LIBERAL – One game after being held to four hits in a series-opening loss, the No. 20-ranked Hutchinson Community College baseball team’s offense unloaded Seward County with a vengeance on Thursday at Brent Gould Field.
After falling 7-1 in the series opener, the Blue Dragons awoke with a season-high seven home runs in a 24-14 victory in Game 2.
The Blue Dragons are now 35-11 overall and maintain a strong hold on second place in the Jayhawk West at 17-5. The Saints are 22-26 overall and 14-8 in the Jayhawk West. Hutchinson and Seward County will complete their four-game series on Saturday at 1 and 3:30 p.m. at Hobart-Detter Field.
With eight total home runs on Thursday, the 2026 Blue Dragons broke the program single-season record for home runs. The Blue Dragons surpassed the 2021 Blue Dragons, who had 101 home runs in 54 games played. The current Blue Dragons now have 103 homers in 46 games.
The seven home runs in Game 2 tied for the second most in Blue Dragon single-game history, matching seven-homer games against Independence in 2016, Dodge City twice in 2021 and Cowley in 2022.
GAME 2 RECAP – Hutchinson 24, Seward County 14
The Blue Dragons scored in 7 of 9 offensive innings, hammering out 21 total hits, including 11 extra-base hits, including seven home runs.
The Blue Dragons tied the team record for home runs when Jordan Kuhnau hit a three-run homer in the fifth inning and broke the record on a two-run eighth inning home run from Cru Huenfeld.
Kuhnau and Eli Duncan had four hits each to lead the Blue Dragons.
Kuhnau was 4 for 5 with a triple, home run, four runs scored and four RBIs. Duncan was 4 for 6 with two doubles and three runs scored.
Huenfeld hit two home runs for the second time this season in a 3 for 7, five RBI performance. He added a double. Huenfeld’s two home-run game is the 13th time this season a Blue Dragon has hit two homers in a single game.
Anthony Mazza was 2 for 6 with a two-run home run, three RBIs and three runs scored. Diesel Purnell was 2 for 4 with a home run, three runs and two RBIs. Max Flowers was 2 for 5 with a run. Aidan Marien and Jackson Schanuel bot homered. Marien had three RBIs and Schanuel had two RBIs.
Seward County jumped out to a 2-0 lead, but the Blue Dragons scored 10 unanswered, including a seven-run fourth inning to build a 10-2 lead. The Blue Dragons added five more runs in the fifth, one in the seven, six in the eighth and two in the ninth.
Merek Yeager (6-2) started and earned the win going 5 2-3 innings. He struck out seven while allowing seven hits and seven runs. Seth Ainsworth, Kolby Heskett and Brooks Jones worked out of the bullpen.
The 24 runs scored tied for the seventh-most runs scored in a game and was the fifth time to break 20 runs in a game. The 21 hits were the seventh time to break 20 hits in a game this season.
GAME 1 RECAP – Seward County 7, Hutchinson 1
Seward County pitcher Michael Lujan handcuffed the Blue Dragons, limiting then to four hits and one run in a complete-game victory. Lujan struck out five.
The only run the Dragons produced and a second-inning Huenfeld home run.
The other highlight for the Blue Dragons was Mazza’s sixth-inning double, which was his 40th career double to break the Hutchinson career record for doubles, passing A.J. Mustow, who had 39 in 2023 and 2025.
Eli Duncan and Finn Hochstein had the other hits for Hutchinson.
Wes Lyerly (6-2) suffered the loss in a complete-game outing. Lyerly allowed eight hits and seven runs, only three earned with one strikeout and one walk.
