PHOENIX – The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team hit three home runs but it wasn't enough as South Mountain Community College pounded out 18 hits in rolling to the run-ruled 16-6 win over the Cougars Tuesday afternoon in Phoenix.

                The loss snapped a WNCC three-game win streak as they opened up their Spring Break trip. WNCC and South Mountain will face each other again Wednesday in another 9-inning contest.

                Tuesday, though, WNCC got behind the 8-ball early allowing a single run in the first and then 10 runs in the second to trail 11-0. South Mountain scored 10 runs in that second inning on eight hits. The biggest hit was a 2-run double by Rigo Aguilar.

                After that, the Cougars bats came alive outscoring South Mountain 6-5. The top of the third, the Cougars started coming around as Alex Achtermann earned a walked and Michaud to a full-count and unloaded for the 2-run home run.

                South Mountain came right back in their half of the third with four runs on four hits, including a triple by Blake Nelson and a 2-run double by Addison Kaasch for a 15-2 lead.

                WNCC kept fighting, adding two more runs in the fourth as Ryan Grasser delivered a 2-run home run that also scored Ty Benson.

                The Cougars sliced the lead to single digits with other two runs in the sixth. Isaac Block led off with a solo home run. Grasser then earned a 2-out walk before scoring on an Oscar Perez double. That, however, was as close as the Cougars could get.

                WNCC had seven hits in the contest with five extra base hits. Michaud had four the seven hits, going a perfect 4-for-4 from the plate with a double, home run, two RBIs and a run scored. Also picking up home runs on the day included Block and Grasser, while Perez added a double.

                Lincoln Trujilo picked up the loss on the mound, going three innings in giving up 14 hits and 15 runs. Zac Moran finished off the game, tossing three innings with three hits, one run, while striking out five.

WNCC (6-13)                      002 202 0 – 6 7 6

S. Mountain (14-9)          1(10)4 010 x – 16 18 0

WP – Jimmy Dobrash, LP – Lincoln Trujilo; 2B – WNCC (Austin Michaud, Oscar Perez), SMCC (Addison Kaasch, Rigo Aguilar); 3B – SMCC (Blake Nelson); HR – WNCC (Michaud, Isaac Block, Ryan Grasser).