Roadrunners Baseball Recaps March 3-7

March 3 Kansas City Kansas Community College at Sedalia

SFCC lost a 19-1 game to Kansas City Kansas Community College on Tuesday, March 3 at Liberty Park Stadium-Dey Field.

The SFCC offense could only muster four hits on the day, two of which came from Sophomore infielder Kole Ficken of Boonville. Sophomore infielder Brett Holden of St. Joseph had a hit and a run scored. Sophomore outfielder Jordan McClellan of Liberty also had a hit. Sophomore pitcher/infielder Jake Lufft of Blue Springs drove in the only run of the game for SFCC.

Freshman pitcher Rylie Rokusek of Holden got the start on the mound for SFCC. He pitched four and  two-thirds innings, allowing three runs on five hits to earn the loss.

March 6 Three Rivers Community College at Sedalia

The Roadrunners got their Region 16 and Missouri Community College Athletic Conference schedules off to a good start sweeping the Three Rivers Community College Raiders from Poplar Bluff 9-0 and 3-0 on Friday, March 6 at Liberty Park Stadium-Dey Field.

The Roadrunners used a five run first inning to take control of game one. SFCC added four insurance runs late in the game to secure the win in the seven inning contest.

"It was important for our offense to score early, especially because of the quality pitcher we were facing from Three Rivers," said Roadrunners Baseball Head Coach Jud Kindle. "We really fought through some at-bats. It wasn't that we got hits, but we had some quality at-bats."

Redshirt freshman outfielder Tommy Ruether of St. Louis had three hits for SFCC, including a double two RBI and scored twice. Freshman outfielder/pitcher Brady Strickert of Blue Springs had two hits drove in three runs, and scored twice.

Freshman pitcher Connor Barnes got the start on the mound for SFCC. He pitched six innings and allowed only one hit. He recorded six strikeouts and only walked two to earn the victory.

"Connor threw the ball extremely well," said Kindle. "He threw a lot of strikes and kept his pitch count down. He made sure we had momentum in our favor."

Redshirt freshman pitcher Benjamin Bradley of Auxvasse pitched the final inning to finish the shutout.

In game two, SFCC scored two runs in the bottom the second inning and that would be all the Roadrunners would need.

"We produced offensively when we needed to produce," said Kindle. "We got a big run late in the game. We had a couple of quality at-bats early in the game as well."

Strickert had three hits, one of which was a double. He also drove in a run and scored a run. Ficken had a double, and a single, and he also scored a run. McClellan scored a run. Freshman catcher Dylan Thompson of Camdenton also drove in a run.

 SFCC used another outstanding pitching performance from the combination of starting pitcher sophomore Peyton Seiz of Holden and freshman outfielder/pitcher Ian O'Malley of Carthage. Seiz pitched seven innings. He gave up two hits and struck out nine to pick up the victory. O'Malley pitched the final two innings; he gave up two hits and struck out three to earn the save.

"We had great pitching all the way around," said Kindle. "Seiz came out and dominated the strike zone early in the game. O'Malley did a phenomenal job of really competing."

March 7 Three Rivers Community College at Sedalia

SFCC (12-9, 3-1 in Region 16, 3-1 in the MCCAC) split a doubleheader on Saturday, March 7 against the Three Rivers Community College Raiders from Poplar Bluff. The Raiders won the first game 6-4 in a seven inning contest before SFCC bounced back to win game four in the series 11-8 in a nine inning contest at Liberty Park Stadium-Dey Field. The games were part of the Region 16 and Missouri Community College Athletic Conference schedule for both teams.

In game one, McClellan had a pair of hits, including a double to go along with an RBI and a run scored. Sophomore outfielder Brice Pannier of Sedalia hammered a two-run home run. Strickert had a double and a run batted in in game one.

Freshman pitcher Antonio Escano of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic got the call on the mound for SFCC. He pitched four innings, while allowing three runs, only one of which was earned on four hits. He struck out three and was given the pitching loss.

"Game one was decided in the first three innings and in the sixth inning where we just made too many mistakes," said Kindle. "Three Rivers took advantage of our mistakes. They played better. They pitched better and had more hits than we did."

In game two, SFCC used a six run seventh inning to take control of the game and emerge with a victory.

"That was a big inning for us," said Kindle. "We were able to execute some things and get some quality at-bats. That came from the bottom of our order. They came up big today."

Ficken led the Roadrunners with three hits, including a double and two runs batted in. Lufft had a pair of hits, three runs batted in and two runs scored. One of those hits was a huge three run home run to right field to bring SFCC to within one run in a big seventh inning. McClellan also hit a home run. He scored twice and drove in a pair. Pannier doubled and drove in a pair of runs, which gave SFCC the lead in the seventh inning.

Freshman pitcher Andrew Clark of Belton got the start on the mound for SFCC. He pitched five innings, allowing five runs, only one of which was earned and struck out seven. Lufft came out of the bullpen to earn the victory for the Roadrunners. He pitched 2 2/3 innings, giving up three hits and striking out three.

Coach Kindle was happy with the way his team responded to take three out of four games in the series.

"We showed a lot of resilience in the last game," said Kindle. "That is what you're going to have to do in any Region series, but especially against a team like Three Rivers that has a great coaching staff. They always come ready to play. I wouldn't expect anything less in a Region series than a dogfight like this."

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics