SENATOBIA – Even though the 2016 Northwest baseball season is still a few months away, two current Rangers will be continuing their careers at the Division I level.

Sophomore shortstop LeeMarcus Boyd and sophomore right-hander Colt Smith signed with Southern Mississippi on Wednesday, becoming the first four-year signees of the 2016 class.

Boyd, an Independence product, wrapped up his freshman season by hitting .330 with eight doubles, four triples, three home runs and 29 RBIs in 49 games. His 62 hits was tied with MLB draft pick Dalton Dulin for the most on the team. In the field, Boyd was responsible for 86 putouts and turned 26 double plays.

Smith, a right-hander from Myrtle, also put on an impressive performance in his freshman season. Smith finished second on the team with 49 strikeouts, and in 65.2 innings of work, went 6-2 with a 2.88 ERA in 14 appearances. A three-time MACJC Pitcher of the Week selection last season, he also threw two complete games against Pearl River and Southwest Mississippi.

Southern Miss finished the 2015 season at 36-18-1 and 19-10 in Conference USA. Despite advancing to the championship game of the C-USA Tournament, the Golden Eagles fell to Florida Atlantic and came up just short of an NCAA Tournament berth.

With the two signings, Northwest has now produced 24 NCAA Division I signees and 77 total four-year signees since Mark Carson took over as head coach in 2006.