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Hard-luck Panthers swept in opener
spt deh gbhs baseball 27 foul tip
Great Bends Koy Brack hits a foul tip during game 1 against Goddard. - photo by DALE HOGG Great Bend Tribune

BY JIM MISUNAS
jmisunas@gbribune.com

Great Bend’s baseball team showed its youth and lack of varsity experience on the mound and at the plate. In the game’s final inning, the Panthers showed some spark.
But the Goddard Lions held off the Panthers 7-6 to sweep Tuesday’s opening baseball doubleheader at the Great Bend Sports Complex. The twin bill was played in 45-degree weather.
Great Bend (0-2) plays at Wichita Independent Thursday afternoon.

GAME 2
GODDARD 7, GREAT BEND 6
Goddard reliever Isaiah Cohens retired the final three batters to preserve a hard-fought 6-5 victory in the nightcap. Panthers Jesus Bujanda and Colin Hall each walked and raced around the bases for a 7-6 score. But Cohens gave the Lions a lift by recording the final three outs.
Goddard led 6-2 after 11/2 innings off starter Eddie Bujanda. The Lions’ Blake Mitchell delivered a two-run single and Chad Morrow and Kaeden Hoeffer drove in runs in a four-run first inning. Cohens, Hoeffer, Koby Burdett and A.J. Vang scored runs.
Jesus Bujanda drilled an RBI single and Colin Hall hit a two-run single as Chance Perry, pinch runner Alex Schrenner and Jesus Bujanda scored first-inning runs.
Goddard’s Vang and Mitchell delivered RBI singles to drive home Cohens and Hoeffer for a 6-2 lead. Koy Brack singled home Calan Haberman for a wild 6-4 score after two innings.
Morrow’s sacrifice fly scored Burdett for a 7-4 lead after six innings.

Goddard 420 001 0 – 7 9 1
GBend 310 000 2 – 6 5 2
Shope, Vang (3), Cohens (7) and Robinson. Eddie Bujanda, Bieker (4) and Brack. W—Vang. L—E. Bujanda. 2B—G—Cohens.

GAME 1
GODDARD 10, GREAT BEND 1
Goddard parlayed two big innings for a dominating opener. Morrow delivered the first big hit with a bases-loaded fourth-inning double off starter Jesus Bujanda that drove home Burdett, Vang and Mitchell. Morrow scored on a wild pitch.
The Panthers missed a golden opportunity to challenge the Lions when Chance Perry and Townshend Kurth singled to lead off the fourth inning. Goddard catcher Alec Robinson picked Perry off second base and Kurth was forced out. Eddie Bujanda’s double scored Koy Brack for the Panthers’ run.
Goddard scored six runs in the fifth inning. Kaeden Hoeffer, Koby Burdett and Cole Gordon drilled RBI hits and Cohens capped a six-run inning with a two-run single off reliever Colin Hall.

Goddard 000 460 0 – 10 11 2
G Bend 000 100 0 – 1 3 3
Gordon and Robinson. Jesus Bujanda, Hall (5), Smith (7) and Brack. W—Gordon, 1-0. L—J. Bujanda, 0-1. 2B—G—Burdett 2. GB—Eddie Bujanda.