DRAGONS WALK OFF AGAINST BARTON, WIN 3RD ELIMINATION GAME
Hutchinson CC Sports Information
WICHITA – Five years to the day of a Plains District (Region 6) Tournament elimination game walk-off win over Barton at Eck Stadium, the Hutchinson Community College baseball team did it to the Cougars again on Saturday.
Cooper Wesslund's RBI single scored Kael Babin with the game-winning run with one out in the bottom of the 10th inning Saturday to finish off a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Barton and kept the Jayhawk West champion Blue Dragons alive in the tournament with a third-straight elimination game victory.
Now 50-12 for the season, the 2024 Blue Dragons reached the 50-win plateau for the first time in program history. The Blue Dragons advance to the district championship game for the first time since 2019 where the No. 10-ranked Hutchinson will play No. 1 Johnson County, the lone-remaining undefeated team in the tournament, later Saturday.
Five years ago at Eck Stadium, the 2019 Blue Dragons trailed Barton by three runs entering the bottom of the ninth. Then, it was a flare over the Cougar shortstop's head by Ryan Moritz that scored Dylan Nedved with the game-tying run and Riley Metzger with the game-winning run in a 9-8 Blue Dragon victory.
Saturday afternoon, after the Blue Dragons tied the game with a single run in the eighth, Babin led off the 10th with a seven-pitch walk. With one out, Babin stole second base. After an intentional walk to Cody Gunderson, Wesslund slapped a single past a diving Barton shortstop to shallow left-center field. Babin scored from second, just ahead of the tag for Hutchinson's second walk-off win of the tournament and fourth of the season.
The Cougars scored two runs in the top of the third to take the lead. The Dragons got one run back in the bottom of the third when Wesslund singled in Luis Pimentel-Guerrero to cut the Dragon deficit to 2-1.
Hutchinson had just three base runners over the next four innings, but with two out in the bottom of the eighth, the Blue Dragons tied the game. Wesslund drew a walk and then scored all the way from first on an RBI double to the right-center field gap by Quinn Maher.
Starting pitcher Ethan Giesbrecht, who suffered the Game 1 loss to Barton in Wednesday's tournament opener, battled through five tough innings to keep the Dragons in the game. Giesbrecht allowed six hits, two earned runs and two walks with seven strikeouts.
Blue Dragon relievers Rece Wilson and Trenton Roehler combined for five innings of one-hit shutout baseball. Over his three innings Wilson allowed one hit with two walks and four strikeouts.
Roehler (8-1) faced only six batters over his two innings. Roehler had two strikeouts and retired the first five batters he faced. He hit Grant Nottleman with a pitch with two out in the top of the 10th inning. Nottleman was quickly erased when he was thrown out at second by Gunderson on a delayed steal attempt to end the inning.
Wesslund led the Blue Dragons offensively having a hand in all three runs scored. Wesslund was 2 for 4 with a run scored and two RBIs.
The Dragons were limited to six hits. Hank Griffin was 2 for 4 with a pair of singles. Maher had an RBI double and Gunderson had the other hit for Hutchinson.
POSTGAME NOTES:
+ Ethan Giesbrecht finished the 2024 season with 97 strikeouts. He moved past Miguel Reyes Jr. (2019) and Shawn Lewick (2010) into second place on the Blue Dragon single-season strikeout list.
+ Gunderson thew out his 14 attempted stolen base in 31 attempts this season, a success rate of 45.2 percent.
+ The Blue Dragons go 4-2 against Barton this season.