COFFEYVILLE – The Neosho County Community College baseball team picked up a pair of road wins Thursday against KJCCC foe Coffeyville.
In game one, the Panthers survived a late-game challenge by the Red Ravens to win 5-4. After the home team scored twice in the bottom of the sixth, Coffeyville had runners on first and second with one out. Panther freshman shortstop Josh Norlin saved the day by starting a double play to secure the win for Neosho County. The Panthers did most of the damage in the first inning. Leadoff batter sophomore Darian Abram singled to spark a three-run opening frame. It was a lead Neosho County never gave up for the remainder of the game. The Panthers added one run in the third and one in the fifth.
Freshman Mason Knopp went six innings to record the win. He only allowed five hits. Sophomore Drew Johnson tallied his eighth save of the season working a scoreless seventh. Offensively, the top three batters in the lineup combined combined for seven hits. Abram had two, freshman Brylie Ware three and sophomore Ryan Toliver two. Chad Thomas added the other hit.
In game two, the Panthers gave up a pair of runs in the bottom of the first but pulled away for a 12-3 victory. Trailing 2-0 in the top of the third, Thomas singled to jumpstart the offense. The hit was the start of a five-run, five-hit inning. The Panthers added one in the fourth before plating five in the fifth. Neosho County's final run came in the seventh. In all, the visitors pounded out 15 hits, including 10 players recording at least one hit. Freshman Cooper Minnick led the way with a 3-for-5 performance at the plate. Norlin, freshman Aaron Dees and sophomore Blake Tomasino tallied two hits. Sophomore Tyler Mitzel picked up the win, and freshman Craig Karnes recorded his first save, pitching the final three innings.
The Panthers (34-5 overall and 17-5 in the KJCCC) are riding a seven-game winning streak when they host the Take Me Out to the Ballgame/Multi-Generational Day game today against Coffeyville (11-28 and 5-17). First pitch of the doubleheader is scheduled for 1 pm.
