The Allen Community College Red Devils snapped a five-game losing streak with a sweep against Independence Wednesday.
With arch rival Neosho coming to town Saturday, the Red Devils built a bit of momentum ahead of the doubleheader with Wednesday’s 7-5, 18-12 victories.
An early offensive explosion gave the Red Devils a bit of breathing room as they held on for the win in the opener. Sophomore pitcher Camrynn Yardley tallied nine strikeouts in her complete-game victory. She put Allen on the scoreboard in the first inning with a hard chopper, then a second-inning chopper by sophomore shortstop Bailey Campbell made it 2-0.
In the third, a three-run homer by freshman third baseman Kaylse Abernathy busted the game wide open. Allen added insurance runs in the fourth and sixth innings to seal the win. Abernathy’s one swing gave her a team-leading three RBIs, followed by Yardley with two and Campbell with one.
In the finale, Allen withstood a five-run first-inning barrage.
The Red Devils jumped ahead in the opening frame with two runs in a single at-bat with Campbell stealing home before sophomore first baseman Jena Hendrix picked up the first of her four RBIs with a double.
Another Hendrix double in the second inning deadlocked the Jayhawk Conference rivals 5-5.
Another Abernathy homer kept the game tied 6-6 in the third. Allen pulled away with a six-run fourth inning on RBI singles by Yardley, Bailey and a two-run homer by sophomore second baseman Paxton Meyer, who ended the evening tied with Hendrix for the team lead in RBIs with four each.
Sophomore pitcher Abby Marsh picked up the win with a strikeout over three innings while allowing five walks and five earned runs. Yardley came on in relief while tallying four strikeouts over four innings allowing three earned runs and a walk.
The Red Devils (12-15) look to continue climbing back to the top of the conference standings when they host the Panthers Saturday.
Neosho (20-10, 8-0) is tied with Kansas City Community College for the top spot in the conference standings, and a loss Saturday would exacerbate an already tense rivalry.
First pitches for both games are at 1 and 3 p.m.
