March 25, 2009

Tiger baseball team splits doubleheader with Allen County

After winning the first game of a doubleheader against Allen County by a score of 10-6 Tuesday at City Ball Park, the Cowley College baseball team rallied to send the second game into extra innings before falling by a score of 5-4.

Held hitless for the first five innings of game two, the Tigers struck for a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth inning and two more in the seventh to tie the game at 4-4.

Sophomore pitcher Michael Flanagin entered the game in the top of the eighth inning and retired the first two batters he faced. However, the next batter tripled to put the go ahead run in scoring position. Flanagin looked like he might get out of the inning unscathed as he struck out the next batter, but the third strike got past the Tiger catcher and allowed the run to score.

Cowley nearly sent the game into another extra frame, but Luke Zeller was thrown out at home trying to score on a double by Colt Loehrs.

Flanagin (0-2) took the loss as Cowley dropped to 18-8 overall and 9-3 in the Jayhawk Conference Eastern Division. The Tigers remained tied with Johnson County (7-1) for first place in the conference. Allen County is now 13-9 overall and 5-5 in the Jayhawk East.

Allen County out-hit Cowley 11-5 in the second game of the doubleheader. Three of the Tigers’ five hits were doubles.

In the opener, Cowley built a 8-0 lead and held on for the 10-6 win. Things got interesting in the top of the seventh as Allen County scored three runs and had the tying run at the plate before Chase Webb avoided further damage by getting Marcus Peavler to ground out with the bases loaded to end the game. Webb surrendered six hits and three runs in 1 1/3 innings pitched.

For the second straight game, Cowley sophomore Stephen Kohlscheen produced double-digit strikeouts as the right-hander struck out 10 and walked three in 5 2/3 innings. Kohlscheen allowed six hits and three runs as he improved to 3-1 on the season.

Colt Loehrs was just a home run shy of hitting for the cycle as he went 3-for-4 with a single, double, triple and three runs batted in. B.J. Misialek also fared well at the plate as he went 2-for-3 with a home run, a double, and four RBI. Misialek’s home run in the bottom of the sixth inning caromed off the top of the right field wall for his first round tripper of the season.

Luke Zeller and Tyler Hancock each added two hits in the win.

Cowley will host Johnson County in a doubleheader Thursday at 1 p.m. with first place on the line in the Jayhawk East.