GLENDIVE,
Mont. -- The Western Nebraska Community College softball team captured the
regular season Region IX conference title after sweeping Dawson Community
College Sunday afternoon in Glendive, Mont.
Jocelyn
Stubbs and Mariah Shepherd recorded home runs in leading the Cougars to the 4-3
win in game one. The second game saw Amanda Jones toss a five-hitter to shut
out the Bucs 9-0 for the Cougars 36th win of the season.
By
capturing the conference championship, the Cougars earned the number-one seed
in the Region IX tournament to be held in two weeks in La Junta, Colo.
Danielle
Hearn, freshman from Santa Monica, Calif., said they played pretty well to get
the four-game sweep over Dawson over the weekend.
“I
think the team played pretty well,” she said. “We had some ups and downs but we
were able to keep fighting to come up with four wins.”
As
much as capturing the number one seed as well as the regular season conference
championship was exciting, Hearn said they still have a few more goals to go.
“We worked
very hard to achieve our goal and come out on top of conference,” she said. “It
feels great to go into regionals on top and to have a little confidence going
into the tournament will help.”
Sunday's
two wins was a test of determination. In the opener, the Cougars matched Dawson
run-for-run. Dawson scored first in the top of the first, but WNCC quickly responded
in the bottom half of the inning as Sarah Hawryluk singled, stole second, and
scored on a passed ball.
Dawson
went up 2-1 in the third only to watch WNCC respond right back with a run in
the bottom of the frame. Jocelyn Stubbs tied the contest with a 2-out home run
to left field.
The
Bucs came right back to go up 3-2 with a single run in the sixth. WNCC
responded once again and it didn't take long either. Stubbs led off with a
single and then Shepherd took a 2-2 count and pasted the ball over the
centerfield fence for a 2-run home run and the 4-3 lead.
Offensively,
the Cougars finished with seven hits. Stubbs paced the team with a 3-for-3 game
with a home run. No other Cougar had more than one hit. Shepherd did finished
with two RBIs.
Bianca
Duran picked up the win in the circle, tossing seven innings in surrounding
eight hits, three runs, while striking out seven.
The
second contest was all WNCC from the get-go, scoring eight runs on five hits. Hawryluk
started things by drawing a walk and game in to score on a Shepherd single.
WNCC kept taking advantage of Dawson errors and walks for the 8-0 lead.
WNCC
added a single run in the third as Mariah Faifer had a solo home run.
WNCC
pounded out just seven hits in the contest. Hearn, Shepherd and Faifer all
finished with two hits each and two RBIs each.
Jones
picked up the win by striking out four and scattering five hits.
WNCC,
36-24, will be back in action Wednesday when they face Iowa Western Community
College in Kearney. After that, they will return home to face Garden City
Community College in a four-game series that will cap off the regular season.
First Game
Dawson 101
001 0 -- 3 8 0
WNCC 101
002 x -- 4 7 3
WP -- Bianca Duran; 2B -- Bree Bitton; HR -- Jocelyn
Stubbs, Mariah Shepherd.
Second Game
Dawson 000
00 -- 0 5 5
WNCC 601
0x -- 9 7 1
WP -- Amanda Jones; HR -- Mariah Faifer.
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