March 25 Kansas City Kansas Community College at Sedalia
The State Fair (SFCC) Community College Lady Roadrunners swept Kansas City Kansas Community College in two games on Monday, March 25 at Mandy Thomas Field inside Centennial Park by scores of 9-4 and 9-6.
In game one, sophomore utility player Emily Wilson of Oak Grove, Missouri had a pair of hits, including a home run. She scored two runs and drove in a pair of runs. Sophomore pitcher/first baseman Madison Love of Holts Summit, Missouri also hit a home run and drove in two runs. She also walked twice. Freshman outfielder Liz Nimmer of Warrensburg, Missouri also launched a home run, scored twice and drove in two runs. She also contributed another hit in the contest. Freshman pitcher/infielder Alissa Collette of Strafford, Missouri drove home two runs. Freshman catcher/utility player Jordan Fischer of New Florence, Missouri added a double.
"We switched up our pitching plan a little bit and had Alissa start game one," said Lady Roadrunners Softball Head Coach Lyndsey Talbot. "She threw a very good game for us. Our offense was able to put up some runs for her. Offensively, we had some girls who had been struggling with their hitting come in and hit home runs for us. It was a team effort and everybody was seeing the ball well at the plate."
Collette got the start in the circle for SFCC. She pitched six innings to pick up the victory. She allowed four runs, three of which were earned on 12 hits and struck out two. Love pitched the final inning in relief. She struck out three batters.
In game two, SFCC had four players who recorded two hits. Freshman utility player Reagan Hockett recorded two hits. She also scored twice and drove in one. Hockett also stole a pair of bases in the game. Sophomore catcher/infielder Lauren Watkins of Columbia, Missouri hit a home run in game two. She also added another hit, scored twice and drove in three runs. Freshman outfielder Presley Floyd of Strafford, Missouri recorded a single, and a double, and drove in a run. Sophomore outfielder Victoria McCloud of Houston, Missouri had a pair of hits and a run scored. Fischer recorded her second double of the day and drove in a run. Wilson drove in a pair of runs and Love also drove in a run.
"The whole season we've had one or two innings in a game where our defense struggles," said Talbot. "Kansas City Kansas scored six runs in the fourth inning. We challenged our team to chip away at the lead and that's what they did for three innings in a row. They never gave up; it was a complete team effort fight to back."
Love got the start in the circle for game two and went the distance. Love allowed six runs on five hits, none of the runs were earned. She struck out 12.
March 26 North Central Missouri College at Trenton, Missouri
SFCC traveled to Trenton, Missouri on Tuesday, March 26 for an important Region 16 doubleheader with North Central Missouri College. The teams split a pair of games with SFCC winning the first game 4-2 and North Central earning the 5-3 victory in game two.
In game one, Fischer and Nimmer led the SFCC offense with three hits each. Nimmer contributed a double and an RBI. She also scored a run. Love launched a home run to go along with a run scored and two RBI. Hockett and Floyd scored one run each.
"We challenged our team to put a complete game together," said Talbot. "Madison pitched a great game for us. We struggled a little bit offensively, but we played a solid defensive game and were able to get an important Region win."
Love got the start in the circle for SFCC and pitched a complete game. She gave up six hits, and two unearned runs, and struck out nine.
In game two, Love led the team offensively with a home run and two RBI. Collette had a pair of hits. Sophomore middle infielder Brytni Hummel of Garden City, Missouri scored a run. Sophomore infielder Abby Rector of Raytown, Missouri also scored a run. SFCC scored three runs in the top of the fifth inning, but it wasn't enough.
Collette got the start in the circle for SFCC. She pitched four and one-third innings and allowed three runs, only one of which was earned, and struck out three. Sophomore pitcher/infielder Macy Buzzanga of Knob Noster, Missouri came out of the bullpen and took the pitching loss.
"We kind of gave game two away with both mental and physical errors" said Talbot. "I tell our team all the time that I can live with some physical errors, but the routine plays have to be made. We didn't make the routine plays at crucial times. I told our team to learn from this and don't let it happen again. We got what we needed from our pitchers. Our defense and mental part of the game let us down."
The Lady Roadrunners record currently stands at 13-11, 3-5 in Region 16.
David Rohrbach
SFCC Athletics