -- Mills, McNabb, Smith, Foster; HR -- Mills, McNabb, Ryman.

Second Game
WNCC 610 74 -- 18 17 1
Sterling 000 20 -- 2 3 1
WP -- Pexton, 2B -- Mills, Bourdon, Allen; 3B -- Smith; HR -- Voci (2), Ryman, Smith.

WNCC baseball set for key home stand against Lamar this weekend

One doesn’t have to tell Western Nebraska Community College coach Mike Jones how important this weekend’s series with Lamar Community College is.

In fact, the four games could mean the difference between WNCC hosting a first-round game or not making the playoffs at all when the Cougars and Lamar hook up in a four-game series Saturday and Sunday at Cleveland Field. Only the top four teams make the playoffs this season, which is different from past years when all six teams competed in the double elimination tournament.

“It is not quite the playoffs yet, but it will feel like a playoff atmosphere,” Jones said. “These games are that important for us, and to Lamar, it is just as important because they don’t want to slip from second to fifth. It is almost like the playoffs almost started. We have to come out and play well.”

This year’s Region IX playoffs will pit the No. 1 and 4 seeds and the No. 2 and 3 seeds together at the site of the higher seed in a best two-out-of-three series beginning May 2. The winners will then square off the following week for the Region IX title.

WNCC, 22-21 overall, holds the down the third position in conference standings with a 12-12 record. They also hold the tie-breaker over Otero Junior College and Trinidad State Junior College, who are breathing down WNCC’s neck. Otero is 12-12 in conference play, while Trinidad State is 11-13.

Northeastern Junior College leads the conference with a 16-6 mark followed by Lamar Community College at 19-10. Jones said WNCC can end up anywhere from second to fifth after this weekend’s series with Lamar.

“There is a pack of us from second to fifth that are real close, and everybody will play each other this weekend,” Jones said. “We will find out where everybody stands on Monday.”

Jones said the new playoff format is adding plenty of drama to the race.

“If it wasn’t for that new playoff, it wouldn’t be that big of a deal because everybody knows they would make the tournament and everybody knows they are even and they could beat anybody in the tournament,” he said. “Now since that new format is in place, it really puts a lot of emphasize on the games for everybody.”

Lamar and WNCC already split a doubleheader earlier in the season. Lamar won the first game 8-1 before the Cougars came back and lit up the Runnin’ Lopes winning 17-8. First pitch Saturday is slated for 1 p.m., while Sunday’s action begins at noon.

“They beat us the first game and then we put up quite a few runs in the second game,” he said. “We know we can beat them. It will definitely come down to our pitching and whether our pitching can hold down there lineup for seven innings in four games straight will be our biggest question.”

WNCC’s fate will rest in the hands of pitchers Todd Stachura and Kyler Edgehouse on Saturday, and Jackson Salazar and Jake Vulk on Sunday. But, Jones said they will need to come ready to swing the bat against a young but talented Lamar team.

“For us offensively we are so up and down right now. We can score 10 runs or we can score two,” he said. “I think playing at home helps us out a lot. We see the ball so much better at home and we like the bigger field. We have more area to get some singles and line drives down. I think it plays in our favor.”

While it is important for the Cougars to win, the standings will also depend on other conference play. Northeastern Junior College travels to Otero, while Trinidad State takes on McCook in four-game series.

“We talk about how important this series is, but I don’t know if it has sunk into them yet,” Jones said. “I believe they have been taking it one game at a time and now all of a sudden the big picture is on top of them.

“There is two different ways to look at this series. One is to just approach it as any other day and have some fun with it and play your game and see how it all finishes. But, there again, the other side of it is maybe you come out too relaxed. Maybe Lamar comes out really energetic hoping to get an advantage on us. I think for us, we are going to put a little bit more emphasize on it then we have other ball games.”

