Broncos Dealt First Loss, Bounce Back for Split

Game 1: Larned-LaCrosse 7, Russell-Victoria 3
Game 2: Russell-Victoria 6, Larned-LaCrosse 5

It had to end sometime and on Tuesday, it did.  Before the end came,  the Russell-Victoria Broncos Baseball team shot out of the gate by beginning the 2023 season with a 16-game winning streak, the longest for the program in at least 15 years.  The 15th and 16th wins were the product of a doubleheader sweep of bitter arch-rival TMP-Marian on April 28 at Larks Park in Hays.

Russell-Victoria journeyed to Larned on Tuesday to face the Indians who ended the Broncos' 2022 campaign in the first round of Regionals.  No such postseason meeting will take place this year as Larned, now co-oped with Lacrosse is in Class 4A and the Indians provided one of the tougher tests of the season by handing Russell-Victoria its first defeat of this season with a 7-3 deicision in Game 1 of a doubleheader on the same field where the Broncos had last been beaten on May 16, 2022.  In the nightcap, the Broncos rebounded for a competitve 6-5 victory to gain the split of the twinbill.

In Game 1, the Broncos got off to a promising start by scoring two runs in the top of the first inning.  However, Russell-Victoria would not score again until the seventh frame and by then, Larned-LaCrosse had scored seven runs of their own to cruise to the win.  In Game 2, Russell-Victoria sprinted out to a 5-0 lead after two innings and led 6-2 as late as the fourth inning before Larned-LaCrosse staged a late rally that ultimately came up short as the Broncos hung on for the win.

Russell-Victoria (17-1) will wrap up the regular season on Thursday, May 4 with a trip of Gypsum to face 8th-ranked (Class 3A) Southeast of Saline.  First pitch for Game 1 is set for 3 p.m.