MCC Softball splits pair of NCCAC games with Central Community College

The McCook Community College softball team split a pair of games Thursday with Central Community College. MCC scored the first four runs of Game 1 and won 7-4. Central broke up a 5-5 game with five runs in the seventh inning of Game 2 to win 10-5.

"In the first game we outplayed them in all aspects," said MCC Coach Mike Mendenhall. "We manufactured runs and had the big hits when needed and Ella did a nice job in the circle. "

MCC took a 4-0 lead in Game 2 but surrendered a pair of five-run innings and committed three errors.

"We did a nice job of scoring early and got into the middle innings and couldn't get anything going," Mendenhall said. "We need to make plays late in the game in order to be a good team."

MCC goes to 12-21 on the season, 3-1 in the Nebraska Community College Athletic Conference. They are tied with Central, who is 6-2 in the NCCAC and 20-13 overall.

This weekend, MCC will be on the road to Lamar, Colo. for a five-game series with doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday and a single game Monday. Then MCC goes to North Platte for a doubleheader Tuesday, and a doubleheader Wednesday at Beatrice against Southeast Community College before returning home for five games with Trinidad State April 22-23.

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 7, Central CC 4: MCC jumped on top in the first with three runs courtesy of four sophomores. Nevaeh Ogden (Littleton Colo.) and Madisyn Simms (Maple Ridge, British Columbia) opened the inning with back-to-back doubles for the first run. With two outs, Emma Pennala (Kennewick, Wash.) singled home Simms and Cassidy Fife (Provo, Utah) doubled home Pennala to give MCC a 3-0 lead.

MCC manufactured a run in the third on a walk, a hit batter, a sacrifice bunt by Ava Martinez (Houston, Texas) and an RBI-groundout with Pennala batting.

Central got a run back in the fourth to make it a 4-1 MCC lead but the home team got that run back in the bottom of the inning on a leadoff single by freshman Graci Nelson (McCook) and a two-out RBI double by Andie Suhai (freshman, Medicine Hat, Alberta).

MCC added two runs in the fifth on a single by Pennala, a double by Fife to make it a 6-1 game and an RBI-groundout with Ogden batting.

The Raiders countered with a couple singles and a three-run home run to start off the sixth but starting pitcher Ella Covill-Marter (Queensland, Australia) shut down the Central offense in the sixth and retired the side in order in the seventh. She picked up the complete-game win allowing six hits, three earned runs, one walk and she struck out eight hitters.

MCC had 10 hits in the game. Fife had a pair of doubles and two RBIs, Pennala had two hits and two RBIs and Nelson had a two-hit game.

GAME 2 – Central CC 10, McCook CC 5: Nevaeh Ogden led of the MCC first with a single and scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Andi Suhai. MCC added two in the second on a two-out triple by freshman Brylee Dean (Gering), and RBI-single by Ogden and an RBI-single by Madisyn Simms to go up 3-0. Dean singled in a run in the third to make it a 4-0 game.

Isabella Robertson (Las Alamos, N.M.) pitched into the fourth inning when Central scored five runs to take the lead. She pitched three innings, allowed four hits, walked one and struck out one.

MCC tied the game 5-5 in the fifth on singles from Cassidy Fife and Kalyn Jackson (Highlands Ranch, Colo.), a sacrifice bunt by Dean and a sacrifice fly from Graci Nelson.

Central got a three-run home run in the seventh inning to key a five-run inning.

Sophomore Hailee Ruble (Delta, Colo.) pitched the final four innings for MCC, allowing five hits, three walks and she struck out two.

MCC had 12 hits with three by Ruble and two each by Ogden, Simms, Fife and Dean.

NEBRASKA COMMUNITY COLLEGE

ATHLETIC CONFERENCE STANDINGS

                         W - L      PCT.

McCook CC         3 – 1       .750

Central CC          6 – 2       .833

North Platte        1 – 3      .250

Southeast CC      2 – 6      .250

MCC NCCAC RESULTS

March 30 – G1: MCC 12, Southeast 11. G2: MCC 7, Southeast CC 6 (at McCook)

April 13 – G1: MCC 7, Central 4. G2: Central 10, MCC 5 (at McCook)

MCC's REMAINING NCCAC SCHEDULE

April 18 – McCook at North Platte, 2 games

April 19 – McCook CC at Southeast CC, 2 games

April 26 – McCook CC at Central CC, 2 games

April 28 – North Platte at McCook CC, 2 games