OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – The No. 12-ranked Johnson County baseball team completed a four-game sweep over Highland over the weekend to improve to 34-6 overall and in sole possession of first place in the East Jayhawk Conference at 18-2. For head coach Eric Horner and his Cavaliers it marked the sixth four-game series sweep of the season.
Johnson County opened the series on Thursday, April 6 with a doubleheader sweep at home by the scores of 7-3 and 13-0, then completed the sweep on Saturday, April 8 at Highland with wins of 17-5 and 11-3.
The Cavaliers demonstrated why they are the top hitting team in the conference and seventh-best in the NJCAA hitting .421 (51-for-121) in the series, with 12 doubles, three triples and two home runs. JCCC's pitching staff was just as impressive, allowing only 18 total hits with 45 strikeouts.
In the opener, third baseman Dagen Brewer got the Cavaliers out to a big lead early with grand slam in the bottom of the first inning. JCCC would add two more in the second and one in third.
Left-hander Luc Fladda allowed just one single and a walk with six strikeouts in six innings of work to remain perfect on the season at 7-0. He currently leads the conference with 72 strikeouts and his seven wins are tied for second.
In the second game, nine different players collected at least one hit, and six had multiple-hits. Center fielder Jesse Tisdell went 3-for-3 with a triple, three runs and two RBI. Shortstop Dylan Hufft and left fielder Cooper Combs each had a single, double, scored twice and drove in two. Outfielder Nicholas Sall also had a single and a double and drove in a run, catcher Kyle Hepburn had a two-run single and Brewer and right fielder Brayden Luikart each had two hits and an RBI.
Right-hand pitcher Cole Koonce was impressive in his six innings of work, allowing just two hits and a walk while strikeout out 10 batters. Right-hander John Harrick pitched a perfect seventh to close out the game.
In the third game of the series, the Cavaliers had the game wrapped up after three innings, scoring five in the first, four in the second and seven in the third. They added another run in the fifth for the 17-5 margin.
Johnson County had five players with multiple RBI in the game. Hufft ripped a double and a triple to drive in three runs. First baseman Ryan Callahan was 3-for-4 with two doubles and three RBI and Brewer had a single, two doubles and three driven in. Third baseman Jeremy Rader drove in two runs off a single and a triple, Tisdell had a single, a double and two RBI and Luikert ripped an RBI double, walked twice and scored three runs.
Right-hander Maddox Burkitt earned his first collegiate victory, allowing just three hits, no runs, with four strikeouts in 2.1 innings of relief.
In the final game, Rader was 2-for-4 with a home run, three runs and two RBI. Hufft had a single and double and drove in two, Callahan collected three singles and drove in two and Tisdell had a single, double, scored twice and drove in two to pace the Cavaliers offense.
Right-hand starter Gabe Nutter and right-hand reliever John Chambers dominated the Scotties, combining for 19 strikeouts. Nutter allowed two runs off four hits and struck out a season high 14 batters over the first six innings. Chambers closed out the final three innings allowing a run off two hits with five strikeouts.
Johnson County will open another four-game conference series on Thursday, April 13 at Neosho County. The two teams will return to JCCC for a doubleheader on Saturday, April 15. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.