KANSAS CITY, KANSAS -- The Ellsworth CC softball team returned to action on Sunday in a doubleheader against Kansas City Kansas CC and the Panthers dropped both games, 16-8 and 6-5.

The Panthers trailed 8-2 after 2 innings in game one, then tied things up with a 6-run 3rd inning.  KCKCC pushed across 5 runs in the bottom of the 3rd and tallied 3 more runs in the 5th.  Saige Keller led the ECC offense with 2 singles and a triple and knocked in 3 runs.  Lauren Brennan singled and doubled, scored twice and drove in in a pair of runs.  Emma Gordon notched 2 hits and an RBI.  Maddy Harding also had a triple and a run-batted-in.  Keller started in the circle and went 3 innings, giving up 9 hits and 8 earned runs.  Lili Ruiz got 4 outs in relief.

Ellsworth saw a 5-4 lead disappear in the nightcap when KCKCC tied the score with a run in the 5th and followed with the game-deciding run in the 6th.  It was the 1st time in 5 games that the Panthers didn't reach double figures in hits.  They had 8, 2 by both Harding and Gracie Pierce.  Gordon, Brennan, Madeline Myer and Taryn Cory all had 1 hit and Harding scored twice.  Cory got her 1st pitching start of the year and threw 3 innings, allowing 7 hits and 2 earned runs.  Brennan went 3 innings in relief and took the loss.

The Panthers were slated to play another doubleheader against KCKCC on Monday but those games were canceled because of the cold temps.