BLUE DRAGONS SPLIT WITH NO. 9 HIGHLAND

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Looking to set a positive tone for the final month of the season, the Hutchinson Community College softball team earned a huge 4-3 victory over the Highland Scotties in the first game of a Jayhawk East doubleheader on Thursday at Fun Valley.

The Scotties bounced back in Game 2 with a 9-3 victory to split the doubleheader and snap the Blue Dragons' seven-game winning streak.

Hutchinson remains in fifth place in the Jayhawk East at 9-5 in league play and 24-6 overall. The Scotties are 23-6 overall and 14-4 in the Jayhawk East. The Blue Dragons next play Kansas City at 2 p.m. on Wednesday at Fun Valley.

GAME 1 RECAP
The Game 1 victory over Highland kept the Blue Dragons within striking distance of the top of the Jayhawk East front-runners. Johnson County and Labette, two teams ahead of Hutchinson in the Jayhawk East standings, also lost on Thursday.

Leading 4-1 heading into the seventh inning, things got tight for the Blue Dragons, who used a spectacular defensive play from right-fielder Brynne Stockman to preserve victory.

With Hutch leading 4-2 and Highland with runners at second and third with one out, Scotty right-fielder Sydney Anderson hit a long fly ball to right-center field. Stockman got to the fence and robbed a potential home run. Sam Moran tagged up to score to cut the Dragon lead to 4-3. Hutch starter D.J. Cannon got Aubrey Hernandez to ground out to second baseman Bre Johnson to end the game.

Cannon pitched her 13th complete game of the season to improve to 13-2 and winning her 31st career game for the Blue Dragons. She struck out nine and walked one while allowing eight hits, three runs and two earned runs.

The Blue Dragons cashed in on a Highland error in a four-run third inning, the only inning the Dragons scored.

With runners on first and second and one out in the Dragon third, Kiara DeCrane looped a ball just over the pitching circle that dropped in and was fielded by shortstop Mayah Daniels, who tried to get the lead runner at third, but threw the ball into the dugout. That allowed Bekah Roberts to score and give Hutch a 1-0 lead.

Two batters later, Kameron Pope laced an RBI single through the left side to score Raven Bass, and then Bre Johnson drove in two runs with a single to left-center just over the Highland shortstop's glove.

Hutchinson had 11 hits off Highland starter Julisa Ortega, all 11 hits were singles.

Bass went 3 for 4 to lead the Blue Dragons. Roberts and Pope had two hits each.

GAME 2 RECAP
Highland cashed in on a season-high 10 walks in Game 2 and the Scotties pounded out 12 hits and had two four-run innings to break things open and earn a split in the doubleheader.

Hutch was held to four hits by Highland starter Raegan Hamm, who improved to 11-0 for the season. She struck out five.

The Dragons led 2-1 after three innings when Highland finally broke through for a big inning against Hutch starter Destiny Schulze (8-4). A two-out double by Anderson and two-out single by Hernandez gave Highland a 5-2 lead. The Scotties sent 10 batters to the plate in the sixth and scored four more to lead 9-2.

The Dragons added a third run when Bre Johnson tripled and scored on Izzy Gondinez's RBI single.

Godinez had two hits with Pope, Johnson and Ashton Reynolds all getting single.

Schulze walked a career-high seven in 3 2-3 innings and took the loss.