NCMC ball teams find rough Tuesday sledding away from home

The North Central Missouri College baseball team lost a commanding 7-1 lead over archrival Metropolitan CC on Tuesday afternoon, surrendering the final seven runs in an 8-7 setback in Kansas City. 

The Pirates started out strong, with one run in the top of the 2nd inning followed by a five-run outburst in the 3rd.  The teams traded single runs in the bottom of the 4th and top of the 5th innings before the game went south for the Pirates.

MCC’s rally began with three runs in the 5th, followed by a two spot in the 6th and a single tally in the 7th to tie the game.  The game was won with a run in the bottom of the 9th for the Wolves.

J.C. Cabuyaban and Kaden Jeffries had homer runs for Metropolitan, with Cabuyaban and leadoff hitter Frank Gall combining for five RBI’s and five base hits.  Left fielder Collin Morris was 4-for-5 with a pair of doubles.  

For NCMC, Shodai Nishihara was 3 for 3 with a homer, a triple, and two RBI’s.  Jordi Ventura smashed his 10th homer of the spring.  Dylan McIntyre pitching 4 2/3 innings in the start for the Pirates, and had his team in position to win, allowing only three earned runs.  Wilmer Jimenez took the loss out of the bullpen for the now 18-19 NCMC Pirates.  The game-winning run in the bottom of the 9th was unearned.  The Pirates, with a 6-5 Region XVI record, will look to rebound this weekend, with an important region series with Moberly Area Community College coming up.

While the baseball team suffered a difficult late-inning loss, the Lady Pirates struggled to stay competitive in Ottumwa, Iowa against the Indian Hills Warriors, losing a pair of lopsided game by score of 11-3 and 16-1, dropping NCMC’s record to 20-17.

The Lady Pirates started well, leading 2-0 in the opener before the Warriors light up the scoreboard with six runs in the bottom of the 3rd before adding three in the 4th and two more runs to end the game in the home 6th.

Maeve Lavoy took the loss for North Central, allowing six runs in 2 2/3 innings of work.  Lavoy scored two times for NCMC, with center fielder Rylie Boyer going 3-for-3 with a run scored.  Addison Huber had a pair of RBI’s.  

The heart of the Indian Hills lineup sizzled, with Tatum Aragon, Julia Kwakernaak, and Courtney Locke all racking up three base hits.  Eva Fulk, Hannah Simpson, Kwakernaak, and Aragon all homered for IHCC.  Ashlynn Sheets scattered six hits from the circle in six innings of work for the Warriors.

Hopes of a bounce-back in the second game were quickly dashed by Indian Hills, with the Warriors scoring 10 runs in the bottom of the 1st inning.  IHCC added three in the 2nd, two runs in the 3rd, and one in the 4th.  

The Lady Pirates offense managed three hits and a run, driven in on a solo blast by first-baseman Gracie McKinney in the top of the 3rd inning.

Cassi Rodgers recorded only one out from the circle for the Lady Pirates, surrendering nine runs, all earned.  Amelia Pingleton and Briley Bouma finished out of the game for the North Central pitching staff.  Sara Reid and Alivia Ruble combined for five innings of work for the IHCC pitching staff in the lopsided win.

The Lady Pirates have another road doubleheader in the state of Iowa coming up on Thursday, traveling to Creston to play the Southwestern Community College Spartans.