QUINCY, Ill. – The No. 14 ranked Parkland College Baseball team split a conference doubleheader at John Wood Community College on Saturday, April 1st, dropping game one 10-9 before defeating the Blazers 7-2 in game two. The Cobras (22-7) (6-4) outhit the Blazers 22-14 on Saturday, led by freshman Chase Becker. The Minnesota transfer led the Cobra in hits, runs, and RBI in the doubleheader, going 5-8 with three home runs and seven RBI.
Up next, the Cobras will host John Wood at the Rantoul Sports Complex tomorrow, April 2nd, in another M-WAC doubleheader. First pitch against the Blazers (18-10) is scheduled for noon on Sunday.
John Wood Community College 10, No. 14 Parkland College 9
The Cobras took the lead on a Ryan Snell (3-5, RBI) single in the top of the 1st inning, scoring Austin Gomm, and a Chase Becker RBI double in the top of the 2nd scored Jake Vitale (1-5, 3B, R) and kicked off a 3-run inning for the Cobras. Becker (3-4, HR, 3 RBI, 2 R) launched a 2-run homer in the top of the 3rd to extend the lead, and Parkland led by as many as seven following a Charlie Marisca RBI single in the 4th. The Blazers started to rally with four runs in the bottom of the 5th, and the Cobras led by just one after a 2-run John Wood home run in the 6th. Parkland scored two in the top of the 7th, but another 2-run Blazer homer in the bottom half kept the game close, and John Wood drove in two more in the 8th to complete the comeback, upsetting the Cobras 10-9 in game one.
Sophomore Tresdon Rybarczyk (5.1 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 4 K) started on the mound for Parkland, pitching four hitless innings to open the game. Reliever Sebastian Gutierrez (1-2) entered the game in the 6th, and the freshman struck out four of the 11 batters he faced in the loss. Freshman Brenden Katz (0.2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER) finished the game for the Cobras.
No. 14 Parkland 7, John Wood CC 2
Parkland freshman Chase Becker got the team going with a solo home run in the top of the 2nd inning, and the Cobras led 2-0 after two. Becker (2-4, 2 HR, 4 RBI) lifted his second home run of the game and third of the day in the top of the 3rd, giving Parkland a 6-0 lead, and catcher Charlie Marisca (1-4, HR) followed suit with a solo shot in the 5th as the Cobras cruised to a 7-2 win in game two.
Starting pitcher Carter Monke (5-1) allowed two earned runs on four hits and five walks on Saturday afternoon, striking out seven in his sixth start this season. Redshirt sophomore Jacob Young (2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER) struck out two in two innings of work, earning the save in Quincy.
