WNCC softball drops two in Arizona

PHOENIX -- The Western Nebraska Community College softball team's start to its games in Arizona didn't start off with a blaze after the Cougars dropped a pair of contests.

The Cougars were limited to just two hits as Odessa College blanked WNCC 9-0. Against South Mountain Community College, the Cougars allowed three late-inning runs to suffer a 5-3 setback.

Both contests saw costly fielding errors that caused their opponents to score momentum-building runs. The Cougars committed six errors in the two games.

In game one, Odessa scored a single run in the first and two more in the third for a 3-0 lead. They then opened the game with a six-run fourth inning to earn the run-rule shortened contest.

WNCC managed just two hits in the contest, a single my Tonya Atencio in the third inning and a double my Jordan Schoepflin in the fourth.

Taylor Anderson suffered the loss in the circle, going three innings while scattering eight hits and giving up five runs. Anderson struck out four in the contest.

Against South Mountain, the Cougars offense was a little more potent, out-hitting SMCC 8-7. WNCC too a 2-0 lead in the third as Megan Bourdan started things with a double. Allie Alverson followed with a run-scoring double before Adena Hagen blasted a triple to score Alverson.

South Mountain came back with two runs in the third and fifth inning, and a single run in the fourth for a 5-2 lead. WNCC tried to mount a comeback as Amanda Saldivar singled and scored on a Alverson single.

Alverson and Haden each had two hits for the Cougars. Alverson had a double, scored a run, and had two RBIs, while Hagen had a triple and a RBI. Bourdon finished the game with a double and a run scored. Also collecting singles for the Cougars were Schoepflin and Katie Groves.

Stephanie Townsend took the loss in the circle by going 4 1/3 innings. Townsend struck out two, walked two, scattered seven hits and gave up five runs and four earned runs.

Anderson finished off the game by going 1 2/3 innings, striking out one.

WNCC, 12-5 and losers of their last three games, will return to action Wednesday when they face Gateway Community College in a doubleheader in Arizona.

First Game
WNCC 000 00 -- 0 2 4
Odessa 102 6x -- 9 11 2
LP -- Taylor Anderson; 2B -- Jordan Schoepflin.

Second Game
WNCC (12-5) 002 000 1 -- 3 8 2
South Mountain 002 120 x -- 5 7 1
LP -- Townsend; 2B -- Megan Bourdon, Allie Alverson; 3B -- Adena Hagen.