The No. 16 ranked Barton Community College baseball team fought from behind to win 9-8 in ten innings over Hutchinson Community College Friday in Hutchinson.   The Cougars scored seven unanswered and received solid relief pitching to capture game one of the Jayhawk Conference season opener for both teams.  With the win Barton improves to 13-1 on the season while Hutchinson drops to 4-4.  The two teams will be back on the diamond Saturday for a pair of seven innings games beginning at 1:00 p.m. at Hutchinson’s Bud Detter Field.  The four-game series will wrap up with a nine inning game at 1:00 p.m. Sunday. 

Highlights
After scoring one run and trailing 6-1 through five innings, Barton scored seven runs in the next four innings to take an 8-6 lead to the ninth.  Hutchinson was able push across one run and load the bases with no outs, but Brett Tunnell came into pitch and held the Dragons to one additional run while striking out two in getting the Cougars out of the jam.  In the Cougar’s tenth Allen Trent two out double to left field set up Adam Smith’s game winning line drive to left field to score Trent.  Barton rolled up a double play to end the game and the Cougars escaped with the win.

The two teams combined for 17 runs and 19 hits, including six extra base hits. Both bullpens were busy with nine pitchers used in the game with Tunnell picking up the win in two innings of work.   Tunnell was one of four Barton relief pitchers to combine for eight strikeouts and give up only three hits in five and two-thirds innings.

Mike Edlefsen led the Cougars going 3-for-5 and drove in four runs.  Edlefsen capped the Cougars comeback in the seventh as he drove in three runs on a two-strike two-out triple to right field.  Federico Castagnini, the reigning KJCCC player of the week, was 3-for-5 including a ninth inning two out RBI double. 

Released:  March 2, 2012

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