Western Nebraska Community College made sophomore day memorable on Sunday, extending its winning streak to nine games with a walk‑off sweep of North Platte Community College at Volunteer Field.
The first contest saw the Cougars score six times in the fifth inning to claim the 10-2 win on an Adi Duke walk-off single that scored Abbey Arntsen with the game-ending run.
The second game saw North Platte hold a 5-1 lead in the seventh before the Cougars scored five times on a Viktoria Sarkanyova single that scored Duke with the winning run to claim the 6-5 win.
WNCC is now 24-24 on the season and 17-15 in conference play. The Cougars will get the fourth seed for the Region IX tournament that begins Thursday in McCook.
Alyssa Albaugh, one of the seven sophomores who was recognized after the game, said the team showed a lot of grit and toughness today.
"The team showed a lot of grit and belief today, and that's really what carried us to those two wins especially when we are walking games off," Albaugh, the Torrington High School product, said. "We didn't panic when we were down or in tight situations. Everyone stayed locked in, trusted each other, and kept competing pitch by pitch. Walk-off wins don't just happen, they come from energy in the dugout, clutch at-bats, and not quitting. It says a lot about our team's chemistry and toughness that we were able to finish both games that way."
Ellie Soper, another sophomore, said these games were some of the best team wins. WNCC won both games with only two extra base hits, a double in each game, and did it through timely hitting
"The team played really well and I think they were some of our best team wins," the Sterling, Colorado, native said. "It was a cohesive effort from each and every one of us which made the wins that much sweeter. Walking off is always a great feeling to end a game, so I loved it."
The special day for the seven players, six players and one student assistant, was eye-watering after the game as Albaugh, Soper, Sarkanyova, Duke, Tori Travers, Tina Horton, and Zoey Paez were recognized for their time at WNCC before they graduate next week. WNCC also did something special on the day as they not only recognized their sophomores, but recognized North Platte's sophomores with the Cougar sophomores giving them red roses during the after-the-game festivities.
"Sophomore day adds a whole different layer of emotion. It's not just another game, it's a moment where everything kind of hits you at once," Albaugh said. "All the years we've put into softball, the relationships we've built, the bus rides, practices, wins, and even the tough losses, it all comes rushing back. Those memories don't really leave, they stick with us in a way that's bigger than just the sport."
Soper agrees that today was one of those days that she will remember for a long time.
"Sophomore day was amazing. Coach Diaz, Zoey, Doug, Mark, and the freshmen especially made it so special for us," she said. "Today is definitely a day I won't forget and I loved all of the support from the fans at the games today. It will be incredibly hard to take the Cougar uniform off for the last time, but I am beyond thankful for the opportunity I was given to wear it for the past two years."
Albaugh agreed that taking that uniform off for the final time won't be easy once their season is completely finished, but she isn't thinking about that yet, as there still is unfinished business with the regional tournament and maybe the national tournament if the team can put together a nice run at regionals.
"Taking off the Cougar uniform for the last time will be hard, there's no way around that, but we're not there yet," she said. "We still have the Region IX tournament ahead of us, and if we play the way we know we can, there's a real chance to do something special.
"This game and this team have been such a huge part of our lives, and that uniform represents everything we've put into it and everything it's given back. We're going to carry that with us every time we step on the field these next games. And when it is all said and done, we want to be able to say we went out fighting, winning, and doing it together because that's something a lot of athletes wish they could say."
The second game was one of those contests that showed the true grit of the Cougars. North Platte took a quick 1-0 lead in the first inning. WNCC tied the game with a run in the second as Duke and Jasmine Castro led off with singles. WNCC loaded the bases with two outs and scored the tying run on a bases-loaded walk.
Neither team scored over the next three innings. North Platte finally went up 2-1 with a run in the sixth and then added three in the seventh for a 5-1 lead.
WNCC entered their final at-bat needing four to tie to force extra innings or five for the win and magical seventh became golden. Soper led off with a walk followed by Tori Travers and Abbey Arntsen getting singles to load the bases. Gracie Holm came through with a full-count, nine-pitch double to score two runs to make it 5-3. Arntsen came in to score on a passed ball to make it 5-4. Duke earned a four-pitch walk to load the bases. Castro scored the tying run with a sacrifice fly. Albaugh singled after getting two strikes to put two runners on. Sarkanyova then delivered a single to left-center that found green and Duke came racing in from second for the winning run.
WNCC and North Platte each had nine hits in the contest. Travers and Castro led the team with two hits each, while Holm had a double with two RBIs.
The first game was just as dramatic as the Cougars scored in the first and fifth to get the walk-off win.
WNCC took control with four runs in the first when Tina Horton and Travers led off with singles. Horton later scored on a passed ball and then Travers scored on a sacrifice fly by Arntsen. With two outs, Albaugh singled in two runs to make it 4-0.
Neither team scored again until the fourth when North Platte plated two runs to cut the deficit in half. WNCC ended the game in the fifth with six runs.
Castro, Albaugh, and Sarkanyova started the fifth with singles to load the bases. Soper then gets a double that cleared the bases to make it 7-2 and ended up on third on an error. Soper scored on a ground out by Horton to make it 8-2. Travers and Arntsen followed with singles. Holm scored one run with a hard ground ball that got by second base. Duke then singled on a fly ball to centerfield to score Arntsen with the game-ending run.
WNCC finished with 14 hits to just two for North Platte. WNCC was led by Travers and Albaugh each with three hits. Travers scored twice while Albaugh scored once. Sarkanyova and Horton each had two hits, while Castro scored twice in the win.
Mia Migliaccio got the win in the circle with five solid innings in allowing just two hits, two runs, and striking out four.
The Cougars will now compete in the Region IX tournament in McCook on Thursday. The pairings will be released later this week.
Game 1
NPCC 000 20 – 2 2 5
WNCC 400 06 – 10 14 2
WP – Mia Migliaccio.
2B – Ellie Soper.
Game 2
NPCC 100 001 3 – 5 9 0
WNCC 010 000 5 – 6 9 1
WP – Gracie Holm.
2B – Gracie Holm.