Conference Standings
School Conf. Overall
NJC 16-6 28-10
Lamar 19-10 21-18
WNCC 12 -12 22-21
Otero 12-12 19-27
Trinidad 11-13 27-21
McCook 4-18 14-30

Saturday’s Games
Lamar at WNCC
Trinidad at McCook
NJC at Otero

Sunday’s Games
Lamar at WNCC
Trinidad at McCook
NJC at Otero

WNCC softball hits five home runs, sweeps North Platte

NORTH PLATTE -- The Western Nebraska Community College softball pounded out 28 hits annd scored 25 runs in claiming a doubleheader from North Platte Community College Thursday.

WNCC also hammered five home runs on the day, icluding two from Lauren Mills in the opener 15-7 win. The Cougars came back and had three home runs in game two as they needed late-inning magic in claiming the 10-5 win.

“We didn’t play like we usually do,” sophomore Lauren Mills said. “We made a lot of errors on defense. Offensively, we made a couple of errors and then we started to hit the ball. Still we didn’t play very good today and lucky to come out with a win.”

Still, the Cougars found a way to win and come ever-so-closer to hosting the Region IX tournament May 1. WNCC is now 20-1 in conference play with three conference games left. All they need to do is win one more game to lock up being the tournament host. WNCC’s next conference game is April 22 at Lamar Community College followed by a home date with North Platte on April 24.

Thursday’s games showed just how good of an offensive team they can be, and it was the long ball that sparked the team..

“We picked it up when we needed to,” Mills, who had two home runs, six runs scored and six RBIs on the day, said. “We came out dead in the first two innings [of game two] and then we picked it up. We new we had to get some runs. We kept hitting and the balls started falling in.”

The second game definitely was a testament to how well this Cougar team can play and win ball games. North Platte quickly took a 5-1 lead in the first inning on five hits. After that, sophomore pitcher shut down the Knights’ offense, while WNCC’s offense woke up.

Jessie McNabb quickly got the Cougars back in the game with a two-run home run that easily cleared center field to cut the lead to 5-3. WNCC sliced the lead to 5-4 with a single run in the fifth as Lauren Bourdon singled and scored on a Kara Ryman base hit.

WNCC finally took the lead in the sixth by plating three runs. Mills led off by drawing a walk. Amanda Hensley then slapped a home run over the right centerfield fence to put WNCC up 6-5. The Cougars weren’t threw as McNabb singled and later took advantage of a North Platte fielding error on a hit ball by Amada Torimaru for a 7-5 lead.

The Cougars offense continued to shine in the seventh inning as Allie Griffin led off with a solo home run down the left field line. WNCC added two more insurance runs as Mills and McNabb each scored with Ryman providing a huge double up the middle for the 10-5 win.

Patton picked up the win in the circle coming in relieve of Natasha Dypchey. Patton struck out four and scattered seven hits, while walking just one. Patton’s toughness came up big in a crucial fifth inning where North Platte loaded the bases with no outs. The sophomore from Utah then struck out two Knight batters, and the the final out on a line-out to first base to stop the scoring threat.

“AP came in and did a wonderful job,” Mills said. “She shut them down and made them pop up while scattering hits. We also backed her up on defense.”

Offensively, WNCC finished with 12 hits. Hensley paced the team with a 3-for-4 performance, including a home run, two runs scored and two RBIs. McNabb and Ryman also collected two hits each. McNabb went 2-for-5 with a home run, three runs scored and three RBIs, while Ryman went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBIs.

In the first game, the Coguars didn’t have to worry about a late-inning comeback as the Cougars led from start to finish. They did, however, had to fend off a North Platte comeback that sliced a 6-0 lead to 6-5 on one time.

WNCC held a 7-0 lead after 2 ½ innings and seemed in control. North Platte, however, had other ideals as they put up five runs in the third inning on five hits to cut the deficit to 7-5.

The Cougars did withstand the Knights’ charge with five runs in he fifth inning. The big hit was a 2-RBI triple by Bourdon. Bourdon then scored on a Ryman sacrifice fly for a 12-6 lead. The Cougars added three more runs in the sixth as Mills hit her second home run of the game to score Whittany Foster and Griffin for the final runs of the game.

