Hutchinson CC Sports Information
PRATT – The Hutchinson Community College softball team needed to turn in a little extra work to win its second-straight Jayhawk Conference softball championship on Wednesday at Lemon Park.
The Blue Dragons scored three runs in the top of the 10th inning against the Pratt Beavers to earn an 8-6 victory in Game 1 on Wednesday. The Dragons clinched the league title with a 10-1 rule-run victory over the Beavers in Game 2.
Hutchinson (38-12) wins the 2026 Jayhawk Conference championship outright with a 27-5 record. The Blue Dragons won their second-straight league title and the third in four seasons. This is the second time the Blue Dragons won back-to-back league championships. That also happened in 1986 and 1987.
This is Hutchinson’s sixth all-time league championship.
The Blue Dragons will close out the regular season at 1 p.m. Saturday with a non-league doubleheader against Cloud County at Fun Valley.
GAME 1 RECAP – Hutchinson 8, Pratt 6 (10 innings)
The Blue Dragons faced an uphill battle in the first game on Wednesday, falling behind 3-0 after one inning. They chipped away with single runs in the second, fourth and sixth innings, tying the game in the sixth on a two-out RBI single by Riley Dreher that scored pinch runner Lia Martinez.
In the eight, the Dragons took a 5-3 lead when Hadley Topping hit a two-run home run, but the Beavers tied the game on a Dallas Rutter two-run double in the bottom of the inning.
After a scoreless ninth, the Blue Dragons broke three with three runs in the 10th. Topping doubled to left-center to score Kaibryn Kruger. Emery Benson-Hladik‘s fourth hit of the game was an RBI single to make it 7-5 and a fielder’s choice by Addi Lutz scored Leyla O’Connor for an 8-5 lead.
Pitcher Jessica Schmidt (6-2) tossed a career-long seven innings in relief to earn the win. She struck out a career-high 11 and allowed four hits and three runs.
Benson-Hladik led the Blue Dragons’ 16-hit attack going 4 for 5 with a double, one run and two runs driven inning. This was Benson-Hladik’s third four-hit game of the season.
Leyla O’Connor was 3 for 6 with a double and two runs scored. O’Connor had her 12th multi-hit game of the season and fourth of three or more hits.
Topping was 2 for 5 with a double, home run and three RBIs. Both hits came in extra innings.
Kruger was 2 for 5 with a run and two stolen bases.
Relief pitcher Mia Williams worked 2 2-3 scoreless innings with two strikeouts.
GAME 2 RECAP – Hutchinson 10, Pratt 1 (5 innings)
Alyssa Rogers twirled her third complete game of the season and the Dragon offense had 11 digs, including a Macey Stephenson three-run home run to run rule Game 2 and clinch the KJCCC title outright.
Rogers (7-3) scattered five hits and allowed one unearned run while turning in a season-high seven strikeouts.
Benson-Hladik had two more hits, going 3 for 3 with an RBI double and two runs scored. Kruger had a pair of doubles, going 2 for 4.
Dreher was 1 for 3 with an RBI fielder’s choice and a two-run single.
