May 22, 2004

Tigers win elimination game, advance to Saturday

WICHITA - Pounding out 17 hits and knocking Barton County starting pitcher A.J. Knight out of the game in the first inning, the Jayhawk East No. 1 seeded Cowley County Community College baseball team ousted Jayhawk West No. 2 seed Barton County from the double elimination Region VI Tournament with a 15-10 victory over the Cougars Friday at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium.

Cowley used four hits, a walk, and two hit batsmen by Knight to score five runs in the top of the first inning. Clay Blevins reached on an error and came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Dwayne White to increase the Tigers lead to 6-0 in the top of the second.

Appearing to be in control of the game, Cowley let Barton County back into the game with some sloppy play in the bottom of the second. The Tigers committed three errors in the inning, and the Cougars took advantage of the extra opportunities by getting four hits and four runs off Cowley starting pitcher Dustin Richardson.

Cowley got two of the runs back in the top of the third inning as Deik Scram blasted a mammoth home run over the centerfield fence off Barton County reliever Brian Knipplemeyer.

The Tigers went ahead 9-4 on an RBI double by White in the top of the sixth, before Barton County rallied once again. Drawing a pair of one out walks from Richardson, the Cougars would score a run on wild pitch and a double by Jeff Christy to cut Cowley's lead to 9-6.

With runners at second and third and only one out, Matt VanDeelen relieved Richardson on the mound. Van Deelen got Jerry Cook to popout for the second out, but then allowed a two-run single to Steve Edlefson and a RBI single by Mark Newton to tie the game at 9-9.

Knipplemeyer ran into trouble of his own in the top of the seventh as Chad Ogden led off the inning with a single and advanced to third on a throwing error by Knipplemeyer, who overthrew the first baseman on a bunt by Daryl Graham.

Derek McDaid relieved Knipplemeyer on the mound and promptly threw a wild pitch to score Ogden with the go ahead run. Kellen Linville would add an RBI single to make the score 11-9.

Barton County scored a run in the bottom of the seventh to cut the Tigers' lead to 11-10 and threatened to take the lead as they had runners at first and third with only one out. However, VanDeelen struck out Cook and got Edlefson to fly out to deep center field to preserve the one-run lead.

Cowley would use three hits, a walk, and a hit batsmen to score three runs in the eighth and increase its lead to 14-10. With VanDeelen pitching a scoreless eighth, Cowley benefitted from an error by the Cougars to score an unearned run in the top of the ninth.

Van Deelen (4-3) then pitched a one-two-three ninth inning to finish off the 15-10 victory.

Linville, White and Ogden each had three hits in the win, while White and Scram drove in three runs a piece.

Cowley (40-18) advances to play the loser of the Seward County vs. Johnson County contest which was the late game on Friday. The game will take place Saturday at 2 p.m. If the Tigers win they will play Saturday night at 8.

Barton County finishes the season with a record of 37-20.