A day after sweeping Lamar Community College in an Empire Conference doubleheader on Sunday, Western Nebraska Community College baseball dropped a pair of games to the Runnin' Lopes by scores of 11-1 and 6-2.
The Cougars fall to 13-20 overall and to 4-8 in conference play.
WNCC will host Trinidad State College in a 4-game conference series on Friday and Saturday. Those will be their last home games for three weeks as their next home game will be May 2 against Northeastern Junior College.
Monday's contests were contests where the Cougar bats were silent. In game one, the Cougars managed just one hit and fell behind 5-0 through 2 ½ innings. The third inning was when the Cougars managed to scratch across a run. Jase Satterfield led off by reaching on an error. With two outs, Vaughn Wilson doubled in Satterfield for the run.
That was the only hit the Cougars would get in the game.
Rocco Harmon took the loss on the hill, going 4 1/3 innings in striking out four and scattering nine hits and allowing 11 runs, seven of which were earned. Carter Reisig tossed 2/3 of an inning in not allowing a hit or run.
Game two was close with the Cougars managing seven hits. WNCC, however, couldn't get the big hit to plat runners that were left stranded on base.
Lamar scored three times in the first inning for a 3-0 lead. WNCC came right back with two in the first. Calab Caciari led off with a followed by a Vaughn Wilson double, Caciari scored on a Jin Kobayakawa sacrifice fly and Wilson scored on a Cooper Burgess double to make it 3-2.
WNCC squandered a prime scoring chance in the second inning as Will Harbison led off with a triple, but was left stranded at third. WNCC had another prime chance to score in the fourth when they loaded the bases, but all three runners were left aboard.
Lamar came back with two in the sixth to take a 5-2 lead and then adding an insurance run in the ninth.
WNCC made a rally in the ninth. Austin Cooper led off with a single followed by back-to-back walks from Vaughn and Cooper Wilson to load the bases with just one out. But, the Cougars couldn't get the big hit to score the runners and fell 6-2.
Harbison led the Cougars at the plate with a 3-for-4 appearance with a triple.
WNCC used four pitchers in the 9-inning the contest with Allard Helms taking the loss in four innings of work and striking out five while allowing just three runs. Marshall Forsyth, Austin Neeley, and Alex Renfrow followed and those three combined for eight strikeouts and just three runs.
Game 1
Lamar 023 06 – 11 9 2
WNCC 001 00 – 0 1 3
LP – Rocco Harmon.
2B – Vaughn Wilson.
Game 2
Lamar 300 002 001 – 6 9 0
WNCC 200 000 000 – 2 7 1
LP – Allard Helms.
2B – Cooper Burgess, Vaughn Wilson.
3B – Will Harbison.