News
McCook sweeps Rough Riders
By Dave Kavanaugh
Luna Community College
McCook Community College held the upper hand against Luna Community College on the baseball and softball diamonds over the weekend, sweeping four-game series to solidify their places in the standings.
Luna hosted McCook in softball – just the second home series for the Rough Riders and first-year skipper Randall Krutsch – while T.C. Nusser and his squad were on the road to face the same school in baseball.
The softball series saw the Indians control Saturday’s games 13-0 and 17-2 before Luna got closer in losing 8-5 and 13-5 on Sunday, all at Cowgirl Field on the NMHU campus.
Paige Smith’s first-inning grand slam and consecutive home runs by Tyler Mooring and Alyssa Winter set the tone in game one. Madisyn Simms belted a three-run homer in game two as part of a key fourth-inning surge.
The Rough Riders looked to pull off the upset in game three of the series and were well on their way Sunday after taking a 5-3 advantage through four frames. McCook regained the lead in the sixth on an error that followed a pair of Indian home runs.
Luna’s Raegan Shackelford smashed a three-run homer in the bottom of the first to grab a 3-2 lead early in game four, but the visitors pulled back in front in the top of the second when Alexis Cortez’s double plated three runs. The Riders pulled within 7-5 in their half of the inning but got no closer.
Lexi Johnson and Absidy Ball joined Shackelford in collecting home runs for the Riders in the series.
McCook improved to 15-13 with the sweep.
Luna softball (5-26) is scheduled to host Trinidad State (Colo.) College on Monday and Tuesday, April 4-5, at Cowgirl Field. First pitch is set for 1 p.m. Monday and 11 a.m. Tuesday.
Trinidad State (11-16) split its most recent series this past weekend at Western Nebraska. As a team the Trojans are hitting a healthy .323, and Ciara Salazar has nine stolen bases.
On Saturday, an eight-hour drive away in McCook, Neb., McCook baseball (16-16) pitched a double shutout over the visiting Rough Riders, getting stellar outings from ace pitchers Max Mrakovcic and Alex Lozada. Mrakovcic struck out 12 in a 5-0 win, and Lozada followed by throwing a five-inning no-hitter with nine strikeouts to lead the Indians to a 10-0 win.
Dominic Lucero accounted for two of Luna’s four hits in the opener. Only three walks and a hit-by-pitch reach kept Lozada from a perfect game in Saturday’s nightcap.
Luna broke the shutout streak early on Sunday but ended up falling 10-4 and 13-3. The Rough Riders led 1-0 in Sunday’s first contest on an RBI double by Samuel Estrada to score Dominic Lucero. While the Riders had two runners in scoring position with nobody out, McCook stranded both. They tied it 2-2 on a two-out double by Lucero in the second inning.
But McCook dominated the middle innings to pull ahead. Tyler Sunstrom had two runs batted in, and Lucero notched two hits to pace Luna’s offense.
In the series finale, the Riders again struck first for a 1-0 edge – Tony Limon sprinted home from second on a Bo Kidd single – before a double play snuffed out a promising second inning. Zach Beatty’s three-run homer highlighted the pivotal fourth inning. Luna’s Estrada crushed a two-run homer in the fifth.
Luna baseball (5-32) returns home for a weekend series against Northeastern (Colo.) Junior College. Game times are noon Saturday and Sunday at Brandt Park.
Northeastern (20-15) is coming off a 3-1 series win over Otero College this past weekend in Sterling, Colo. Northeastern posted a record-breaking 26-14 win over Western Nebraska on March 24; the Plainsmen’s 26 runs are the most ever scored in a game against WNCC. Outfielders Zach Boone and Mason Sauter have a combined 11 home runs.