Pintos scores 25 as WNCC women top Lamar 77-44

Western Nebraska Community College’s Thais Pinto poured in 25 points and had three blocked shots to power the Cougar women to a 77-44 win over Lamar Community College Friday at Cougar Palace.

The Cougar women used a 20-1 run to close out the first half in picking up their 21^st win of the season. Pinto had six straight points during that crucial run to help the Cougars to a 46-18 halftime lead.

“We played much better defense and this win reflects the job we are doing during practice,” Pinto, the Cougars’ 6-foot-7 post, said. “After we lost three games at home, this win shows us how we have overcome and now have won three straight home games.”

What won the game for the Cougars was the strong first half and several players had a hand in the 46-18 halftime lead.

Yuki Morimoto scored 15 of her 19 points in the opening 20 minutes. Shelby Campbell and Carolina Alves also came off the bench to score three points each. Tiffany Moorer also was hot early, scoring six straight points to bring the Cougars back from a 5-2 deficit to a 9-5 lead. The Cougars never trailed after that.

“We were aggressive in the first half,” Pinto said. “We played together, we played with each other more, we had steals, and we hit the boards.”

The Cougars shot a blistering 60 percent from the field in the opening half, as well as connecting on 60 percent from beyond the 3-point range. The Cougars also were unselfish with the fall in the opening half as they had 13 assists and six steals. Stormye Everett, who didn’t score in the game, contributed five first-half assists.

WNCC just gelled on the night as they out-rebounded Lamar 42-26 and out-shot the Lopes 53 percent to 23 percent. The only negative from the game was turnovers as the Cougars committed 20 turnovers, but most of those miscues came from different lineups on the court.

Pinto had one of her best games of the season with 25 points. Her previous best was a 22-point outing against Colby back in December.

“I am working hard in practice and the games to get better for regionals,” she said. “I am trying to stay more confident and working on my toughness.”

Morimoto finished the game with a double-double, scoring 19 and pulling down 10 rebounds. Amber Kistler also finished with 11 points and three steals, while Moorer had seven points.

Lamar was led by Ashley Torres with 16 points, including four 3-pointers.

WNCC, 21-7, will next be in action Tuesday when they travel to Torrington, Wyo., to face Eastern Wyoming College. Tip-off for that contest is slated for 5:30 p.m. The last time these two teams met, EWC escaped Cougar Palace with a 68-66 win.

“We need to play defense, stop penetration and have less turnovers then in the first game we played them,” Pinto said. “We also need to play strong for 40 minutes.”

Lamar 18 26 – 44
WNCC 46 31 – 77
LAMAR
Morgan Smith 4, Britany Rayford 11, Ashley Torres 16, Krystina George 4, Nicole Midder 1, Jackie Eberhard 2, Emily Purton 2.
WESTERN NEBRASKA
Amber Kistler 11, Shelby Campbell 4, Yuki Morimoto 19, Tiffany Moorer 7, Carolina Alves 3, Madison Keller 2, Thais Pinto 25.

WNCC assistant softball coach takes in Winter Olympics in her home country.

WNCC student assistant softball coach Natasha Dypchey was in awe over the the Winter Olympics which are currently being held in her home Providence of British Columbia.

Dypchey, from Surray, British Columbia, went home last weekend to absorb some of the pageantry of the event.

“This was my first Olympic experience.” Dypchey said. “In Canada the Olympics are a big thing. There is one channel that is dedicated to the Olympics and only runs Olympic coverage all day. It was a memorable experience and I want to go and see as many as I can.”

Dypchey was there for the weekend and didn’t watch any of the events. What she did experience was the atmosphere of the games.

“My best memory was taking in all of the events and seeing all of the people and being in the atmosphere for the Olympic games,” she said.

Dypchey, who lives an hour from Vancouver, said the closest event to her house is just 30 minutes away and that is the long track speed skating competition. Just being in Vancouver during the event was history in itself.

“The Olympics were amazing,” she said. “There were so many people everywhere and everyone was in great spirits and willing to just have a conversation with anyone.”

Dypchey said that they went to all the country pavilions, including having their picture taken with Russian sailors.

“We went to all of the pavilions for each country,” she said. “Some of the major countries host places that show you a bit of their own culture and they have food and give out free scarfs and pins, so that was pretty cool. Each province of Canada also has their own pavilion, too.”

The other thing that stood out for Dypchey was seeing the Olympic flame.

“Seeing the outdoor Olympic torch was the coolest thing that I saw,” she said. “Also the Russian pavilion was pretty cool because they are hosting the next winter Olympics. They had a lot of exhibits to show what their country is doing to prepare for the next winter Olympics.”

The Winter Olympics opened Feb. 12 with the opening ceremonies and will run through Feb. 28 with the closing ceremonies. In the mean time, there are a lot of people from athletes to media outlets to spectators that have come to Vancouver to watch the epic event.

“There are just over 2 million people in and around the city of Vancouver.,” she said. “The media was out in full force and they were everywhere you looked, just like the police and security force.”

The Olympic games started, however, with tragedy as 21-year-old Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili died on a training run on Friday, Feb. 12. There is a memorial wall for Kumaritashvili at the luger site and there is a lot of heavy hearts over the death.

“I never saw the actual memorial on the mountain and by the track in which he died at,” she said. “But when the news came out everyone was devastated and it was hard to think about it.”

With Vancouver holding such a worldly event, there definitely are some bad things that come out of the event. Besides all the people, tickets for a lot of the events start around $75 and higher. Also, there are people that are against the Olympics.

“The Olympics are supported by almost everyone,” she said. “There were a few protesters that were from the east coast of Canada that are against the games, but other than that everyone has been very very supportive and are in high spirits. It is one big party down there that everyone is celebrating.”

Dypchey actually was glad to have the opportunity to witness the Olympic experience even though it was just for one weekend — she had to return to WNCC on Monday since the Cougar softball team, which she is a student assistant coach, opened the season this week.

WNCC drop two heartbreaking games to Pratt Community College

PRATT, Kan. -- The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team received stellar pitching performances, but couldn't get anything going offensively in suffering a doubleheader loss to Pratt Community College Thursday on the road.

WNCC lost in the bottom of the seventh inning 2-1 in the opener, and then lost a heart-pounding 10-inning 2-1 contest in the nightcap.

"These were some tough losses. We got real good pitching," WNCC coach Mike Jones said. "Both starters, Rodil and Julio were good. The bullpen was good. it was just that we made some baserunning mistakes and we swung at some bad pitches. Those really cost us."

WNCC struck first in the opener, scoring a single run in the second inning as Nelson Quintero unleashed a 2-out single and scored on a single by Jared Baros.

Pratt tied the game with a single run in the fourth inning and then scored the winning run on a wild pitch with the bases loaded.

JC Morales took the loss for the Cougars after a outstanding outing by Rodil Martines. Martinez went five innings, scattering four hits and striking out three. John Bravard threw a strong sixth inning striking out two.

WNCC managed just three hits in the first game. The Cougars also had three hits in the second game as well as the Cougars struck first, scoring a run in the third inning as Caleb Patton scored from third base on a double play play.

Pratt tied the game in the sixth inning. WNCC came back and had runners in scoring position in the eight and 10th innings, but couldn't get the clutch hit to score the go-ahead run. In the Cougar's eighth, Patton led off with a double but pinch runner Kevin Sanford was left stranded at third.

In the 10th inning, Jared Baros was hit by a pitch. Quintero then walked. Both runners, however were stranded with three straight outs. Pratt then won the game on an one out single to left field.

