The Western Nebraska Community College baseball needed two wins Friday to lock up the second seed for the Region IX tournament next weekend.

            Instead, the two teams split contests at Cleveland Field which sets up Saturday's regular season final between the two teams as pivotal with the winner claiming the second seed for regionals while the loser will get the third seed. The first and second seeds will get a first-round bye in the regional tournament while the next four teams will have to play a first-round playoff game in the regional tournament that begins Thursday in Pueblo, Colorado.

            Saturday's 9-inning contest will begin at 5:30 p.m. in Sterling, Colorado.

            Friday's contest went WNCC way in the opener as the Cougars registered a 7-3 win and only trailed once in the contest. The second game saw NJC earn the 5-0 win.

            The first game saw NJC start fast as they got one run in the first inning with two outs. WNCC stayed composed and tied the game with a run in the second when Ren Sato reached on an error and scored on a Will Harbison single.

            The Cougars went up 4-1 with three in the third as Calab Caciari walked and Vaughn Wilson followed with a double. Jin Kobayakawa followed as he delivered a 3-run home run for his parents who flew in from Japan to watch the freshman play. WNCC led 4-1 after three.

            NJC followed with a run in the fourth to make it 4-2.

            The lead stayed that way until the sixth when the Cougars added three more runs. All the runs started with two outs. Harbison got things going with a single followed by Kensei Oikawa earning a walk. Caciari followed with a 2-run double to make it 6-2. Caciari scored on a Wilson single.

            NJC got one back in the seventh on a home run, but that was it for the Plainsmen.

            WNCC finished with nine hits in the contest. Wilson and Harbison led the way with three hits each. Wilson had a single, double, and triple, while Harbison had a double. Kobayakawa had two hits with a home run and three RBIs.

            Julian Garza picked up the win, going five innings in scattering five hits, walking four, and striking out two. Zane Hendrickx tossed the sixth in striking out two and then Alex Renfrow picked up the save, tossing the seventh with just one hit.

            The second game saw the Cougars manage six hits and couldn't get the base hit when needed to score the runners when they got on. On the other side, the NJC defense was making plays to thwart WNCC's scoring changes.

            NJC pitcher Tony Slizowski went the distance in scattering six hits and striking out seven. WNCC starting pitcher Rocco Harmon went six strong innings in allowing just two runs while allowing six hits. Harmon also struck out eight.

            WNCC fell behind 2-0 after NJC plated single runs in the second and third innings.

            WNCC had a golden opportunity to score first in the first inning as they got the first two batters aboard after Caciari and Wilson each singled, but couldn't score them.

            WNCC had another opportunity to score in the fifth when Kyler Adams was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and then Caciari singled with one out, but an inning-ending double play got NJC out of the jam.

            NJC plated three insurance runs in the seventh to make it 5-0. WNCC tried to mount a comeback in the seventh as Catcher Gladysh and Ren Sato each had singles, but that was all the Cougars could get.

            Caciari led the offense with two of the team's six hits.

Game 1
NJC                  100 100 1 – 3 8 0
WNCC              013 003 x – 7 9 0
WP – Julian Garza; S – Alex Renfrow.
2B – Calab Caciara, Vaughn Wilson, Will Harbison.
3B – Vaughn Wilson.
HR – Jin Kobayakawa.

Game 2
NJC                  011 000 3 – 5 10 1
WNCC              000 000 0 – 0 6 2
LP – Rocco Harmon.