Kelsey Garner picked up her 22nd win of the season. Garner striking out nine while scattering 14 hits.

WNCC pounded out 16 hits in the win, including a 4-for-5 game from Bourdon and 3-for-5 games from Mills and Hensley. Mills had two home runs, six RBIs and six runs scored in the win, while Bourdon had a triple and four RBIs., and Hensley had a double and two runs scored.

Mills said while the Cougars picked up two conference wins, they realize that they need to play better with the Region IX tournament just around the corner.

“It is totally a wake-up call,” she said. “We need to show up and play our game. No team will give us a win and we need to take it from them.”

WNCC, 38-6, will continue a four-day series of games Friday at Sterling College junior varsity followed by contests with Friends College junior varsity on Saturday and Hutchinson Community College on Sunday.

First Game
WNCC 421 053 -- 15 16 1
NPCC 005 101 -- 7 14 4
WP -- Garner; 2B -- Hensley, Torimaru; 3B -- Bourdon; HR -- Mills (2).

Second Game
WNCC 102 013 3 -- 10 12 0
NPCC 500 000 0 -- 5 11 5
WP -- Patton; 2B -- Ryman, Torimaru; HR -- McNabb, Hensley, Griffin.

WNCC baseball team splits at McCook

Submitted by JEREMY WOZNICK, Star-Herald Sports Reporter

Making his first start of the season on the mound, Western Nebraska Community College's Rudy Soto helped the Cougars earn a doubleheader split at McCook Community College on Wednesday afternoon.

Soto, a sophomore from San Luiz, Ariz., struck out four in 5 1/3 innings of work in WNCC's 6-2 first-game win. However, the Cougars couldn't keep the momentum going as they dropped an 8-6 setback in game two.

"We didn't play all that well today," WNCC coach Mike Jones said. "This was Rudy's first start of the season and it was nice that he threw solid innings for us. He gave us a good effort on the mound and got us a win in game one. Unfortunately in game two, we gave McCook too many opportunities with some walks and some errors. We would have liked to sweep, but now we'll start looking forward to Lamar this weekend."

The split kept WNCC in the third spot in the Region IX's Empire Conference, right behind Northeastern Junior College and Lamar Community College. Lamar and Otero Junior College split a doubleheader on Wednesday, which kept the Rattlers behind WNCC in the fourth spot.

Trinidad State Junior College is right behind Otero in fifth. Only the top four teams in the conference at the end of the regular season advance to the regional tournament.

In addition to getting a strong pitching effort out of Soto in game one, the Cougars received a pair of clutch hitting performances from Dustin Javins and Greg Crowe. Javins went 3-for-3 and drove in two runs in the contest and Crowe also drove in a pair of runs while going 2-for-3. WNCC finished the game with eight hits.

With the game tied at 2-2 entering the fifth inning, the Cougars erupted for four runs in the top of the inning to take control. Marco Jimenez gave the Cougars another strong effort out of the bullpen as he replaced Soto on the mound with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning and limited McCook to just a single hit the rest of the way.

In game two, WNCC dug itself a hole early as McCook built a 3-0 lead after three innings and led 7-1 after five. The Cougars plated three runs in the sixth and two more in the seventh before their rally came to an end.

David Monteagudo led WNCC's offensive attack by going 2-for-3 with a double.
Crowe took the loss on the mound. He struck out five in five innings of work.

WNCC, 22-21 overall and 12-12 in the conference, hosts Lamar in a key four-game series starting Saturday at Cleveland Field in Scottsbluff. The teams will play two games on Saturday and two more on Sunday.

"It's going to be a very important series for us," Jones said. "Lamar's a good ball club. We need to make sure we pitch well, play good defense and find some more ways to score some more runs."
Following this weekend's series, WNCC will host NJC on Wednesday in its final two conference games of the regular season.

Game One
WNCC 010 140 0 - 6 8 2
McCook 002 000 0 - 2 7 4
WP - Rudy Soto.