"in the second game we had quite a few chances where we had guys in scoring position at second base and we just couldn't get that base hit that we needed," Jones said. "in a way it was better today [then Wednesday]. We had some good defense and we showed up ready to play. We just have a long ways to go as an offensive team. We need to start having better at bats and getting some hits. We are just not hitting the ball well enough."
David Castle took the loss in the game after some gutsy pitching performances from starter Julio Davila and relievers SIdney Jones, Carlos Luzon and Jake Stutzman. Davila started the game, going five hitless innings. Davilo struck out eight but walked five batters.

WNCC managed just three hits in the game from Patton, Oscar Rodrigues and Josh Parker.

The Cougars, 0-8, will have over a week off before they return to action Feb. 27-28 when they host Miles Community College at Cleveland Field.

"We have some time where we can get back to work, have some quality practices. Hopefully we will get a chance to play at home next weekend," he said. "Our offense has to get a lot better. We having bad at bats and we are struggling in hitting the breaking ball. we have a long ways to go offensively, but we have experience. We have a lot of sophomores that had a lot of at bats for us last year. I think it is only a matter of time until we get in some kind of rhythm and start putting up some runs."

Game One
WNCC 010 000 0 -- 1 3 0
Pratt 000 100 1 -- 2 5 0
LP -- JC Morales; 2B -- Elvis Garcia.

Game Two
WNCC (0-8) 001 000 000 0 -- 1 3 0
Pratt 000 001 000 1 -- 2 3 3
LP -- David Castle; 2B -- Caleb Patton.

WNCC softball goes 5-0 on season

STERLING, KAN. -- The Western Nebraska Community College received three stellar pitching performances from Jordan Schoepflin, Taylor Anderson, and Brittany Enterline to help the No. 11 Cougars stay perfect on the season in games Thursday in Sterling, Colo.

Jordan Schoepflin limited Sterling to just four runs as the Cougars pounded out 16 hits, including a home run by Ashton Hughes, for the 10-4 win.

Taylor Anderson and Brittany Enterline then shut down Hutchinson Community College in the twinbill as the Cougars recorded a 4-0 and 16=7 sweep over the Blue Dragons.

This is also the first time in school history that the Cougars are unbeaten after the opening week of the season. The Cougars are 5-0 on the season and have scored 71 runs in five games.

"Jordan, Taylor and Enterline threw well and it was nice to go on the road and go 5-0," WNCC coach Maria Winn-Ratliff said. "Ashton Hughes played very well in all five games."

Winn-Ratliff was especially pleased with the team's performance in the second game with Hutch as they battled back from a 6-0 early deficit to score14 runs in the final two innings to collect the victory.

"I was very proud of the girls in the second game with Hutch because they fought back after they were down 6-0 to take the lead in the sixth inning," she said. "Megan Bourdon had two big hits in that rally coming in off the bench. It was a good trip and hope we can carry over our performance into conference next week in Lamar."

WNCC turned things around in that second game against Hutch, trailing 7-2 after five innings. The Cougars came back with nine runs in the sixth inning to go up 11-7. The big hit in the inning came from Ashton Hughes, who belted a 2-run home run.

Several players finished with multiple hit games. Katie Groves went 4-for-5 with a run scored, two doubles and six RBIs, while Hughes went 2-for-6 with a home run and two RBIs. Megan Burditt and Tonya Atencio also went 3-for-6. Burditt had three runs scored and a double, while Atencio scored two runs.

Also collecting two hits in the win were Boudon with a double, Brittany Chacon with three runs scored, and Allie Alverson with three runs scored and two RBIs.

Enterline picked up the pitching win going 6 2/3 innings, while scattering 12 hits, striking out four and walking one.

That win capped off a perfect two days for the Cougars. In the first game against Hutchinson, Taylor Anderson struck out six and scattered four hits in getting the complete game, shut out.

WNCC scored a single run in the first inning as Burditt singled and scored on a sacrifice fly by Groves. WNCC added three insurance runs in the fifth inning.

Burditt went 3-for-4 with two runs scored. The other two hits came from Groves and Stephanie Townsend.

In the day's opening game, the Cougars opened up a tight game early to roll to the 10-4 win. WNCC held just a 6-4 lead after three innings before scoing two runs in the fifth and single runs in the sixth and seventh innings.

Schoepflin went the distance in scattering 10 hits, while striking out four.

WNCC finished the game with 16 hits. Hughes paced the team with a 4-for-4 performance including two RBIs, four runs scored. Hughes also popped a third-inning 2-run scoring home run.

Groves finished the game going 3-for-4 with two doubles and a RBI, while Atencio, Townsend and Alverson all had two hits. Alverson had two RBIs, while Townsend had a double and two RBIs.

WNCC will be back in action Feb. 27-28 when they open up conference play with a trip to Lamar Community College followed by a doubleheader at Frank Phillips College.

Game One
WNCC 123 021 1-- 10 16 4
Sterling 103 000 0 -- 4 10 0
WP -- Jordan SChoephflin (1-0); 2B -- Katie Groves (2), Megan Burditt, Steph Townsend.

Game Two
WNCC 100 030 0 -- 4 4 3
Hutchinson 000 000 0 -- 0 4 6
WP -- Taylor Anderson (2-0); 2B -- Townsend.

Game Three\
WNCC (5-0) 000 209 5 -- 16 15 1
Hutchinson 510 100 0 -- 7 12 1
WP -- Brittany Enterline (2-0); 2B -- Groves(2), Megan Bourdon; HR -- Hughes.

WNCC baseball team swept at Barton Community College

Submitted by Jeremy Woznick, Star-Herald Sports Reporter

GREAT BEND, Kan. - Early-season offensive woes continued to trouble the Western Nebraska Community College baseball team in a doubleheader against Barton County Community College Wednesday in Great Bend, Kan.

The Cougars mustered a total of just three runs in dropping both games by scores of 12-2 and 5-1. The setbacks dropped WNCC to 0-6 on the season.

"We did not play as well today as we did this past weekend. It was disappointing that we kind of took a few steps backward," WNCC coach Mike Jones said. "For us, this is par for the course. We've always struggled offensively early in the season. It just takes us a while to get going offensively."

WNCC finished the two games with just four hits.

In game one, Barton County jumped out to a 6-0 lead after two innings. The Cougars plated two runs in the top of the fifth inning to climb within 6-2, but Barton County answered with four runs in the fifth and two more in the sixth.

Barton County out-hit the Cougars in the game, 13-2.

Jared Baros had a run-scoring single for WNCC. Trace Marsden also drove in a run and scored a run. Elvis Garcia went 1-for-2 with a run scored.

Armani Gonzalez took the loss on the mound. He allowed six runs on seven hits in four innings of work. Gonzales struck out four.

In game two, Barton County moved out to a 5-0 lead through five innings. WNCC got its lone run of the game in the top of the fifth inning when Nelson Quintero singled home Marsden. The Cougars' other hit of the contest came off the bat of Shane Wade, who had a double.

Tim Beard took the loss on the mound. He allowed three earned runs on seven hits in four innings of work. Beard struck out two. David Castle pitched two innings in relief. He allowed just one hit and struck out one.

Jones said his ball club is getting a lot of early-season experience against teams from a tough conference.

"These are good teams that we are playing," Jones said. "This Jayhawk Conference always produces good teams. We're seeing good competition. The two pitchers that we saw today were better than what we saw against Garden City. They were pretty advanced for this early in the season."

The Cougars will be right back in action today in another doubleheader against Pratt Community College in Pratt, Kan. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.
Jones said Rodil Martinez will get the start in game one and Julio Davila will start game two.

Game One
WNCC 000 020 - 2 2 2
Barton County 240 042 - 12 13 1
LP - Armani Gonzalez (0-1).

Game Two
WNCC (0-6) 000 010 0 - 1 2 1
Barton County 012 200 x - 5 8 0
LP - Tim Beard (0-1).
2B - Shane Wade.

