Hutchinson CC Sports Information
A struggling Hutchinson Community College pitching staff came up big in the second game of the season-opening Jayhawk West doubleheader on Thursday at Hobart-Detter Field.
After the Barton Cougar rolled to a 10-4 win over Hutchinson in Game 1, Ben McLaughlin and Tyler Delong delivered a much-needed strong performance on the mound as Hutchinson defeated Barton 6-5 in the nightcap to split the first Jayhawk West series of the season.
The Blue Dragons are now 6-6 overall and 1-1 in league play. Barton is 13-2 overall and 1-1 in the west. The Cougars had a nine-game overall winning streak and a run of five wins in a row against the Blue Dragons come to an end in Game 2.
The teams are scheduled to complete the four-game series on Saturday in Great Bend, weather permitting.
GAME 2 RECAP
McLaughlin made his first career pitching start for the Blue Dragons and threw five solid innings. McLaughlin struck out four and walked nine while allowing just two hits and one earned run. McLaughlin threw four shutout innings before the Cougars scratched one run across in the fifth inning. McLaughlin left the game with a 4-1 lead.
The Cougars struck for one run in the seventh and three more in the eights off pitchers Zane Covey and Cade Fenton to take a 5-4 lead in the eighth.
The Blue Dragon offense caught a break in the bottom of the eighth with a pair of Barton errors. After a Will Reetz one-out single, Sterling Sutcliffe extended the inning, reaching on the first Barton error of the inning with two out. Jack Torosian then hit a 3-2 pitch to second that was mishandled and rolled into right-center field. Reetz and Sutcliffe both scored on the play to give Hutchinson a 6-5 lead.
Delong, who came into the game in the eighth and induced an inning-ending double play to end the Cougar threat, wound up earning the pitching win with a scoreless ninth inning.
The Blue Dragons out-hit Barton 11-6 in Game 2.
Torosian and Mason Lowe had two hits each from the top of the Dragon order. Will Reetz had two RBIs on a two-run single in the sixth that gave Hutchinson a 2-1 lead. Cole Cosman followed that with a two-run single for a 4-1 Blue Dragon lead.
Will Reetz had the only extra-base hit for Hutchinson Game 2.
GAME 1 RECAP
After the Blue Dragons jumped out to a 3-0 lead after one inning, Barton scored 10 unanswered runs in second, third and fourth innings to control the first game Thursday.
Will Reetz singled one P.J. Loucks and McLaughlin plated Austin Callahan and Reetz in Hutchinson's three-run first.
The Cougars took over from there, scoring two unearned runs in the second to pull within 3-2. Barton then put up back-to-back four-run innings in the third and fourth against Dragon starter Zach Firmature.
The Blue Dragons had only five hits in the first game. Reetz and McLaughlin and the only run-producing hits. Loucks, Callahan and Sutcliffe had the other hits.
Firmature gave up nine runs (seven earned) and six hits in 3 1-3 innings. He struck out six and walked two. Caden Pogue and Hunter Waugh each worked an inning in Game 1