Garden City Takes Two in Barton; Tied For First

Great Bend, KS (westernkansasnews.com) The Garden City Community College Baseball team continue to be road warriors winning another two games away from home 8-3 and 14-6 to take the first two of their four game series at Barton County. GCCC has won nine of their first 10 road games and eight in a row.  Barton after winning their first eight in conference have lost six straight.

Game One Highlights

In game one, Garden used a six run third inning off Cougars starter Garrett Rogers to take control.

Brooks Benson cleared the bases on a two-run double. The relay beat Aeneas Roberson trying to score the third run but Barton catcher Mason Hightower dropped the ball after laying on the tag of Roberson’s right hip.  First Baseman Kyle Lopez followed up with a liner that cleared the right field wall for a two run homer.

Sean Kennedy capped off the scoring with a RBI double capping off the six run inning.

Barton (19-13, 8-6) was able to get on the board with Corrigan Bartlett’s RBI double in the fourth.

Garden (28-8, 13-5) added one run each in the fourth on Alex Nielson Sac-Fly following C.J. Krainock’s triple and had a RBI double from Connor Reynolds one inning later bringing in Kennedy to make it 8-1.

Noah Draper picked up the win going six of the seven innings in the first game, allowing one run on five hits, striking out seven and walking one.  His record improved to 4-1. Really O’ Rourke served up a two double to Cougars third baseman Dayton Pomeroy to wrap up the scoring.

Game Two Highlights

Game two the power of the multiple run inning pushed the Broncbusters along to win 14-6.

Aeneas Roberson had three hits and 4 RBI including a bases clearing three run double in the sixth after Garden City gave up their 4-1 lead to put the Broncbusters ahead to stay 7-5. That sparked the Broncbusters to score 10 of the games next 11 runs off the Barton bullpen to get the win.

The win did not come without a price. First baseman Kyle Lopez was hit in the back of the helmet from a pitch by Barton starter Austin Taylor.

Dazed, Lopez fell down on the spot after making the turn to first. After a few minutes, he was able to leave on his own power, but his status is uncertain for now as to when he can return.

Lopez’s replacement Jesse Gonzales did pick up where Lopez left off getting a two run double in the seventh off Nathan Morris to make it 11-5.

Broncbuster starting pitcher did not get the win but he performed well striking out a career best 10 and six in a row at one point before Barton poured on fourth runs in the fifth prior to his exit on a two run double by Cole Henley and Ryan McClure’s RBI double.

Broncbuster reliever Stephen Pagendarm retired the only batter he faced to end the fifth and became the pitcher of record improving his record to 5-1.

Garden City enters the day in a four way tie for first with Hutchinson, Colby and Dodge City whom they will play next week.

Games three and four of the series begins at 1 today. Pre-game am starts at 12:45 on ESPN 99.9 and westernkansasnews.com.