MCC Baseball falls to Colby 13-9

MCC’s Landon McKillip goes for a high-hopper and turns it into a doubleplay Monday against Colby.

The McCook Community College baseball team dropped a 13-9 decision Monday at home to Colby Community College.

“They just got a couple more swings on it than we did today,” said MCC Coach Jon Olsen. “I thought we had some guys on the mound that stepped up and threw well.”

MCC freshman starting pitcher (Kaden Noble, Orillia, Ontario) began the game issuing a walk, giving up a double and loading the bases with another walk but got out of the inning allowing just one run after inducing a doubleplay and a groundout.

The Indians loaded the bases in the bottom of the first singles by sophomores Maddox Shaver (Belleville, Ontario) and Cory Wouters (sophomore Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) and a walk by Ben Heathcock (freshman, Little Elm, Texas) but came up with just one run and that came on a sacrifice fly by freshman Connor Charvat (Elkhorn South).

Noble retired Colby in order in the second and left the game after two innings, allowing the one earned run on three walks, a hit and one strikeout.

Freshman Elvis Conte (Fort Collins, Colo.) pitched two scoreless innings and the score remained 1-1 until Colby scored five runs in the fifth inning off Colby Kaplan (freshman, Parker, Colo.) who surrendered four straight singles, a sacrifice bunt, a sacrifice fly and a two-run homer to give Colby a 6-1 lead.

MCC responded with four runs in the bottom of the inning on a hit batter, a single from freshman Chase Williams (Brampton, Ontario), two walks, a fielder’s choice with a Colby error and an RBI-single by redshirt sophomore Eli Schaeffer 1B (Thornton, Colo.) to make it a 6-5 game.

Freshman Parker Wilson (Tulsa, Okla.) pitched a scoreless sixth inning, fanning one but then Colby scored three runs in the seventh inning including back-to-back home runs off reliever sophomore Jean Duran (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) to take a 9-5 lead. The Trojans added three more runs in the eighth off Julian Alvarez (freshman, Vaughan, Ontario) to lead 12-5.

“There was a pretty small window with the wind to be able to get the ball out today right down the rightfield line and Colby got it in there a few times,” said Olsen.

The Indians scored twice in the eighth with RBI-singles from Williams and Wouters to close the gap to 12-7.

Colby scored a run in the ninth off freshman Landen Zehr (Kitchener, Ontario). He allowed one hit, one walk and he struck out one in his inning.

“Kaden, Elvis, Parker, and Zehr had some good innings, we just got hurt by the home run ball today,” said Olsen.

Williams provided a glimmer of hope in the ninth with a two-run RBI-single with two outs, but MCC left the potential tying run on deck.

Colby outhit MCC 13-12. Both teams committed two errors.

Williams led MCC with four hits and drove in three. Shaver and Corbin Lochhead (freshman, Vegreville, Alberta) both had two-hit games.

“It was good to see some guys get some opportunities and do a nice job with them,” said Olsen.

Wouters had two hits and two RBIs. He was coming off a week when he was named Region IX Player of the Week, in-part because of his last game against Colby on April 1, when he hit for the cycle and went six-for-six in the game with two home runs, a triple, two doubles and eight RBIs in a game which MCC won 23-22. For his second Player of the Week award this season, Wouters batted.684 (13-for-19) for the week of March 31-April 6 with four doubles, a triple, three homers and 10 RBIs.

With Monday’s win, Colby improves 24-18 on the season. The Indians fall to 18-23.

“We needed to get a few guys off their feet, it’s getting to be that time of year where little injuries and soreness pop up so it was good we had other guys step up and compete, that will only help us as we move into the final stretch of the year,” said Olsen.

MCC will have five home games in the next week. The Indians will host Trinidad State for four region games with doubleheaders Friday and Saturday starting at 1 p.m. MCC is 6-10, sixth in the eight-team Empire League standings (Region IX). Trinidad State is eighth at 4-12 and 12-28 overall. Southeast Community College leads the region at 13-3, Northeastern Junior College and Lamar are tied for second at 10-6.

Colby returns to McCook on April 22 for a nine-inning game.

For all the latest information about MCC baseball including schedule and schedule changes, livestream links, statistics, rosters, photos and more please visit the MCC Athletics website, www.mccindians.com