SENATOBIA – Northwest got a pair of complete game performances from starting pitchers Cody Reed and Matt Ferguson and used timely hitting to sweep a doubleheader over Itawamba Saturday afternoon by 7-0 and 5-4 scores. 

Northwest, who was swept a year ago by Itawamba in four games, improved to 13-6 overall and 4-0 in the north division standings. Itawamba fell to 9-11 overall and 1-3 in division play.

A six-run third inning for Northwest broke open a scoreless game one, as the Rangers sent nine batters to the plate and used RBI hits from Walt McCullough, Kramer Hollenbach and Cody Carson.

That was more than enough run support for Reed who mowed down the Indians the first six frames and was closing in on his second career no-hitter at Northwest.

The Rangers added an insurance run on Jordan Barnes' RBI-double to left in the sixth, making it 7-0.

Reed, after opening the seventh on a fly out, had his no-hit bid broken up by Jacob Shempert on a single to left-center. The Indians threatened by putting runners at second and third on a fielder's choice and an error, but Reed got Tyler Tipton to groundout to third to end the game.

Reed (3-1) struck out 10 Indians in the game and now has a ridiculous 34 strikeouts in his last three starts. He moved into a tie for first in school history with his fourth career shutout and is also now fifth in career strikeouts with 110. 

Hollenbach, James Lear and Dylan Castoria picked up two hits each as part of the Rangers' nine-hit attack and the 1-through-5 hitters went a combined 8-for-17 with five runs scored and three RBIs.  

Matt Ferguson (4-1) retired the final 11 batters he faced, including striking out the side to end the game, as he followed up Reed's performance with a complete game four-hitter of his own in a 5-4 game two win.

Cody Shrewsbury's two-run shot to right gave ICC an early lead in the first before the Rangers responded with three in the bottom half to take a 3-2 lead after one. Barnes' two-run triple, which extended his reached base streak to 17 games, tied the game before Hollenbach's sac fly pushed across the go-ahead run. 

After the Rangers pushed the lead out to 4-2 in the third, ICC responded with two in the fourth to tie the game at 4-4. Back-to-back singles by Ethan Gill and Drew Wheeler, followed by an infield error scored the first run, while CJ Hodges scored Wheeler on a double play ball.

Again Northwest responded in its ensuing at-bat, as Lear punched a two-out single into right field to score pinch runner Brennan Pugh for the game-winning run. Pugh stole second, reached third on a passed ball and then scored off Lear's single.

Reliever Dylan Earnest kept it a one-run game for ICC by allowing just one hit in his three innings, but Ferguson was equally impressive down the stretch for Northwest in retiring the final 11 he faced.

Northwest will look to keep the momentum going next Wednesday, March 20, welcoming Northeast to Senatobia for a 4 p.m. doubleheader.