Game Two
WNCC 000 103 2 - 6 7 2
McCook 021 041 x - 8 8 0
LP - Greg Crowe. 2B - David Monteagudo.

Kelsey Garner tabbed co-pitcher of the week by the NJCAA

Western Nebraska Community College freshman pitcher Kelsey Garner was tabbed NJCAA co-pitcher of the week after picking up three over the weekend, including a pair of wins over Trinidad State and a win over Otero. In 16 innings last week she allowed 14 hits, five runs (one earned) and two walks and struck out 13. With six strikeouts in the opening game of the Trinidad State double header, Garner broke the single-season strikeout record at Western Nebraska. The previous record was 153 set last season. Garner is currently tied for the most single-season wins with 21.

Garner shares this week's honor with Wallace State's Holli Hill, who also won three games and had 38 strikeouts in 20 innings of work. Hill threw a perfect game in the 8-0 win over Snead State, striking out 11 over six innings. Against Northwest Shoals she threw a one-hit shut out, striking out 15.

WNCC's Busma signs to play basketball at Division 1 Idaho State

Devidas Busma didn’t have to worry about how many Division I colleges that wanted the 7-foot post players services. The question that Busma had to worry about was which school among the many that contacted the Western Nebraska Community College was he going to commit to for the next two seasons.

Busma, who averaged eight points and nine rebounds a game for the Cougars last season, had generated interest from Iowa, Iowa State, Rutgers and Nebraska to name a few. In the end, it wasn’t one of those high-profile institutions; it was Idaho State that won his services for the next two years when Busma signed to play for the Bengals this week.

“Idaho State recruited me for two years and they had a lot of influence on me. They supported me, found me this school, and kept following me through the whole two years,” Busma said. “They really have a good program and when I went for a visit there, I could see myself there. I thought I could be a real factor in the team and help the team.”

WNCC coach Brian Joyce, who also played basketball for Idaho State in the mid 1990s, said that Idaho State was the better fit, where he could use his talents more so then at a bigger school. Joyce said he had a lot of schools contact him throughout the season about Busma’s services.

“There were a lot of good schools that showed interest in Dave, and obviously he had a solid year for us,” Joyce said. “I think the thing about Dave that I found out is he is very loyal in this school, who helped him come over to the United States and find Western Nebraska. I think when some one shows that much interest in you over a period of time, you start to feel that more comfortable.

“In turn, he is going to play a significant role in the program, where in some other programs he maybe wasn’t seen as such a key player in what they were going to do. I think Dave’s best years are ahead of him. From the time I was fortunate to get this position, and last summer I was able to work with Dave for two or three months over the summer and through the season. He has made tremendous strides.”

Busma joins a Idaho State team that is a member of the Big Sky Conference, which includes the University of Northern Colorado. Last season the Bengals finished 12-19 before falling in the semi-finals to Portland State at the conference tournament.

Busma said that he expects to make a impact, but knows he needs to continue to work hard.

“They said I could be the key player that can take this program to the next level,” he said. “But, I will have to go there and earn a place myself. Take it from there and see what happens.”

Joyce said that he will continue to get better under Idaho State coach Joe O’Brien, who won three NJCAA national titles while at Southeastern Community College. Busma is expected to go to the Pocatello, Idaho, school to take some summer classes and work out with the team.

Busma said Joyce really helped him get better this past season, and said that he will miss the Scottsbluff community.

“I have improved really a lot from last year,” the big man said. “I gained a lot of confidence. My rebounding got better since Coach Joyce came here, and a lot of things changed and I started to progress a lot.

“I will miss the community and the people. The basketball program has been really good to me. I have become a better student and player, and I have gained so much experience for the future. I think this college will be useful for me."

WNCC baseball takes three of four from Otero, moves into third in conference standings

The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team opened up the offense to get back into the conference race for a regional tournament spot in taking three of four games from Otero Junior College Sunday and Monday at Cleveland Field.

