With Thursday afternoon's sweep of Labette Community College, Neosho County Community College Coach Steve Murry reached wins 1,000 and 1,001 for his career.

The Panthers fended off the Cardinals in game one 3-1 to end a three-game skid by Neosho County and to push Murry's career win total to 1,000.

"It truly means I've had a lot of great players and coaches with me. I've had a lot of support along the way," Murry said.

In his 31st season at the helm of the Panthers, Murry's career mark now stands at 1,001-635.

"Yeah, I'm happy for the program that we got that, but it's all about these kids. Each year they become more and more special," Murry said. "If milestones fall along the way, that's great, but I truly feel like this program has made itself more than just about wins. I'm happy with where we are at in life."

In game one, sophomore first baseman Tanner Arst's two-run home run put the Panthers in front 2-1 in the bottom of the first.

It was a lead that Neosho County never surrendered for the remainder of the night.

"Their kid did a nice job pitching," Murry said. "We left some opportunities out there, but we got enough to get it done."

The Panthers added one more run in the third on a single from sophomore catcher Cooper Minnick.

Arst led the offensive attack, going 2-for-3 at the plate with two RBIs and one run scored, while sophomore Mason Knopp went the distance to record the win.

"We've been pretty lucky that Mason has been throwing our first games, and he's been doing a really nice job," Murry said. "He's kept us in games, and we just have to collect our runners when we get them on."

Knopp struck out six and walked none in the victory.

In the second game, Murry thought his team played much better.

"That's been been our MO this season, where we aren't great the first game, but in the second game, we are pretty good."

Neosho County freshman third baseman Marcus McDaniel went 4-for-4 in the 9-3 win as the Panthers sprinkled 14 hits over eight innings.

With the Panthers leading 5-3 heading into the bottom of the eight, the Panthers exploded for four runs to pull away for the six-run victory.

Back-to-back bunt singles by McDaniel and freshman Joe Mondragon sparked the outburst.

Sophomore Nate Crossman and freshman Nolan Beets also collected two hits on the day for the Panthers.

Freshman McCae Allen earned the win, striking out four and walking two over seven innings of work.

"It was a fun day, and luckily we came out with two W's," Murry concluded.

Heading into this weekend, there is a lot of unknown with the weather.