After a 10-0 start to the 2016 baseball season, the Fort Scott Community College Greyhounds were handed their first losses of the season in a double header Thursday in their first conference games of the year.

In their first game of the day, the Greyhounds were shut out, 2-0, by the Cowley County Community College Tigers in what became a pitchers’ duel as the starting pitchers combined for a total of 21 strikeouts.

Carson LaRue, now 4-0 for the season, pitched the entire game for the Tigers, allowing just one walk and four hits while striking out 12.

Ryan McCollough struck out nine for the Greyhounds, but could not escape the sixth inning, giving up two runs, one earned, on seven hits. The ‘Hounds greatest offensive threat came in the fourth inning with singles from Jacob Biller and Andrew Tanous, but a double play ended that threat. Two players were also left on base in the final inning.

The ‘Hounds’ offense revived for the second game of the day, but three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning was still not enough as they lost 10-9.

Greyhounds’ starting pitcher Justin O’Laughlin was chased from the game in the fifth inning after giving up nine runs, seven earned, on nine hits, including two home runs.

Down 9-0, the Greyhounds tried to overcome the deficit, scoring three runs in each of the fifth, sixth and ninth innings, with home runs from Jacob Biller, Jedd Andrade, Nick Banman and Malik Sams. But despite the solid, nearly five innings of relief pitching from Conner Leach and Boby Johnson and the sudden offense, the effort ended up falling short.

The ‘Hounds will have another chance to defeat Cowley in a doubleheader Saturday afternoon.