The Cougars used a late-inning rally in registering a 6-5 nine-inning win to open the series Sunday, before falling to the Rattlers later that night 6-3. Things were different on Monday as the Cougars pounded out 22 hits in sweeping Otero 10-3 and 8-4 to move into third place in the conference standings.

“We needed to win this series badly so we could come out of fifth place and right now we are sitting in third,” sophomore third-baseman Rudy Soto said. “We just need to stay consistent and we need to keep winning series to make regional playoffs.”

Indeed the Cougars needed a spark to stop a 5-out-of-6 game losing skid and it game in the form of the long ball, including a grandslam from Soto and a 2-run home run in Monday’s first game, followed by home runs by Greg Crowe and Norbert Susini in the second game.

“We played great and played a lot better then we have been this weekend,” Soto said. “Everybody came through from pitching, defense and offense.”

WNCC started Monday off on a hot start, pasting the Rattlers for eight early runs to grab an 8-0 lead. Garcia started things with a 2-run home run in the first inning followed by the grandslam by Soto in the third inning. The Cougars added two more runs in the fifth inning on a 2-RBI double by Rich Miller.

Miller paced the Cougars from the plate, going 3-for-4, followed by Soto going 3-for-5 with four RBIs and Garcia going 1-for-3 with three RBIs.

Jackson Salazar picked up the win going all seven innings in striking out 11 and walking one. Salazar also scattered five hits.

WNCC continued pounding the ball in the second game, and it didn’t take WNCC long to get on the scoreboard as Soto and Susini had back-to-back singles, followed by a Garcia Sacrifice fly to score Soto for the 1-0 lead.

The Cougars opened up the game in the third inning, platting six runs on six hits. Miller had a big 2-RBI single to start the rally and then Greg Crowe capped off the scoring with a monster 2-run home run to put WNCC up 7-0. Susini added the final run with a solo home run in the fourth inning.

Soto finished the game 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored, followed by Aurelio Monteagudo going 2-for-3 with a run scored and RBI.

Jake Vulk picked up the win going 6 1/3 innings, allowing just two hits three runs. Vulk struck out two and walked two.

WNCC had some hot bats in Sunday’s contests as well, especially in the first game where the Cougars mounted a seventh-inning rally to force extra innings. Down by four runs 5-1, the team exploded from the plate as Rudy Soto launched a 2-run home run and then Susini and Miller each had doubles to force extra innings.

The Cougars won the game in the ninth in thrilling fashion. Chris Hook started things by drawing a walk. A hits-batsman and a walk later, the Cougars found themselves with the bases loaded once again with two outs. This time, WNCC scored the winning run on a fielding error where the Otero third baseman lost a routine fly ball and let the ball drop as Hook raced in with the winning run.

Soto paced the Cougars with a 3-for-4 game with two RBIs, while Garcia and Crowe each had two hits. Marco Jimenez picked up the win pitching two innings in striking out two and not allowing a hit.

In the second game, Otero exploded for five runs in the top of the first inning before WNCC came back to slice the lead to 5-3 with three runs of their own in the bottom of the inning. The score stayed that way until late when Otero scratched across another run to get the win.

Kyler Edgehouse took the loss on the mound, giving up four hits and five runs in less then an innings work.

WNCC will be back in action Wednesday when they face McCook Community College on the road, before entertaining Lamar Community College in a crucial four-game set at Cleveland Field this weekend.

Sunday’s Games
First Game
Otero 100 300 100 – 5 7 4
WNCC 010 000 401 – 6 12 2
WP – Jimenez; 2B – Garcia, Crowe, Susini, Miller; 3B – D. Monteagudo; HR – Soto.

Second Game
Otero 500 100 0 – 6 9 0
WNCC 300 000 0 – 5 4 2
LP – Edgehouse; 2B – A. Monteagudo; HR – Susini.