WNCC softball team belts seven home runs in doubleheader sweep over Fiends junior varsity

Stephanie Townsend and Ashton Hughes each hit grand slams as the No. 11-ranked Western Nebraska Community College swept a doubleheader from Friends College junior varsity 17-4 and 24-0 Wednesday in Wichita, Kan.

The Cougars hammered seven home runs on the day in pounding out 31 hits. The Cougars will return to action Thursday when they face Sterling College junior varsity in a single game and then play Hutchinson Community College in a twinbill in Sterling, Kan.

WNCC also received two stellar pitching performances. In the first game, Taylor Anderson gave up four runs on 11 hits in securing the win. The second game saw freshman Brittany Enterline dazzle a one-hitter in striking out three in picking up her first collegiate win of the year.

Offensively, WNCC was sizzling from the plate as they blasted blasted four home runs in the first game. Three Cougars smacked home runs in the fifth inning, including solo shots from Katie Groves and Brittany Chacon, and a 2-run dinger from Hughes. Jordan Schoepflin added a 2-run home run in the sixth inning.

Six Cougars had a multiple hit game. Groves led the way going 4-for-5 with three RBIs and four runs scored, followed by Schoepflin and Townsend each going 3-for-4. Schoepflin had three RBIs and three runs scored, while Townsend had four RBIs, two runs scored and two doubles.

Hughes, Chacon, and Megan Burditt each tallied two hits in the game.

WNCC quickly took control of game two, scoring six runs in the first inning and never looked back behind Enterline’s near-perfect pitching performance.

The Cougars hammered three home runs in the contest. Groves had a 2-run shot in the second inning to give the Cougars an 8-0 lead. Groves finished the contest 3-for-4 with three runs scored and four RBIs.

Townsend then had a grand slam in the third inning. The sophomore from Roosevelt, Utah, finished the contest 2-for-5 with four RBIs and two runs scored.

Hughes’ grand slam came in the 7-run fifth inning. Hughes, a freshman from Regina, Saskatchewan, went 2-for-5 with three runs scored and five RBIs.

Five other Cougars finished with multiple hits. Schoepflin and Adena Hagen each went 3-for-4. Hagen had a double, two RBIs and four runs scored, while Schoepflin had two runs scored and three RBIs. Amanda Saldivar went 3-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs scored, followed by Townsend with a 2-for-5 game and two runs scored and four RBIs.

Chacon also went 3-for-5 with four runs scored, while Allie Alverson went 2-for-4 with a triple and two RBIs. Megan Burditt had three runs scored in the game.

Game 1
WNCC 001 448 – 17 18 2
Friends JV 020 011 -- 4 11 5
WP – Anderson (1-0); 2B – Townsend (2).

Game 2
WNCC (2-0) 625 47 – 24 20 0
Friends JV 000 00 – 0 1 5
WP – Enterline (1-0); 2B – Hagen; 3B – Alverson; HR – Groves, Townsend, Hughes.

WNCC men take down McCook 86-66

The Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball team opened up a 6-point game and put the game on cruise control in registering a huge 86-66 sub-region win over McCook Community College Tuesday night at Cougar Palace.

The win was especially huge as its keeps the Cougars in contention for the No. 1 seed from the sub-region with a 3-2 mark. North Platte leads the sub-region with a 3-1 mark. North Platte has Northeast Nebraska this weekend and then will travel to Cougar Palace to face WNCC on next Wednesday.

WNCC freshman Joe Stock said this win is a huge momentum boost for the team.

“Our team is finally coming together and we picked the right time at the end of the season with a couple games left,” the freshman from Thibodaux, La., said. “We are playing our best basketball right now. That was a big win and that puts us in a run for first place in our sub-region. We have to beat North Platte by 15 points and we get first place and other then that we get second place.”

After the Cougars opened up the game and got ahead by 20 points late, the players kept playing as the attention turned to whether the team could score 83 points and give the fans in attendance free Runzas. Well, with 28.6 seconds left to play Mateus Chaves knocked home two free throws to make the crowd happy.

“That Runza promotion kept the excitement going, but the refs also dragged the game a little bit,” Stock said. “But we wanted to get 83 points for our fans. It was nice to please the fans and get a win at the same time.”

For a time there, it didn’t seem as if the game would be in the 60s or 70s for a final score. WNCC held a 37-31 lead at intermission. The Cougars, however, used the long ball from Cruz and Stock along with two electrifying dunks by Brylle Kamen and O’Rion Hughes to push the lead to 57-47.

Moments later, Stock nailed his second 3-pointer of the night and then Cruz went on a 9-point scoring spree, including back-to-back treys to put WNCC up 69-53 with six minutes to play. Cruz later notched his seventh 3-pointer and his 32^nd point of the night to the Cougars up 76-55 with 3:25 to play.

WNCC was mildly threatened early in the game, but each time kept the lead – there were only three lead changes and two ties in the contest. The big key in the contest was shooting as WNCC shot 57 percent from the field including a blistering 64 percent (9 of 14) from beyond the arc. Cruz was 7 of 9 from long range, while Stock was 2 of 3.

Cruz led the Cougars with 32 points and six rebounds, while Geddes had 16 points and six rebounds. Stock also chipped in 11 points for the Cougars.

McCook shot just 41 percent from the field and 19 percent from beyond the arc. Andrew Hanson led the way with 21 points followed by Marcus Landry and Antonio Dye with 12 points each.

WNCC, 17-10, will next be in action on Feb. 24 when they host North Platte Community College at 7 p.m.

McCook 31 35 – 66

WNCC (17-10) 37 49 – 86

MCCOOK

Darius Robinson 2, Nick Schneider 1, George Pollard 2, Antonio Dye 12, Marcus Landry 12, Andrew Hanson 21, John Hill 2, Shawn Tarver 7, Eric Cutright 7.

WESTERN NEBRASKA

Andre Marone 2, Saul Torres 4, O’Rion Hughes 4, Joe Stock 11, Mateus Chaves 5, Francisco Cruz 32, Brylle Kamen 8, Ritchie Mundende 4, Geddes Robinson 16.

WNCC women pick up 20th win of the season

The Western Nebraska Community College women’s basketball team combined for 16 assists and 10 Cougars scored in WNCC’s 76-51 win over McCook Community College in a sub-region contest Tuesday at Cougar Palace.

The Cougars also played strong defensively, something they haven’t done for a while, in holding a scrappy McCook ball club to 22 percent shooting, and 26 percent shooting from beyond the arc. The win was also the Cougar’s 20^th of the year which is their 23^rd straight year of collecting 20 wins in a season.

“We were not selfish at all and we moved the ball really well tonight and that is something we haven’t been doing,” Scottsbluff graduate Madison Keller said. “We are also happy with our defensive effort because we have been letting teams score 70 and 80 points a game, so tonight’s effort was really good for us.”

WNCC’s defense wasn’t that way early as the Indians raced to a 10-4 lead early on. The Cougars then went on a mini run scoring seven straight points including a 4-point play from Bayard’s Amber Kistler.

McCook came back and tied the game at 11 before the Cougars defense really kicked in, holding the Indians scoreless for the next four minutes. In the meantime, WNCC put some distance between them and the Indians, going on a 11-0 run that included buckets by Keller, Shelby Campbell, and Yuki Morimoto. Kistler finished off the run with a driving bucket. WNCC led at halftime 37-26.

In the second half, the Cougars were just as strong defensively, holding McCook to just 25 points. They also put the game out of reach early as they opened with the first three minutes on a 7-0 run as Morimoto launched a trey. They kept playing strong as they went on a 9-0 on seven points from Morimoto to go up by 20 points, 55-35.

