MCC Softball takes a pair of Monday games against Hastings College JVs

The McCook Community College softball team picked up a pair of non-conference wins at home Monday topping the Hastings College JVs 13-4 and 10-1. MCC won both games by the eight-run rule batting in the fifth inning.

"It was a pretty quick turn-around from Otero to playing today," said MCC Coach Mike Mendenhall. "It took the girls a while to get going, but they got into a groove."

MCC had 14 hits in the first game and nine in the second and got complete-game performances from pitchers Isabella Robertson (Las Alamos, N.M.) and sophomore Hailee Ruble (Delta, Colo.).

"We got good pitching performances for Bell and Hailee," said Mendenhall.\

MCC improves to 10-20 on the season. Next up the team shifts back to Nebraska Community College Athletic Conference play Thursday, hosting Central Community College (Columbus) in a doubleheader starting at 2 p.m. MCC is 2-0 in the Nebraska conference and Central CC is 5-1 (17-12 overall.)

For all the up-to-date information on MCC softball this season including up-to-date scheduling changes, statistics, rosters and photos, please visit the official website of MCC Athletics at mccindians.com

GAME 1 – McCook CC 13, Hastings College JVs 4: Trailing 1-0, Cassidy Fife (Provo, Utah) led off the MCC second with a triple and scored on a sacrifice fly from Kalyn Jackson (Highlands Ranch, Colo.). Freshman Katie Taylor (McCook) singled and later gave MCC a 2-1 lead scoring on a Hastings error.

The Broncos took a 4-2 led with three runs in the third.

MCC erupted for six runs in the fourth. Fife led off with single but was thrown out at second trying to stretch the hit into a double. Following a Bronco error, Taylor singled followed by an RBI single by Graci Nelson (freshman McCook) and a game-tying RBI-single by sophomore Nevaeh Ogden (Littleton Colo.). With two outs, freshman Andie Suhai (Medicine Hat, Alberta) doubled in a run, an error gave MCC a 6-4 lead and freshman Ava Martinez (Houston, Texas) doubled in two more runs to put MCC up 8-4.

With out in the fifth, MCC put the game away with consecutive singles by Taylor, Nelson and Ogden, a two-run double by sophomore Madisyn Simms (Maple Ridge, British Columbia) and a two-out, three-run homer by Hailee Ruble to end the game on the eight-run rule.

Isabella Robertson picked up the complete-game win in the pitching circle surrendering four hits in five innings. She walked six and struck out seven.

MCC had 14 hits with three by Taylor and two each by Ogden, Suhai, Fife and Nelson.

GAME 2 –McCook CC 10, Hastings JVs 1: Hastings took a 1-0 lead in the first off MCC starting pitcher Hailee Ruble.

MCC scored six times in the second inning. Sophomore Emma Pennala (Kennewick, Wash.) led the inning off with a single. A walk, a fielder's choice and a Hastings error tied the game. Graci Nelson singled in two runs, Madisyn Simms doubled in two more and Andi Suhai drove in the sixth run of the inning.

Simms smacked a two-run home run in the fourth to make it an 8-1 game and in the fifth, freshman Ella Covill-Marter (Queensland, Australia) led off with a single. After a walk and an out, Nelson doubled to center to end the game on the eight-run rule.

Hailee Ruble picked up the win in the circle allowing four hits and no earned runs with three walks and four strikeouts.

MCC had nine hits in the game with two each from Suhai, Simms and Nelson.