Monday’s Games
First Game
Otero 000 030 0 – 3 5 1
WNCC 224 020 x – 10 11 2
WP – Salazar; 2B – A. Monteagudo; Miller; HR – Garcia, Soto

Second Game
Otero 000 000 4 – 4 3 1
WNCC 106 100 x – 8 11 1
WP – Vulk; 2B – Soto, Hook; HR – Crowe, Susini.

Conference Standings
Conf. Overall
NJC 16-6 28-10
Lamar 15-9 20-17
WNCC 11-11 21-20
Otero 11-11 18-26
Trinidad 11-13 26-20
McCook 4-18 14-30

WNCC baseball team splits contests with Otero Junior College

The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team split conference games with Otero Junior College on Sunday, winning 6-5 in nine innings and then falling 6-3.

In the opener, the Cougars mounted a seventh-inning rally to force extra innings. Down by four runs 5-1, the team exploded from the plate as Rudy Soto launched a 2-run home run and then Norbert Susini and Rich Miller each had doubles to force extra innings.

WNCC had opportunities to win the game in the eighth inning as Greg Crowe opened the inning with an hit. WNCC proceeded to load the bases before Otero worked out of the jam.

The Cougars finally won the game in the ninth in thrilling fashion. Chris Hook started things by drawing a walk. a hits-batsman and a walk later, the Cougars found themselves with the bases loaded once again with two outs. This time, WNCC scored the winning run on a fielding error where the Otero third baseman lost a routine fly ball and let the ball drop as Hook raced in with the winning run.

In the second game, Otero exploded for five runs in the top of the first inning before WNCC came back to slice the lead to 5-3 with three runs of their own in the bottom of the inning. The score stayed that way until late when Otero scratched across another run to get the win.

Both teams will be back on the diamond Monday at 1 p.m. for another doubleheader.

WNCC softball sweeps Otero, take 2-game lead in conferecnce standings

The Western Nebraska Community College softball team has never swept Otero Junior College in the history of the program. Sunday the Cougars made history by registering a 4-2 and then a 12-2 five-inning win against the Rattlers to push the team’s record to 36-6 on the season.

The wins not only made history for the Cougar program, more importantly, it gave WNCC a two game lead in the conference standings and the leg up in hosting the Region IX tournament in May.

“These wins are huge,” second-game winning pitcher Ashley Patton said. “In order for us to bring the regional tournament here, we had to sweep them and I think we sent a message. These wins are big and we are very excited.”

The Cougars haven’t wrapped up hosting the regional tournament just yet. Currently, the are setting atop the regional standings with an 18-1 record followed by Otero Junior College at 21-3. Otero is finished with conference play, while the Cougars have five more conference games left -- four with North Platte and one with Lamar.

“I think we have been trying to prove ourselves all year what kind of team that we are and hopefully someone will recognize that we can go out and play with anybody,” WNCC coach Maria Winn-Ratliff said. “Otero is a great program with great tradition. I thought the girls showed up and they were ready to play.

“Obviously, it puts us in a good position in Region IX, but we still have five big games to play. North Platte and Lamar will claw and fight juyt like everybody else in the league. We really want to host this tournament to give back to our community and we want to show them how good we think we are “

But the way the Cougars played Sunday definitely showed just how good of a ball team they are. WNCC pounded out 19 hits and scored 16 runs in the wins, while holding a potent Otero lineup to just four runs and 13 hits.

“Defensively, we made a couple of mistakes but I thought we overcame them and we never got down,” Winn-Ratlliff said. “Offensively, we got big hits from everybody. Kelsey Garner and Ashley Patton’s jobs in the circle were amazing. We can’t be disappointed with what happened in the circle. I am extremely proud.”

In the opening game, Garner struck out six and scattered six hits in picking upp her 21st win of the season. But it was also great defense that helped the Cougars pick up the win as the WNCC defense only had two innings where they faced five or more Rattler batters.

WNCC, in the meantime, had their bats come alive and it all started in the third inning as Mandy Pounds reached base on a slap single. She later scored on a Jessie McNabb single for the 1-0 lead.

