What started out as an outstanding afternoon, ended in disappointment Monday as the Parkland Baseball split a doubleheader with John Wood. The Cobras pounded the Blazers 11-1 in the opener before JW held on for a 3-2 victory in the finale.  The split leaves Parkland at (27-11 15-5) while John Wood stands (17-18 8-12).  The Cobras now find themselves two full games behind first place Heartland with three weeks to go in the regular season. PC will be back in action on Tuesday when they host the Millikin University JV. 

Game 1:

PC would score all the runs they would need in the 2nd as Daniel Warkentin hit a sac. fly, Brendan Joyce had an RBI single, and Connor Aube drove in a pair with a double. After Wood cut the lead to 4-1, Max Downs drove in two runs with a 5th inning triple. PC blew the game open in the 6th scoring five times, as Downs once again had the big hit, a two-run double. 

Casey Kempner worked the first four innings allowing one run on two hits while striking out four as he improved to (3-0).  Christian Sidoti and Cody Hawthorne worked scoreless 5th and 6th innings to seal the win. Max Downs finished 2-4 with 4 RBI, Brendan Joyce was 2-4 with 2 runs and 2 RBI, Connor Aube had 2 hits and drove in two, and Trevor Minder finished 3-4. 

PC      040 025    11 13  1
JW      001 000     1   2   0
W-Kempner (3-0)

Game 2:

Defensive lapses and missed opportunities led to the Cobras dropping a one run decision.  The Blazers would get on the board first scoring two unearned runs in the 2nd. Walden walked the lead-off hitter and after a fielders choice, the next two hitters reached on an error and a single to load the bases with one out. The second out was recorded via a strikeout but an error on an inning ending ground ball, allowed two runs to score.  The Cobras would get one run back in the 3rd as Christian Sanchez and Brendan Joyce singled, and Trevor Minder delivered a double. Sanchez scored, but a chance for a bigger inning ended when Joyce was thrown out at the plate. 

The Blazers scored again in the 4th to push the lead back to two before the Cobras would score again in the 6th. Aube singled, stole 2nd, and scored on a Raikes single. The rally ended when Tyler Paulsen grounded into a double play to end the inning. PC would go down 1-2-3 in the 7th as John Wood salvaged the final game of the four game series. Jordan Walden (0-1) took the loss giving up three runs on five hits in 3.2 innings of work. Christian Sanchez was the only player with multiple hits as he went 2-2. 

PC     001 001 0    2   7  2
JW    020  100 X   3   6  2
L-Walden (0-1)