The Great Bend Chiefs will be playing host to one of their final two home Class AAA American Legion doubleheaders tonight as they take on Dodge City. Action starts at 6 at the Great Bend Sports Complex.
The home turf will be a welcome sight for the Chiefs, who are on a six-game losing streak after sweeping a doubleheader from the Salina Falcons on June 26. They went 0-4 in pool play at the Kansas Grand Slam Wood Bat Tournament over the weekend in Salina.
“We just got to take a step back,” Chiefs head coach Michael Stettinger said. “We have got to get back on the winning side of things.”
Great Bend, which is 6-18 on the season, are coming off losses of 10-2 against the Lawrence Raiders and 9-4 against the Topeka Golden Giants on Saturday.
The Raiders, along with the Columbus (Neb.) Cornerstone, who beat the Chiefs 9-1 on Thursday, advanced from pool play to the semifinals on Sunday. Both teams lost, and Millard North (Neb.) won the 19-and-under championship, beating the Salina Falcons, 6-5 in eight innings.
Stettinger said getting Sunday off might have worked out well for the Chiefs, who have 12 games slated in the next two weeks leading up to the postseason.
“It’s good to have a little bit of a break because the next couple of weeks will be a grind,” Stettinger said.
After Dodge City, Great Bend will travel to McPherson for a doubleheader on Wednesday night, starting at 6.
The Chiefs have a pair of games at Buhler on Friday, starting at 4 p.m.