LAJUNTA, Colo. – The Western Nebraska Community College softball team earned a split with Otero College on Sunday, capturing the second game behind a strong pitching performance from Katie McMillan in earning the 2-1 win.

                The first game saw Otero outhit the Cougars 12-3 and scored five times in the fifth to earn the 8-0 win.

                The second game was a defensive gem and one that was controlled by the pitchers. McMillan went all seven innings in allowing just four hits and one run. McMillan, the freshman from British Columbia, struck out five and did not walk a batter. McMillan aced just 26 batters in the seven innings and threw 84 pitches, 61 of which went for strikes.

                WNCC outhit Otero 5-4 in the second game with three of those hits being doubles. Taylor Klein, Chloe Cronquist, and DemiRae Woolsey all had doubles in the win.

                Otero struck first in the second game as they scored one in the first for the 1-0 lead.

                WNCC did have runners on base in the other innings as well. The first inning saw Macyn Hartman earn a walk, but was stranded on second base.

                The Cougars had a prime scoring chance in the second when Cronquist led off with a double followed by Erin Hurst earn a walk. The two were stranded on base.

                The third inning saw Klein get a 2-out double but she, too, was stranded.

                The score stayed that way until the fifth inning when WNCC plated two runs to take the 2-1 lead. That frame saw Woolsey get a one-out double followed by Victoria Wharton getting a single. Hartman came through to score pinch-runner Mackenzie Bakel to tie the game at 1-1 and Wharton scored the go-ahead run on a Klein sacrifice fly.

                The Cougar defense then held strong as they got Otero to go out in three straight outs in the fifth. The sixth saw Otero put two on, but McMillan got the second out on a fly out to center fielder Wharton and got a strike out for the third out.

                The seventh inning saw WNCC put two runners on, but they couldn't add an insurance run. That didn't matter as the Cougar defense got three straight outs in the bottom of the seventh on a fly out to right fielder Hurst for out one. Then second baseman Bailey Blanchard got a pop out for the second out, and the third out was a lazy ground ball that McMillan through to first for the final out of the game.

                The first game was different from the second game. The Cougars couldn't get their bats going to score runs in that opening game, managing just three hits. Those three hits came from the bats of Wharton, Klein, and Blanchard and they were all singles.

                WNCC got one runner on base in four of the five innings, but couldn't a big hit to move the runners around the base and across home plate.

                Lexi Parker took the loss, going four innings in scattering seven hits and allowing six runs while striking out three. Caley Leslie pitched in the fifth and allowed one run, striking out one, and walking two.

                WNCC will be off until Sunday when they travel to face North Platte Community College.

Game 1

WNCC                   000 00 – 0 3 2

Otero                    003 05 – 8 12 0

LP – Lexi Parker.

Game 2

WNCC                   000 020 0 – 2 5 1

Otero                    100 000 0 – 1 4 1

WP – Katie McMillan.

2B – Taylor Klein, Chloe Cronquist, DemiRae Woolsey.