The big key for the Cougars was shooting and rebounding. WNCC, which has been in a shooting slump as of late, shot 48 percent from the field and 40 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. The Cougars also out-rebounded McCook 58-33 as Kistler paced the team with seven boards. The Bayard graduate also finished with 12 points and seven assists

Morimoto paced the Cougars with 17 points while Stormye Everett finished with 15 points. Thais Pinto also had a break out performance, finishing with 10 points and six rebounds.

“We played pretty well,” Keller said. “We have been stressing defense and to run our offense, that is what we were trying to do and I think it worked for us the best.”

WNCC will be back in action Friday when they host Lamar Community College at 7 p.m. at Cougar Palace. Keller said they are getting back to the way they played first semester when they went 13-2.

“It is nice to start this run when it is getting to the end of the season and region ix is coming up,” she said. “We have to step up our defense every possession and offensively we have to run our offense and move the ball around.”

McCook 26 25 – 51

WNCC 37 39 – 76

MCCOOK

Alexa Ward 3, Sierra Guy 1, Ellie Hiester 9, Brittany Bunker 2, Emmalee Fladland 9, Jacqueline Lavato 4, Donnell Betts 5, Skyler Johnson 6, Morgan Spencer 8, Lauren Woods 4

WESTERN NEBRASKA

Amber Kistler 12, Stormye Everett 15, Shelby Campbell 5, Yuki Morimoto 17, Carolina Alves 4, Madison Keller 2, Taylor Puttergill 2, Michelle Glaze 4, Thais Pinto 10, Kelli Culver 5.

No. 11-ranked WNCC softball opens season on Wednesday

The Western Nebraska Community College softball team will be entering this season with lots optimism as well as a target on their back.

The Cougars will open the season Thursday on a road trip to Wichita, Kan., as one of the nation's elite. WNCC is No. 11 in the NJCAA pre-season poll and it is an honor that Cougar coach Maria Winn-Ratliff embraces with honor.

"It is a huge honor for the program and the institution," Winn-Ratliff said. "No matter if we were ranked or not we continue to practice hard every day to accomplish our goal of getting better every day."

The pre-season recognition as the team's attention, but as the same time they know what it will take to be successful this season. Last year, the Cougars finished with a 42-18 record and a third place finish at the regional tournament. Two seasons ago, the Cougars made school history after going 54-10 and capturing the regional title.

WNCC is hoping to recapture some of that glory from two seasons ago. That journey begins Wednesday when they open the season in Wichita, Kan., Friends College junior varsity. The Cougars will then face Sterling College junior varsity on Thursday. The Cougars were scheduled to play Hutchinson and Butler Community Colleges on Saturday and Sunday, but the weather forecast scratched those games.

"I think we all are ready," she said. "It has been nice to get outside and actually practice on our field in January and February."

This year's team should be excited for the season. They return some key returners and some a talented freshmen class.

"This will be one of the faster teams that we have had and look to score a lot of runs with our speed," she said. "We are still working out a few kinks on the infield moving some players around and trying to get the right fit. We have been hitting the ball very well and should score lots of runs."

The one goal for this year's team is to win a second regional title in three seasons. WNCC will host regionals in March, and Winn-Ratliff said this team has the capabilities of achieving their goals.

"I think if we do the right things, anything is possible," she said. "It will take consistent pitching throughout the regular season as well as the tourney. Pitching is the key. This season should be exciting because this group is fun to watch and loves to play."

Pitching definitely will be the big key for this year. WNCC graduated Kelsey Garner from a year ago, but return a very diverse pitching staff that are fighters in the circle. This year staff can go five deep, including returner Stephanie Townsend from Roosevelt, Utah. Taylor Anderson is a transfer that had a strong fall season. The other three pitchers are freshmen, including Jordan Schoepflin of Arvada, Colo., Brittany Enterline of Tracy, Calif., and Ashton Hughes of Regina, Saskatchewan.

"Our staff is very different in the looks that they give teams," Winn-Ratliff said. "We return Stephanie Townsend who saw some action last year for us and really came on strong in the region tourney. Taylor Anderson is a transfer who threw really well for us this fall. Ashton Hughes is a versatile player and will not only find time in the circle but at various positions on the field as well. Brittany Enterline started a little slow but has made huge adjustments and has been pitching very well for us. Jordan Schoepflin is a fireball and will provide innings for us in the circle and as well on the infield. To start the year we will not have a 1, 2 ,3 we will most likely have four of our five pitchers playing at the same time. We are very lucky with their versatility both defensively and offensively."

The pitching talents are only part of a talented squad. The Cougars also return last year's freshman of the year Katelyn Groves of Bluffdale, Utah. Groves set the season home run and RBI record last season, as well as tying the career home run record with 17 dingers. Groves, who played primarily first base a year ago, will probably be making the stitch to third base this season.

Other players that will be seeing action on the infield this season will be freshman Jacqui Cappuccilli, of Las Vegas, Nev., along with sophomores Tonya Atencio of Denver, and Brittany Chacon of Broomfield, Colo. Hughes, Townsend and Schoepflin will also see action at the corner positions.

Sophomore Adena Hagen of Birch Hills, Saskatchewan, will anchor the outfield for a second straight year. Also seeing outfield action will be sophomore Megan Burditt of Los Alamos, N.M., along with new faces Allie Alverson of Toole, Utah, and Amanda Saldivar of El Paso, Texas.

The catching position

Adena Hagen is our anchor in the outfield she will return in Center for us as well as returner Megan Burditt in left we have added some new faces in Allie Alverson and Amanda Saldivar who are battling for right field. We have some utility players that will also get some action it the outfield like Bourdon, Townsend and Schoepflin.

The catcher position will have the most inexperience with the of Alyssa Hickey at semester.

"Losing Alyssa Hickey at the break has put some pressure on our new catchers, but they have been working hard every day and getting better every day," WInn-Ratliff said. "We have 3 newcomers behind the dish Cappuccilli, Hughes and Megan Bourdon (Duck Lake, Saskatchewan). Like our pitchers they give us a different look as well. Each one of them is very unique."
Winn-Ratliff said each player will be counted on during the season, especially with a roster of just 14 active players.

"I think all 16 members of our team are key players. We are going to rely on all of them at given times," she said. "I expect them all to practice and play hard every day and don't want any surprises on who is key or came up big because they all should be ready for that."

After this weekend's season openers, the Cougars will get into Region IX play when they face Lamar Community College on the road Feb. 27. WNCC will play their home debut on March 26 against Lamar Community College.

WNCC baseball drops two to Garden City on Saturday

PUEBLO, Colo. -- The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team found the going tough against Garden City Community College Saturday in Pueblo, Colo.

The Cougars walked 12 batters in game one falling 14-6 to the Broncbusters. The Cougars then held a late lead in game two, before giving up four runs and falling 5-2.

"Today's games boiled down to starting pitchers. Rodil Martinez had a really bad outing where he had trouble throwing strikes and put us in a bad position in the first inning of game one," WNCC coach Mike Jones said. "We were able to come back offensively in the first game and got some runs and got the game close. The bullpen just couldn't hold on and let it slip away late.

"The second game was much different. Julio Davila, even though he walked too many guys, he still did a good job. We were winning the ball game when he came out, unfortunately again, we went to the bullpen and it slipped away from us. All in all, game one was a struggle with a fight from the beginning, and game two was a much better time."

WNCC got behind the eight ball early as starting pitcher Rodil Martinez lasted just a third of an inning as he walked four and gave up-four earned runs as Garden City held a 6-0 lead. WNCC bounced back scoring two runs each in the third, fourth and fifth inning to slice the lead to 9-6, but Garden City plated five runs in the sixth inning to seal the game.

Martinez took the loss on the mound. John Bravard threw 2 2/3 innings in relieve of Martinez. The freshman from Lyons, Colo., gave up four runs on five hits, while striking out one. Sidney Jones finished the game, going three innings and giving up six runs and three hits. Sidney Jones walked six and struck out two.

