BELOIT — The Ellsworth baseball team split a doubleheader against the Beloit Trojans March 28 on the Trojans’ home turf. The Bearcats won the first game 13-0, but dropped the second one 8-5.

The Cats immediately took control of the first game, with seniors Lane Rolfs and Layton Leiker both scoring runs in the top of the first.

Things became even worse for the Trojans as the Cats wouldn’t let anything slip, not just in the inning, but for the entire game. Beloit was unable to score even 1 run on the Cats.

The third inning would be where the Trojans would find themselves completely buried, as the Cats managed to score 7 runs. Seniors Loden West and Ben Hipp each scored twice.

Ultimately, the game ended up being a complete washout for the Cats, and an abysmal start for the Trojans. Rolfs ultimately struck 12 batters out over the course of the game, throwing 77 pitches and only having 2 walks.

However, the Trojans would end up redeeming themselves in the second game, defeating the Cats 8-5.

The game seemed to start out a lot like the first, with Rolfs scoring a home run and senior Will Cravens stealing home.

Things would very quickly go south in the fourth inning. After not having scored in the last two, they finally got junior Daxton Leiker to score on an error in the top half. The bottom half was where problems started to present themselves.

The Cats seemed to struggle with pitching, going through three pitchers in the span of one inning. They had six walks, two wild pitches and even hit their opponent with the ball twice.

The Trojans seized the opportunity and scored 7 runs, effectively locking the Cats out of the game.

Senior Cole Webber pitched 64 times, the most of all five pitchers the Cats used over the course of the game. He struck out three batters and walked four.

The Cats’ next action is April 8 as they face the Ellinwood Eagles at home.