Thursday’s baseball games provided everything Allen Community College could ask for — except for wins.
The Red Devils hosted rival Neosho County for a doubleheader showdown, and with the large crowd, ideal weather and with the stakes at hand, a playoff atmosphere arose.
But the Red Devils had no answers for Neosho’s pitching, falling in heart-breaking fashion, 2-1, in the opener and 8-1 in the nightcap.
The losses drop ACC to 12-26 overall and 6-20 in Jayhawk Conference Eastern Division play. Neosho — the seventh-ranked NJCAA-II team in the country — improved to 35-9 overall and 19-7 in the division. The Panthers are one game behind first-place Cowley.
“Those were huge games for us, because we’re battling for a playoff spot,” Allen head coach Val McLean noted. “It was big for them because they’re fighting for a division title.”
The Red Devils were an inning away from taking home a split before Neosho rallied to take the lead on a bases-loaded hit by pitch and an infield single.
The loss came after McLean pulled Allen starter J.D. Prohaska from the game after pitching five-plus brilliant innings because he had reached his 90-pitch limit.
Prohaska’s 91st and final pitch plunked Andy Young to load the bases with one out in the sixth and ACC on top, 1-0.
“If we were able to keep him in the game at that point, we win the game,” McLean said.
Keil Stauffer came on in relief and struck Dylan Christie on a 2-1 pitch to force in the tying run. Stauffer retired Craig Johnson on a pop-up for the second out, but Tyler Sutherland’s slow dribbler to second turned into an infield single when Camdon Myers couldn’t field it cleanly. (Even if he had, it’s uncertain whether he could have thrown out Sutherland).
The Red Devils escaped the inning when they caught Young too far off third base, but the damage was done.
Neosho starter Matt Slauter worked around a two-out single by Foster in the bottom of the sixth and a one-out single by Myers in the seventh to finish off his complete game victory.
Slauter surrendered seven hits and no walks while striking out five.
Prohaska allowed just two hits in 5 1/3 innings. He walked three and struck out four. Stauffer gave up three hits in 1 2/3 innings.
The Red Devils took a 1-0 lead in the second. Trever Kreifel singled to lead off the frame. Foster bunted him to second before Ryne Martinez connected for a two-out RBI single.
Kreifel also doubled to lead off the fourth, but he was left stranded.
