LAJUNTA, Colo. – The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team split an Empire Conference doubleheader with Otero College on Monday.
                The Cougars scored all the runs they needed in the first game in the fourth inning as they earned the 4-3 win. The second contest saw WNCC give up seven late runs to fall to the Rattlers 7-4.
                WNCC is now in a dogfight in the conference standings as four teams are tied for third with 10-10 records and WNCC is one of them. The other three teams with 10-10 records include Otero, McCook, and Lamar. Southeast Community College leads the conference at 17-3 followed by Northeastern Junior College at 13-7.
                WNCC, now 19-22 overall, will hit the road to play a 4-game series with Luna Community College on Friday and Saturday. Luna is 6-14 in the conference and 12-30 overall.
                Monday’s first game saw a strong pitching performance from Rocco Harmon as the sophomore went six innings, allowing just two hits and two runs while striking out three. Alex Renfrow got the save, tossing the seventh in facing just three batters with one strikeout.
                Offensively, WNCC had eight hits led by Vaughn Wilson and Cooper Burgess each with two hits. Catcher Gladysh had two RBIs with a third inning double.
                Otero struck first in the contest with a run, but the Cougars answered with four in the third to grab a 4-1 lead. All of WNCC’s runs in the frame came with two outs. Vaughn Wilson and Jin Kobayakawa started things getting back-to-back walks. Wilson scored on a Burgess single and Kobayakawa scored on a Ren Sato single to make it 2-1. Gladysh followed with a double to give WNCC the 4-1 lead.
                Otero added a single run in the fifth to make it 4-2, but the WNCC pitching staff and defense held strong to get the win.
                The second game saw WNCC score three runs in the third inning. Landon Lockwood started the third with a walk followed by a Wilson single. Kobayakawa followed with a 3-run home run.
                The Cougar defense held Otero scoreless until the sixth inning when the Rattlers plated two runs and then another two runs in the seventh for a 4-3 lead. The eighth inning proved to be the difference as Otero plated three runs to take a 7-3 lead into the ninth inning.
                WNCC started a rally in the ninth as Kensei Oikawa led off with a double. Will Harbison followed by reaching on an error. Oikawa scored on a Garrison Burns sacrifice fly and that was all WNCC could do.
                Wilson led the Cougars with three hits, all singles. Kobayakawa had three RBIs with his home run. WNCC was outhit in the game 8-6.
 
Game 1
WNCC                004 000 0 – 4 8 2
Otero                   100 010 0 – 2 2 0
WP – Rocco Harmon; S -- Alex Renfrow.
2B – Catcher Gladysh.
 
Game 2
WNCC                003 000 001 – 4 6 4
Otero                   000 002 23x – 7 8 1
LP – Ian Grafmank.
2B – Kensei Oikawa, Will Harbison.
HR – Jin Kobayakawa.