WNCC went up 2-0 in the fourth inning as Kara Ryman led off by stroking a double. Then, with two outs, Pounds registered another slap single to put runners in scoring position. Lauren Mills responded with a single to leftfield that scored Ryman and Pounds for the 3-0 lead.

The Cougars plated a fourth run in the fifth. Lauren Bourdon stroked a one-out double and scored later on a throwing error for the 4-0 lead.

WNCC couldn’t hold the shutout as Otero plated two runs on three hits and ann error in the sixth inning to cut the lead in half. But, Garner and the Cougar defense put the Rattlers to rest in the sixth and seventh innings for the win.

Pounds, Bourdon and McNabb each finished with two hits for the Cougars. Pounds was 2-for-3 with two runs scored.

WNCC continued pounding the ball in the second game, while getting an excellent pitching performance from Patton. Patton, scattered seven hits, while striking out one. But, it was the defense behind the sophomore right-hander that came up big, turning two double plays.

In fact, it was the double play in the fourth inning that turned the tide for the Cougars. Otero just scored its second run of the game and had the bases loaded with one out. Patton then snared a shoe-top line drive and the doubled off the runner at third for the final out of the game.

While the defense was sparkling, the offense was just as sharp. WNCC scored three times in the first and third innings. In the first, Bourdon unleashed a 2-run scoring triple to open up the scoring. Bourdon then came around to score on a Ryman single for a 3-1 lead.

The Cougars went up 6-1 in the third as Amanda Hensley, McNabb and Bourdon each had singles to load the bases. Bourdon’s, in fact, was a clutch bunt single as the sophomore was just trying to sacrifice runners and ended up safely at first after the ball died on the field with no attempted throw.

Ryman then ripped a shot back to the circle that put bounced off Stacey Ortiz’s hand for the first run of the game. After a pitching change, Amanda Torimaru rocketed a shot off the left field fence to score the sixth run of the game.

WNCC put the game away in the fourth inning when they plated six runs. Amanda Hensley started the inning with a single followed by run-scoring doubles by Bourdon and Ryman. Then, with two outs, the Patton, Lauryn Smith and Pounds all earned walks to force in another run. Mills then added three more runs to the scoreboard with a triple to put WNCC up 12-2.

Bourdon and Ryman each collected three hits in the game. Bourdon was a home run shy of the cycle, collecting a single, double, triple three RBIs and three runs scored. Ryman had two singles, a double, three RBIs and a run scored.

McNabb and Hensley also tallied two hits each. Hensley went 2-for-3 with three runs scored, while McNabb went 2-for-3 with two runs scored.

Winn-Ratliff said that it is nice that the offense was on track against a good Otero pitching staff.

“We just wanted to control the counts the best that we could. [Jessie} Lessard is very good when she gets ahead in the count and hard to beat and Ortiz gave us problem the last time we played them,” she said. “I thought we made good adjustments and made her bring the ball over the plate. We just kept finding ways to win.

Winn-Ratliff said that the team’s offense has really came alive in the last four games, where they pounded out 42 hits in the weekend games against Trinidad and Otero.

“We have been struggling and the last four games we decided to swing the bats like we know how and score runs,” she said. “We came up with some great bunts when we needed to. We just want to keep putting as many runs on the board that we can and contain the other teams.”

WNCC has five more conference games left including doubleheaders with North Platte Thursday on the road and then April 24 at home, and a one-game match-up with Lamar Community College on April 22.

“It was all a team effort,” Patton said. “We have a great pitching staff and it is amazing with the defense that we have. We are going to stay focused [for the other conference games] and take it one game at a time.”

First Game
Otero 000 002 0 -- 2 6 1
WNCC 001 210 x -- 4 7 2
WP -- Garner; 2B -- Bourdon, Ryman.

Second Game
Otero 100 10 -- 2 7 0
WNCC 303 6x -- 12 12 1
WP -- Patton; 2B -- Bourdon, Ryman, Torimaru; 3B -- Bourdon, Mills.