Offensively, Oscar Rodriquez led the way with a 3-for-4 performance with two RBIs. Elvis Garcia finished the game with two hits, including a double. Shane Wade also contributed a double and two RBIs.

The second game was a much better performance for the Cougars. Garden City quickly took a 1-0 lead before WNCC bounced back with two runs in the fourth inning for a 2-1 lead. The Broncbusters scored a single run in the fifth and three more in the sixth for the win.

Julio Davila started the game as he went four inning, allowing just one run. Davila walked six, struck out three and allowed three hits. Carlos Luzon took the loss, throwing 1 1/3 innings. Luzon, a freshman from Venezuela, allowed three runs on one hit. He also walked four.

Guernsey-Sunrise's David Castle threw two-thirds of an inning, allowing two hits and a run. Castle entered the game with the bases loaded.

WNCC managed just three hits in game two. Josh Parker ahd the big hit for the Cougars as he belted a double. The other two hits came from JC Morales and Rodriquez.

Jones said these games are learning contests for his squad.

"The first game we made a lot of mistakes. We didn't pitch well. We didn't play very good defense. We were behind the pitchers. We made some base running mistakes. We really made a lot of mistakes in game one," he said. "That is fine because we are going to learn from those mistakes and continue to work on those stuff. It is better to make the mistakes know then later in the season. We are OK with that.

"in the second ball game it was a much cleaner ball game. We played really good defense. We are going to see a lot of progress coming up next week when we get a chance to play again."

WNCC will return to action this weekend when they face Barton Community College and Pratt Community College on the road in Kansas next weekend.

Game One
WNCC 002 220 0 -- 6 9 3
Garden City 600 305 0 -- 14 9 2
LP -- R. Martinez; 2B -- Garcia, Wade.

Game Two
WNCC (0-4) 000 200 0 -- 2 3 0
Garden City 100 013 x -- 5 6 3
LP -- Luzon; 2B -- Parker

WNCC men top Northeast Nebraska 57-53

The Western Nebraska Community College men's basketball team used an 11-0 run to end the first half in taking down Northeast Community College Hawks 57-53 in a defensive battle at Cougar Palace Saturday afternoon.

The last time these two East Sub-region opponents met a month ago, Northeast claimed a 78-76 win at the buzzer. Saturday, the Cougars received a 17-point effort from Geddes Robinson and put together a team workman-like effort in picking up their 16th, and third straight win of the season.

WNCC coach Russ Beck was extremely with pleased with the defensive effort that his team showed. The Cougars forced 16 turnovers and out-rebounded the Hawks 42-35, including getting 27 defensive boards.

" We did a good job defensively, especially down the stretch," he said. "They got an offensive rebound off a missed free throw and that is when we have to honker down and just get a rebound. Overall the rebounding was good."

WNCC and Northeast were definitely hooked in a defensive stalemate in the first half as the Hawks held a 21-20 lead with four minutes to play in the opening 20 minutes. That was when the Cougar game picked it up another notch, going on an 11-0 run that was highlighted by a Francisco Cruz 3-pointer and four buckets by Brylle Kamen for a 31-21 halftime lead.

"You win games by the way you start and finish halves," Beck said. "We really got fired up with our ball pressure and it lead to easy baskets for us."

The Cougars kept the pressure on early in the second half as Andre Marone had four points and Robinson slammed home a dunk for a 37-27 lead. Northeast battled back, going o9n a 9-2 run to slice the lead to 42-40.

The Cougars bounced back, going on a 10-0 run of their own, highlighted by a Kamen dunk and field goal to push the lead back to 42-32 with 4:14 to play. After Northeast fought back, slicing the lead to 52-48, Kamen stole the ball and slammed it home for a 54-48 lead.

Northeast came back, slicing the lead to 54-53 as Jayvin Stevens grabbed an offensive rebound off a missed free throw and put it back in the hole with 26.1 second to play. WNCC added a single free throw by O'Rion Hughes with 19 seconds to play. The Hawks then missed a 3-pointer from the corner and Joe Stock was fouled with six-tenths to play to seal the win.

Kamen and Robinson had huge games in the paint for the Cougars. RObinson finished with six rebounds, while Kamen had eight. Beck said that Kamen's energy on the court keeps the team fired up.

"Brylle gives us great energy and emotion. Some people might misinterpret that at being selfish," Beck said. "That is what he needs to do to help the team and give us that energy and emotion because he really gets this team up. He had some good plays down the stretch. He is a talented player and glad to have him. If he plays that hard every game, we are going to be in the games."

Robinson and Cruz were the only Cougars to finish in double figures. Cruz pitched in 13 points, while grabbing nine rebounds in the win.

Northeast had three players in double figures. Zach Towle, Dol Kutey and Thomas Colbert all had 11 points. Towle had three 3-pointers for the Hawks, including two late back-to-back treys.

WNCC will next be in action Tuesday night as they host McCook Community College at 7:30 p.m. The women's game will precede the men's contest at 5:30. The McCook game is also Hoops For Hunger night as individuals who bring a non-parishable food item will get $1 off their admission.

Beck said Tuesday's contest will be a battle for sub-region seedings. McCook defeated North Platte last week.

"This is one of the biggest points in our season so far. McCook will come in fired up because we were able to get one on their home floor," he said. "They are talented and they have good guards, they have athletic posts. They are going to try to attack us with their quickness. We just have to play our game Tuesday night as well against North Platte. We can't fall subject to quick shots. We need to run our offense and execute, and we have to box out. I think ball pressure has been a big key for our wins lately, and we have to keep doing that."

Northeast (12-14) 21 32 -- 53
WNCC (16-10) 31 26 -- 57
NORTHEAST
Brad Pieper 6, Zach Towle 11, Matthew Julkes 3, Nicholas Mabbutt 3, Dol Kutey 11, Jayvin Stevens 8, Thomas Culbert 11.
WESTERN NEBRASKA
Geoffrey Firmin 2, Andre Marone 4, Saul Torres 2, O'Rion Hughes 3, Joe Stock 3, Francisco Cruz 13, Brylle Kamen 8, Geddes Robinson 17.

WNCC women secure No. 1 seed from East sub-region with win over Northeast Nebraska 71-69

If ever the Western Nebraska Community College women’s basketball team needed a win, Saturday was the day to get it.

The Cougars, behind a gutsy defensive performance late in the game, secured the No. 1 seed from the East sub-region in registering a heart-pounding 71-69 win over Northeast Community College. The Cougars are now 3-0 in sub-region play and 19-7 overall.

WNCC coach Dave Harnish definitely was feeling a little better about his team after Saturday’s huge win.

“Definitely we needed win, especially losing three straight home games and ruined our confidence level, so from that standpoint it is huge,” Harnish said. “This is a step forward and the girls have to feel a little bit better about it. From the second point, it seals up the number one seed from the sub-region, which is the first goal of the year. As much as we struggled, at least we won the games we needed to win in our sub-region. Clinching the number one seed will be huge going into the regional tournament. Hopefully in the next two weeks we can get things ironed out and get better for regionals.”

Kelli Culver, the freshman from Colorado Springs, Colo., was just one of the many Cougars that stepped up their game. Culver finished with 11 points, but it was her two second-half treys that ignited the Cougars. Culver said if feels nice to win at home after three straight defeats on their home court.

“It is pretty big win because we have been on a losing streak for a long time,” she said. “We needed this for our coach because he has been getting mad at us and we needed this to boost our confidence.”

Definitely the Cougars needed a win of this magnitude. But once again, the Cougars had to battle from behind. This time, though, the defense played tough down stretch for the win.

