OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – The No. 7-ranked Johnson County (14-6) baseball team came away with a series split with West Jayhawk Conference opponent Cloud County (11-6) over the weekend. Cloud County won the first and third games of the series by the scores of 7-5 and 6-2. The Cavaliers prevailed in games two and four with scores of 7-6 and 14-6.
In the opening game, Johnson County forced extra innings plating two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to tie the scored at 5 apiece. Cloud quickly took a two-run lead in the top of the eight off a two-run home run by Landon Meyer.
Johnson County got on the board first on a sacrifice bunt by left fielder Jake McClure but tied it up with a solo shot by Gavin Roy in the fourth followed by a four-run fifth fueled by a three-run homer of the bat of Demitri Shakotko.
The Cavaliers pulled two within two runs scoring twice in the bottom of the sixth. With the bases loaded and one out, Jack Mosh was hit by a pitch, scoring McClure. In the next at bat, catcher Kyle Hepburn sailed a drive to right field for a sacrifice fly scoring Maddux Fleck.
In JCCC's half of the seventh, first baseman Easton Roe singled and was pinch run for by Drew Veatch, who then stole second followed by a walk by center fielder Jesse Tisdell. Both runners moved up a base on a passed ball and McClure followed with an RBI groundout scoring Veatch. Fleck then tied the game with a line drove to left field plating Tisdell.
In the second game the Cavaliers again faced a large deficit trailing 6-1 entering the bottom of the sixth inning. Johnson County rallied for six runs to take a 7-6 lead despite only getting two singles and a double. The Cavaliers did draw three free passes, where hit by a pitch twice and scored two runs off a passes ball and a wild pitch.
Sophomore right-hander Drew Norris earned the victory. He gave up one hit, no runs with one strikeout in his inning in relief. Sophomore right-hander Brody Bunting struck out the side in the top of the seventh to pick up a save.
Freshman right-hander Brandon Stone opened the game for the Cavaliers. He surrendered three hits and four runs over four innings, striking out seven batters.
The series moved to Concordia, Kansas on Saturday afternoon for a twin bill. Johnson County had an early 2-1 lead after second baseman Jack Mosh doubled in a run in the first and third baseman Jordan Black hit a solo shot in the second. The Thunderbird pitchers held JCCC batters to just two hits over the next five innings.
Cloud then flipped the game in the bottom the fourth, scoring five runs on four hits to take a 6-2 lead .
In the final game, Johnson County built a 6-0 lead with single runs in the first, second and fourth inning and three in the third before Cloud pulled back into the game with a four-spot int the seventh.
Sophomore first baseman Dagen Brewer fell one single shy of hitting for the cycle. He had an RBI double in the first, tripled to open the eighth and later in the inning blasted a three-run home run as Johnson County plated eight runs to break the game open.
Freshman outfielder Matt Lemke drove in three runs. Hepburn hit a solo shot in the second and singled in the eight, Mosh an RBI double in the third and scored three runs in the game.
Freshman right-hander Sam Novotny picked up the victory in relief. Freshman right-hander Josiah Golden got the start and was solid over his five innings. He scattered five hits without a run allowed and struck out six.
Johnson County will return the field on Thursday, March 7 when they host Neosho County in both team's conference opener. The series then turns to Chante for the final two games of the four-game series.