The State Fair Community College (SFCC) Roadrunners traveled to Springfield, Missouri on Thursday, Feb. 21 and split a pair of games with the Kansas City Kansas Community College Blue Devils and the Indian Hills Community College Warriors. SFCC lost the game to Kansas City Kansas 8-0, before bouncing back to defeat Indian Hills 4-3. Both games were seven inning contests.
Kansas City Kansas held the SFCC offense to a pair of singles from freshman infielder/outfielder Anthony Gunn and freshman infielder Malik Stevenson.
Sophomore pitcher Logan Bexten, who was charged with the loss, got the start for SFCC. He pitched four innings and allowed four runs on five hits.
"We struggled to get anything going offensively against Kansas City Kansas," said Roadrunners Baseball Head Coach Jud Kindle. "Two hits aren't going to get it done. Only 33% of our bats were quality at-bats."
In game two against Indian Hills, SFCC got on the scoreboard first with three runs in the bottom of the second inning. Indian Hills answered with a pair of runs in the top of the third inning. The Warriors tied the game with a single tally in the top of the fifth inning. SFCC scored what would prove to be the game-winning run in the bottom of the sixth inning.
Sophomore outfielder Brady Holden had two hits and two runs batted in from the leadoff spot. He also stole a base. Sophomore infielder Kyle Clark also had a pair of hits and two runs scored. Freshmen outfielders Ian Taylor and Brice Pannier recorded one hit each. Pannier and freshman infielder Drew Perez drove in a run each.
Freshman pitcher Matt Perego got the start for SFCC. He pitched three and one-third innings, allowed two runs on four hits, and struck out five. Sophomore pitcher Bill Cain picked up the win in relief. He struck out four in three and two-thirds innings and allowed one run on two hits.
"That was a good win for us," said Kindle. "I think 50 percent of our at-bats were quality at-bats in that game. We're still having a hard time manufacturing runs, but we were able to score the go-ahead run on a safety squeeze. Our pitchers did well. Cain was able to come in out of the bullpen and shut the door for us. He has probably been our most consistent pitcher."
Feb. 24 Kansas City Kansas Community College at Warrensburg, Missouri
The Roadrunners took on Kansas City Kansas Community College on Sunday, Feb. 24 in a doubleheader at Crane Stadium/Tompkins Field on the University of Central Missouri campus in Warrensburg, Mo. SFCC (5-5) lost a pair of games 2-0 and 5-2 to KCKCC. The games were seven inning contests.
In game one, Kansas City Kansas scored single runs in the fourth and fifth innings to claim the victory. The SFCC offense struggled only managing three hits in the first game, including one each from Brady Holden, Stevenson, and Taylor.
Sophomore pitcher Jack Schmedding went the distance on the mound for SFCC. He allowed two runs on six hits and struck out five.
In game two, each team scored a pair of runs in the fourth inning. Kansas City Kansas added two more runs in the fifth inning and one in the sixth to finish the scoring. The SFCC offense produced only three hits in the game. Stevenson recorded a double. Sophomore catcher Blake Ford had a hit and an RBI. Sophomore infielder Gavin Jones also contributed with a hit.
Sophomore pitcher Conner Burnett got the start for the Roadrunners on the mound. He pitched three innings. He allowed two runs, none earned, and struck out two. Freshman pitcher Austin Brooks took the loss in relief for SFCC. He pitched two innings, allowed two runs, one earned.
"Offensively, we didn't get the job done," said Kindle. "Our pitching was great. We need to do a better job of getting runners on base, but it is early in the season. Our hitters are trying to make some adjustments that will hopefully help them out at the plate."
David Rohrbach
SFCC Athletics