“We seem to do get behind every game where we dig ourselves holes like we did tonight getting down by eight or 10,” Harnish said. “We have did that in every game and then we fight the last four and five minutes to get back into it. For some reason we struggle for 30 to 35 minutes in the game and then the last five minutes is the best part of our game. “

The Cougars definitely played some tough defense the last five minutes. They also hit some clutch shots. And, a lot of different Cougars had a hand in securing the East Sub-region championship on the afternoon.

Yuki Morimoto was the thorn in the Hawks’ side on the day. The freshman from Tokyo, Japan, finished with 16 points and seven rebounds, but it was her rebound with 6.2 second left that sealed the win for the Cougars.

Up until that point, it was anyone’s game. WNCC trailed by eight points in the second half on two different occasions, 48-40 and then later at 55-47. Both times it was a 3-pointer that stopped the Hawks’ run. Culver ripped her second of the game with 16 minutes left. Then, Stormye Everett buried a trey to cut the lead to 55-50.

Everett’s trey sparked a comeback that gave the Cougars the lead since midway in the first half. WNCC took the lead on a Culver 3-pointer, 57-56, with 8:34 to play. Northeast kept battled back taking a 66-63 lead with 3:30 to play on back-to-back 3-pointers by Sofie Lundberg and Christine Fischer.

The Cougars tied the game as Everett stole the ball and converted on a 3-point play. Then, with 1:38 to play, Amber Kistler stole the ball and found a open Tiffany Moorer to put the Cougars up 68-66.

Lundberg, who ignited for 36 points in the team’s first meeting a month ago, drained a 3-pointer to put the Hawks back up 69-68. The game was defensive after that as Northeast missed a shot-clock beating 3-pointer with 18.3 seconds and Kistler was fouled with 14 seconds to play. The Bayard graduate, who converted both free throws to put WNCC up 70-69.

Northeast’s Dawn Bonnell then drove the right-side and missed an off-balanced lay-up and Morimoto came down with the game-winning rebound.

Culver said that last minute defensive pressure was crucial in the Cougar’s 19^th win of the season.

“That helped a lot [defense] with our motivation and helped us win the game” she said. “Our confidence rose a lot after this game.”

The Cougars had three players finish in double figures. Morimoto led the way with 16 points followed by Everett with 14 second-half points, while Culver chipped in 11. The Cougars also got nine points from Thais Pinto and six points from Ariane Brown.

Northeast was led by Lundberg’s 20 points and four 3-pointers, while Bonnell had 19 points and three 3-pointers.

The big key in the game was shooting, where the Cougars show 48 percent from the field and also blistered the nets from 3-point range, making 56 percent of the shots (5 of 9).WNCC also minimized their turnovers with 15. They also out-rebounded the Hawks 36-27 as Everett pulled down eight, and Morimoto had seven. Kistler finished with five assists and two steals on the day.

The Cougars will be back on the court Tuesday when they host McCook Community College in another sub-region contest. Harnish said that that game doesn’t mean much in the sub-region race, but it means a lot in the team improving for the regional tourney in March.

“That game doesn’t matter because we now have the number one seed guaranteed,” he said. “Right know we have to focus on getting better the next two weeks. We need to take it one game at a time. We have four games left before regionals and we just have to get better and get ready for regional tournament.”

Northeast (19-9) 37 32 – 69
WNCC (19-7) 35 36 – 71
NORTHEAST NEBRASKA
Christine Fischer 7, Dawn Bonnell 19, Shelby Hunger 4, Zena Nastloski 4, Sofia Lundberg 20, Carolyn Taite 10, Stephanie Taite 4, Kaneisha Williams 1.
WESTERN NEBRASKA
Amber Kistler 4, Stormye Everett 14, Shelby Campbell 2, Yuki Morimoto 16, Ariane Brown 4, Tiffany Moorer 6, Michelle Glaze 4, Thais Pinto 6, Kelli Culver 11, Khayla Gladney 1.

Cougar baseball drops two on Friday

Submitted by Jeremy Woznick, Star-Herald Sports Reporter

PUEBLO, Colo. - The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team received two strong starting pitching performances in its season-opening doubleheader against Garden City Community College Friday in Pueblo, Colo., but it wasn't enough as the Cougars let leads in both games slip away.

WNCC held a 6-3 lead in game one before Garden City scored four times in the bottom of the sixth to escape with a 7-6 win. In game two, the Cougars couldn't make a 2-0 lead hold up as Garden City plated five runs in the bottom of the sixth to post a 5-3 victory.

"They were really good ball games to open up with," WNCC coach Mike Jones said. "I thought we got solid starting pitching in both games. We just got tired and panicked a little bit late in the games. We'll definitely learn from that and make adjustments."

In the opener, Armani Gonzalez pitched five solid innings to earn a no decision. Gonzalez allowed three runs on three hits. He struck out three and walked two.

Offensively, four different Cougars had multiple-hit performances. Jason Sloan, Camilo Baldelomar, Oscar Rodriguez and Jared Baros all finished with two hits each. Baldelomar had a triple with a run batted in, while Sloan, Rodriguez and Baros each had a double. Baros knocked in three runs and Sloan drove in one.

The Cougars finished with nine hits in the game.

David Castle took the loss on the hill out of the bullpen. The four runs he allowed were all unearned. Castle struck out one and allowed three hits.

In game two, Tim Beard gave the Cougars another solid start on the mound. He allowed just two runs on two hits in five innings of work. He struck out one and walked two in the no decision.

WNCC plated two runs in the top of the sixth inning to take a 2-0 lead, but Garden City erupted for five runs in the bottom half of the frame. The Cougars added a lone run in the top of the seventh.

"Both Armani and Tim came out and threw very well for us. That was very encouraging," Jones said. "We really settled in early in both games, but we let both of them slip away from us."

The Cougars had just three hits in game two. Shane Wade drove in a run with a triple, while Sloan and Trace Marsden each had singles.

Carlos Palomo took the loss on the mound. He allowed two runs on two hits and struck out one in a third of an inning. JC Morales finished out the game on the mound for the Cougars. He allowed one run on one hit and struck out one.

The two teams will be right back in action today in another doubleheader. First pitch is scheduled for high noon.

Rodil Martinez will start on the mound for WNCC in the first game and Julio Davila will take the ball in game two.

Game One
WNCC 020 220 0 - 6 9 2
Garden City 000 304 x - 7 7 1
LP - David Castle (0-1).
3B - Camilo Baldelomar. 2B - Jason Sloan, Oscar Rodriguez, Jared Baros.

Game Two
WNCC (0-2) 000 002 1 - 3 3 2
Garden City (3-0) 000 005 x - 5 4 1
LP - Carlos Palomo (0-1).
3B - Shane Wade.

WNCC women fall to Eastern Wyoming 68-66

The Eastern Wyoming College women’s basketball team came into Cougar Place to face Western Nebraska Community College with one objective on their mind and that was to walk off of Ron Brillhart Court with a W.

Mission accomplished as the bus ride back to Torrington, Wyo., had some happy Lancers aboard as they had the right amount of swagger in their game after posting a huge 68-66 win over the Cougars Thursday night.

In fact, there wasn’t one time the Lancers were one bit intimidated by the Cougar’s recent success as they hit the shots when they needed in posting their 12^th of the season.

Noelle Jones was just one of the heroes for the Lancers on the night. The Burns, Wyo., graduate finished with three clutch 3-pointers, including back-to-back treys in the second half. Jones finished with 15 points on the night and couldn’t be more elated with the win.

“This win feels awesome. This is the first time in any sport that we have beat WNCC for a couple of years,” Jones said. “We took good shots and hit some really big shots in the second half. We rebounded well and moved the ball really well, which was something we needed to do.”

Another big key for the smaller Lancers against a taller Cougar team was rebounding. WNCC won the rebounding total 55-48, but it was the Lancers’ 20 offensive rebounds that were big factors in the contest.

