Hosting a pair of SEK League baseball games, the Chanute Blue Comets fell to the Labette County Grizzlies in extra innings, 5-3, on Monday before taking down the Parsons Vikings, 10-6, on Tuesday.
In Monday’s loss to the Grizzlies, Chanute took a 3-2 lead into the seventh frame before the Grizzlies knotted the score.
Labette County scored two runs in the top of the ninth to stake its claim to the win.
Outs on the basepaths from the Blue Comets on failed delayed steals and back-picks proved debilitating.
“Plain and simple, we didn’t execute. Guys missed signs,” Chanute head coach Ryan Ortiz said. “The mishaps were us missing signs and not executing. It wasn’t just one guy or one play. There’s four I can think of that we failed to execute. It wasn’t pretty. Not to take anything from Labette County, but we gave them outs multiple times. We’re trying to get ourselves in good positions but then we miss signs and lose a strike. It’s getting old shooting ourselves in the foot over and over.”
Kris Harding tossed seven innings on the hill for Chanute, striking out 10 and allowing eight hits.
Alijah Christy was on the hook for the losing decision, throwing two innings while allowing two hits and as many earned runs. Christy also had two hits at the plate while Harding had two RBIs.
Monday’s loss contrasted a 5-1 win over the Grizzlies last Thursday.
“We both have young teams,” Ortiz said. “Our losses don’t come down to talent. It’s just about executing. That’s why we go through signs and plays so they’re prepared. But they get here and they’re lost. The league is pretty young right now, so there will be a lot of back and forth. Hopefully we execute better going forward.”
On Tuesday, Chanute took a 3-0 through three frames over Parsons then extended it 7-2 after the fourth.
Parsons out-hit Chanute, 10-5, but the Blue Comets drew eight walks to produce baserunners.
Jacob Thompson earned the win on the hill, throwing 3.2 innings while four hits and two runs allowed.
Braddox Bancroft had two RBIs and scored two runs for the Blue Comets while Christy also had two RBIs.
Up next
Chanute, now 4-9 overall on the season, hosts Pittsburg on Monday. “We’re halfway through the season and there’s peaks and valleys in every season,” Ortiz said. “We’ve got to respond. We’ve got to do everything we can to win a game. If we get beat without beating ourselves, so be it. But we’ve got to start trending up and getting better.”
