SENATOBIA – Behind a five-hit afternoon from
Cody Cooper and another gritty performance from
Dalton Minton on the hill in the nightcap, No. 20 Northwest swept MACJC foe East Mississippi by a pair of 8-5 and 4-2 finals at Jim Miles Field to run its win streak to six over the Lions.
Northwest improved to 26-14 overall and 18-8 in the MACJC, third in the conference standings with one MACJC doubleheader remaining. EMCC fell to 13-27 overall and 9-15 in conference play.
(Game 1) After falling behind 3-0 after the first inning, the Rangers slowly cut into the EMCC lead, eventually pulling away for the 8-5 victory.
Jo McNabb got the scoring started for EMCC in its half of the first with an RBI-triple and scored during the next at-bat, thanks to Taylor Stafford's RBI-groundout to first. Emil Ellis capped off the EMCC scoring surge with a solo homer to left field, pushing the Lions' lead to 3-0.
Northwest chipped away at the lead with two runs in the bottom of the second off
Jamell Newson's RBI-single to center and
Jake McPhail's sac fly to right field.
After Stafford's solo home run in the third pushed EMCC ahead 4-2, the Rangers responded with a big fifth inning.
Cody Cooper's two-run double down the left field line allowed both
Aaron Campbell and
Ryan Skalnik to score, tying the game at 4-4.
Hunter Bishop then stole third and came home on a throwing error from the catcher, allowing Northwest to take its first lead of the day, 5-4.
Chance Witt homered to right-center to open the sixth inning but it was all Northwest the rest of the way. Skalnik's RBI-single to left field in the bottom of the sixth brought in
LeeMarcus Boyd and gave the Rangers the 6-5 lead. Northwest added two more runs in the eighth off Campbell's sac fly and Cooper's double down the left field line before
Koby Busby shut the door in the top of the ninth, sealing the 8-5 victory.
Cooper finished Game 1 with a monster performance at the plate, going a career-high 4-for-5 with two doubles and three RBIs.
Hunter Wilson also finished 3-for-4 with a walk.
Peyton Plumlee (6-1) notched his sixth win of the season and gave up five runs on seven hits, while striking out seven batters in six innings of work.
J.R. Miller followed with two innings of relief and two strikeouts, while Busby closed things out with his fourth save of the season and 10th of his Ranger career (second all-time).
(Game 2) Minton picked up his second collegiate win in as many starts in the nightcap, allowing two runs over six innings, while striking out six EMCC batters in the 4-2 win. Forced to hit after an injury, Minton added a single in the fourth for his first career hit.
Northwest took a 1-0 lead in the first on Skalnik's RBI-double to left-center and followed with a single run in the second, thanks to Newson's RBI-groundout to short.
Andrew White's RBI-single to left-center allowed EMCC to cut the Rangers' lead to 2-1 in the top of the fifth but Northwest responded with two runs in the bottom of the frame. Herrington's single up the middle allowed Campbell and Wilson to come home, stretching the Northwest advantage to 4-1.
Ellis allowed the Lions to get a run back in the sixth with a single through the left side but
Jonathan Lindsey shut things down in the seventh with two strikeouts, helping the Rangers to the sweep. Lindsey collected his second save of the season in relief of Minton.
Northwest combined for 19 hits over both contests, with 12 of those coming in Game 1. Herrington finished 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs in the nightcap, while Boyd extended his reached base streak to 54 games. Skalnik also went 1-for-2 with a double and an RBI.
Northwest will conclude its MACJC slate on Saturday, April 30, playing host to eighth-ranked Meridian in a 12/3 p.m. doubleheader. The Rangers will also host Arkansas Baptist on Tuesday, May 3 in a single 9-inning game.