“I think rebounding won us the game,” Jones said. “If we wouldn’t have had some of those offensive rebounds, we wouldn’t have got those fouls and wouldn’t have gotten to the free throw line. Those foul shots at the end were huge for us.”

WNCC never really could find that right mixture on the court to run off a string of points. WNCC coach Dave Harnish said it is frustrating watching his team struggle considering they had such a fine first semester. This was the Cougars second straight defeat and they are now 5-5 in the second semester.

“We didn’t shot well tonight and give credit Eastern Wyoming, we just can’t stop the ball,” he said. “The bottom line is defensively. The bottom line is we don’t have any defensive intensity because we allow people to penetrate on us, we allow people to shoot threes on us, and we dig ourselves in holes.”

The contest was actually a battle of two evenly matched teams. The two Highway 26 rivals were tied 24-24 late in the first half on back-to-back buckets by Amber Kister moments after Jones’ nailed her first 3-pointer of the game. Then Lancers finished the half leading 27-26 at intermission.

WNCC came out of the locker room with some new life as Kistler buried a trey and moments later Khayla Gladney put back a bucket for a 34-33 lead. Jones brought the Lancers back as she buried back-to-back 3-pointers and moments later Kylie Erickson knocked home a 3-pointer to give the Lancers their biggest lead of the game 50-40 with 11 minutes left.

The Lancers continued playing strong as they went to the free throw line a number of times to go ahead 53-45 with 7:30 to play. WNCC didn’t stop fighting as they went on a 10-0 run to take a 55-53 lead 4:22 to play as Stormye Everett had eight of the 10 points.

After that, both teams traded baskets as Kistler recorded two clutch buckets, including two points off an offensive rebound to take a 62-61 lead with 1:14 to play. EWC scored the next five points as Jones had a bucket and then Jessica Brown and Koel Hall combined on three free throws.

Yuki Morimoto brought the Cougars back with a 3-pointer that rattled. WNCC had a prime chance to win the game late as EWC’s Marque Lunderman missed two free throws with 11.1 seconds remaining, but on the Cougars’ ensuing possession, they turned the ball over. Danielle Brown then hit one free throw and a half-court heave from the Cougars was just off the mark.

The Lancers had just two players in double figures as Jessica Brown lead all scorers with 25 points. She also pulled down 10 rebounds and had two steals. Jones finished with her 15 points, including 7 of 12 from the free throw line and three 3-pointers.

The Lancers also got clutch scoring from Danielle Brown and Krystal Pittman who each finished with seven points.

The Cougars placed five players in double digits. Kistler led the way with 17 points, while Everett came off the bench to score 13 points. Morimoto, Gladney and Tiffany Moorer each had 10 points. Morimoto finished with a double-double with 11 rebounds.

Both squads will be back in action Saturday. The Lancers will host Little Big Horn at 5:30 p.m., while the Cougars will entertain Northeast (Neb.) Community College at 1 p.m.

Jones said that the Lancers are playing well right now, especially after they took down Sheridan College and Northwest Wyoming last week at home.

“I think we are peaking right now and I think we are getting better and better as the year goes on,” she said. “We need to peak at the Region IX tournament and I think we will. Everybody contributed tonight and it was a whole team effort.”

EWC (12-12) 27 41 – 68
WNCC (18-7) 26 40 – 66
EASTERN WYOMING
Krystal Pittman 7, Koel Hall 3, Jessica Brown 25, April Johnson 2, Noelle Jones 15, Marque Lunderman 2, Danielle Brown 7, Sarah Smith 3, Kylie Erickson 4.
WESTERN NEBRASKA
Amber Kistler 17, Stormye Everett 13, Shelby Campbell 4, Yuki Morimoto 10, Tiffany Moorer 10, Michelle Glaze 1, Kelli Carver 1, Khayla Gladney 10.

WNCC out-rebounds Casper in securing 73-67 win

Brylle Kamen’s enthusiasm on the court was contagious for the Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball team as they picked up a huge, emotional 73-67 win Tuesday night at Cougar Palace.

The win was especially huge since the Thunderbirds beat the Cougars three weeks ago 75-56 and did it pretty easy. Tuesday night, the Cougars were insistent on picking up the win, which they did behind Kamen’s double-double of 18 points and 12 rebounds.

“This win is very big. We haven’t won a big game for two months now,” a jubilant Kamen, who electrified the crowd with his gutsy play, said. “We are very happy right now. We went to Casper and lost. We have went almost everywhere else and lost, so it is a relief to win this game. I am very happy tonight.”

Actually, it wasn’t just one person that stepped up tonight; it was a team effort as three players recorded double-figure scoring. Kamen led the way with his 18 points followed by Geddes Robinson with 17 and Francisco Cruz with 14.

Another reason for the Cougars’ 15^th win of the season was rebounding. WNCC out-rebounded the 19-6 Casper Thunderbirds 52-39. WNCC coach Russ Beck definitely was elated to see the Cougars step up in that category.

“It doesn’t always matter how big you are. It matters about staying in a stance, turning and locating a man, making sure you know your defensive assignment and making sure you are boxing out. We played a lot of zone at their place and the problem with zone is sometimes we don’t identify who we need to box out. We played predominately man tonight except for a few possessions and we actually knew who we needed to box out and track down that rebound.”

WNCC dominated the 16 minutes of the first half, racing to a 10-2 lead before Casper came back to take an 18-13 lead on a 4-point play from James Hayden. The Cougars didn’t panic, going on a 12-2 run to take a 25-20 lead on four points each from Robinson and Cruz.

Casper sliced the lead to 28-27 late, but a Joe Stock 3-pointer with 47 seconds left in the first half gave the Cougars a 32-27 halftime lead.

The second half was a nail-biter to the end as WNCC held five-point leads early in the half, the last time at 45-40. Casper came back to take a 45-44 lead on a 3-point play from Robert Mayes. The lead didn’t last long as the Cougars zipped to a 51-47 lead behind five straight points from Robinson.

Casper cut the deficit to a single point on a Art Steward offensive putback with 3:40 to play. Kamen, however, got the Cougar fans excited with some spirited play with a bucket with 3 minutes to play. Kamen later sank two free throws with 41.9 seconds to play to put WNCC up 69-65.

WNCC kept playing strong as Joe Stock picked up a big steal and then nailed one of two free throws with 18.1 seconds left and a 70-65 lead. Steward hit a bucket with 12.4 seconds remaining. After Cruz made it a 4-point game, Casper missed a 3-pointer and Stock skied to get the rebound and converted two free throws to ice the game.

Kamen said his team stepped up two the challenge and played 40 minutes of basketball.

“Since we are losing so much, coach just wants to emphasize key parts of the game like defense, boxing out and rebounding,” he said. “We gave our best effort today in rebounding. We did a good job because we won the rebounding battle.”

The Cougars, 15-10, will return back to action on Saturday when they face Northeast (Neb.) Community College in a sub-region contest with tip-off slated for 3 p.m. The last time the two squads met, back on Jan. 23, Northeast won 78-76 on a buzzer-beater.

Kamen said this win will do a lot for confidence heading into Saturday’s important contest.

“Saturday is a sub-region game and we already lost two sub-region games so we can’t lose any more,” he said. “We need to play big defense and rebounding. This is confidence and momentum to come into Saturday’s game.”

Casper (19-7) 27 40 – 67
WNCC (15-10) 32 41 – 73
CASPER
Art Steward 21, Brandon Walton 11, Abner Kamps 2, James Hayden 6, Nikola Kovac 4, Cameron Howard 11, Robert Mayes 7, Antonio DiMiaria 5.
WESTERN NEBRASKA
Geoffery Firmin 5, Saul Torres 5, O’Rion Hughes 4, Joe Stock 8, Francisco Cruz 14, Brylle Kamen 18, Ritchie Mundende 2, Geddes Robinson 17.

