Clayton Garland’s three-run home run in the top of the ninth inning gave the Barton Community College baseball team a 18-16 victory in the weekend series finale Sunday against Cloud County.

Barton, which is 20-15 overall and 6-14 in the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference Western Division, went 1-3 over the weekend.

The Thunderbirds scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to take Saturday’s first game 4-3 then followed it with an 18-2 rout of the Cougars in Game 2.

On Sunday, Cloud came from behind scoring one run in each of the last three innings to escape with a 3-2 victory.

Trailing 3-0 in the weekend series and squandering a ten-run lead in Sunday’s Game 2, Barton suddenly found themselves trailing 15-14 headed to the ninth. 

After back-to-back singles by Alex King and Adam Smith and a Federico Castagnini groundout, Garland cleared the table with his home run. 

The Cougars added an insurance run on a Ryan Tracy fielder’s choice scoring Dylan Turpin who had doubled to right field after Garland’s homer.

Barton travels to Hays to play a 4 p.m. nine-inning game against the Fort Hays State University junior varsity today.

The Cougars will return to Jayhawk West action this Friday and Saturday as Butler comes to Lawson-Biggs Field. Friday’s doubleheader will begin at 2 p.m. with Saturday’s doubleheader scheduled for 1 p.m.

BCC softball team struggles at BUCO Bash

The Barton Community College softball team struggled as it lost three games in the BUCO Bash in El Dorado on Saturday. 

The Lady Cougars started the day losing a tough 4-3 decision to Maple Woods. They followed that with a 7-0 loss to Eastern Oklahoma and then wrapped up the day with an 11-2 loss to Crowder College. 

The Lady Cougars will return home to Cougar Field on Wednesday as they host Pratt for a 3 p.m. doubleheader. 

Barton now stands at 6-27 on the season and will enter the Pratt game at 3-5 in Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference play.