Pirates Baseball split a pair of games in Enid, OK over the weekend. Things started well for the Pirates, defeating the host and 8th ranked NJCAA DII team Northern Oklahoma College-Enid 4-1. The win was the first for the Pirates against a ranked team in the 2021 season. Game two did not go the Pirates way, falling 5-3 to 14th ranked Northeast Community College.
Staring in the win over NOC-Enid was starting pitcher Keven Franco (1-0). He tossed the complete game, allowing just a solo homerun on his first pitch of the game. "Keven really dominated today. He showed his competitive spirit in the way he rebounded after the home run to start the game. He got in a couple jams the rest of the way but was able to pitch through them which really shows his maturity on the mound," commented assistant coach Ryan Suttenfield.
Freshman Arturo Brito had a nice game at the plate, going 1-3 including his first career homerun. Nathaniel Lai, who is currently dealing with a quad injury, was back in the lineup for the Pirates and delivered one hit and scored a run.
Northeast CC got the better of the Pirates to close out the day. They scored all five runs in the 3rd inning which was enough despite the Pirates rally attempts. Sophomore Dylan Niemeyer (1-2) took the loss, allowing all five runs.
Offense was difficult for the Pirates to come by over the weekend. NCMC hit just .143 as a team with only Brito's homerun as an extra base hit. Against Northeast CC, the team mustered just 3 hits.
Next action for NCMC will be their home opener on Thursday, March 11th against Iowa Central Community College. First pitch for the game will be 2:00pm at Burleigh Grimes Field.