WNCC women's comeback comes up short against Casper

The Western Nebraska Community College outscored Casper College 24-12 in the final seven minutes of the game, but it wasn’t enough as the Thunderbirds held on to an 84-79 win Tuesday night at Cougar Palace.

In fact, the difference in the game was Casper’s 8-0 run at the start of the game topped by cold early shooting by the Cougars. Through all the adversity the Cougars had early one, they kept playing and made a valiant late-game run, slicing the lead to four points on a Kelli Carver 3-pointer with 32 seconds to play.

But, the upset big against the No. 19-ranked Thunderbirds fell short.

Hemingford’s Shelby Campbell had a big reason for the Cougars comeback from 17-points down. The smallest player on the court knocked home two 3-pointers, the first with five minutes left and then another with a minute to play to bring the Cougars back to 79-73.

Campbell also added a drive along the baseline and then an underhanded, reverse lay-up to excite the team on the comeback. She finished with 15 points, including 3 of 3 from beyond the arc.

Campbell said this was a tough contest to take, especially with the comeback the team had.

“We should have brought that momentum the first half but we dug ourselves a hole and it was a tough hole to get out of,” she said. “We worked really hard the last seven minutes and I think all the girls came together as one because we wanted and needed this win.”

Campbell, though was just one of three Cougars to finish in double figures. Yuki Morimoto lead the way with 20 points, including four 3-pointers, while Amber Kistler tossed in 10 points and one trey.

The Cougars also got clutch play from other players as well. Khayla Gladney came off the bench to score eight points, while Thais Pinto added seven and Carolina Alves had six.

The key in the game was Casper’s ability to knock home the 3-pointers, nailing seven treys for the game. The Thunderbirds hit five 3-pointers in the first half along to run to a 42-32 halftime lead. Lindsey Fearing paced Casper with 30 points, including 6 of 9 shooting from beyond the arc. Samira Van Grinsven also chipped in 18 points.

Campbell said it was tough to defend their big girls popping 3-pointers, but in the second half, they held them in check by playing hard defense.

“It was pretty hard to stop their tall 3-point shooters, but as long as we got a hand up in their face we could stop them. We just need to play hard defense,” she said. “Coach actually told us at halftime that we didn’t have much of a defense and that was why we were down. We brought our heads together and came to the conclusion that we had to kick it into gear and play as a team.”

Even though the Cougars lost the contest, the team picked up huge confidence, especially playing with sophomore starter Stormye Everett, who is out with an injury.

“We worked really hard and the chemistry was there. We were working together and we trusted each other and that was huge,” Campbell said. “I think we found our chemistry again. I think it will only get better from here.”

The Cougars will found out if they continue that second-half chemistry Thursday night when they host Eastern Wyoming College at 7 p.m.

Casper (23-3) 42 42 – 84
WNCC (18-6) 32 47 – 79
CASPER COLLEGE
Sherece Huddling 9, Samira Van Grinsven 18, Shanice Billington 9, Yianna Nadeau 2, Megan Wilson 8, Lindsey Fearing 30, Juliana Paunovic 8.
WESTERN NEBRASKA
Amber Kistler 10, Shelby Campbell 15, Yuki Morimoto 20, Ariane Brown 2, Tiffany Moorer 4, Carolina Alves 6, Madison Keller 2, Michelle Glaze 2, Thais Pinto 7, Kelli Culver 3, Khayla Gladney 8.

WNCC baseball team opens the season this weekend at Garden City, Kan.

Western Nebraska Community College baseball coach Mike Jones is not expecting a lot of home runs hit when the Cougars open the season this weekend on the road.

Instead, Jones is looking at this year’s team to be strong defensively with plenty of pitching. Offensively, well, he is hoping that their speed on the bases and executing the small things will five the Cougars the right chemistry this season.

“This year looks like it will be a fun year. We have a group of guys that we enjoy coaching and are fun to be around. They like to compete but at the same time they have a lot of fun while they compete,” he said. “I really enjoy this team. We will be a team that will be focused on pitching and defense. I don’t think we will just outscore people.”

Jones will see the make-up of this team for real when the Cougars open the season this weekend when they face Garden City Community College on the road. Garden City opened the season last weekend when they fell to Lamar Community College 3-1.

Jones said that from what he has heard, Garden City is an offensive minded team.

“People of told me Garden City is a good offensive team; they are able to score runs,” Jones said. “Lamar beat them 3-1 [over the weekend] and the Garden City coach said they didn’t hit very well. They haven’t had a chance to be outside much. They got a lot of snow down that way, so they haven’t seen a lot of live pitching yet. They already had a chance to play someone and they might come out real god next weekend. To me it really doesn’t matter. We are going to go play and let’s get better.”

The Cougars, on the other hand, have been outside periodically going through mini games in preparation for the season. Jones said that time outside should benefit his team, especially on the pitching mound, where the team’s bread and butter will be the pitching staff.

“I think pitching will be a strength, and not just with our starting pitching, but the depth of our pitching staff overall,” he said. “We will be able to go to guys out of our bullpen and they will be solid pitchers. It is the depth that will make us really strong.”

Anchoring the pitching staff will be sophomores Armani Gonzalez of Miami, Rodil Martinez of Honduras, and Tim Beard of Australia. Jones these three will be carrying the biggest load. However, the bullpen is filled with talent as Julion Davilla, a sophomore from Puerto Rico, will get the start on the mound for the squad against Garden City.

After these four, there are a slew of other arms that will see plenty of action, including Gering’s Carlos Palomo. Palomo was the Gering American Legion’s No. 1 pitcher last summer and will be a major arm on the mound for the Cougars this year.

Other pitchers that will be counted on is David Castle of Guernsey, Wyo., John Bravard of Lyons, Colo., Sidney Jones of La Creiba Honduras, JC Morales of Miami, and Josh Parker of Australia.

“We can keep going through quality guys,” Jones said. “Even though these guys are not our starting pictures right now, they will be key for us.”

Jones said for this team to score runs, they will need to be creative. And one way is to take advantage of their speed on the base paths.

“Offensively, we look like a team that will be scrappy,” he said. “We are going to have to show a lot of discipline. We will have to stay within ourselves and try not to do too much. We are not going to have a powerful lineup and you are not going to see us hit a lot of home runs. We will be a team that will find ways to get on base, and then use our team speed to our advantage and create scoring opportunities.”

The Cougars do have a lot of returning players on the offensive side, including Elvis Garcia at first base, Oscar Rodriquez at second base, Josh Parker as an infielder/pitcher, catchers Jason Sloan and Shane Wade, and outfielders Jared Baros and Trace Marsden. Marsden is a Scottsbluff High graduate.

Jones said that with this type of returning talent, it should be a fun year.

“It will be exciting and the guys understand how we are going to play and how we are going to score runs,” he said. “Everyone is on the same page and understands what our philosophy is going to be to try to score runs. We are going to take a lot of chances and we are going to get thrown out some times. It will not always work, but we will be a team that will go for it and we will see what happens.”

The players can’t wait to get on the field to see just how they will fare this year. Last season the Cougars finished with a 25-29 record, including finishing second in the Empire Conference standings. WNCC fell in the first-round of the Region IX playoffs to Northeastern Junior College, who went on to win the regional tournament.

“The players are excited to get out and they want to go play,” Jones said. “I am happy for us that we get a chance to get out and play. I don’t care if it is a little cold, we just need to go out and play. We will make plenty of mistakes, but that is the way you learn. Let’s make mistakes and learn from them and come back to work on things.”

After back-to-back weekends playing contests in Kansas, the Cougars will open their home campaign on Feb. 27-28 at Cleveland Field when they host Miles Community College.