SENATOBIA – In the midst of a season-opening 12-game homestand at Jim Miles Field, Northwest split with Rend Lake on Saturday, dropping the opener 7-3 before bouncing back with a 4-3 walk-off win in the nightcap.
Northwest moved to 4-2 on the young season, while Rend Lake moved to 1-1.
It was all Warriors in the opener, with Dakota Head allowing only two Ranger hits while striking out three in five shutout innings and Grant Bruggenjohann going 4-for-4 to lead a 13-hit Rend Lake attack.
Bruggenjohann's solo homer in the second gave Rend Lake the early 1-0 lead and Ostin Clark's two-run single made it 3-0 Warriors after three complete.
Kyle Moore made his Ranger debut in the fourth inning in relief of
Dalton Minton and tossed four solid innings of three-hit ball to keep Northwest in striking distance.
Trailing 5-0 in the seventh, Northwest had its best chance to get back in the game after putting the first two runners on base. A 6-4-3 double play, however, erased two runners but back-to-back walks loaded the bases with two outs before an inning-ending fly out.
Rend Lake immediately responded with a pair in the eighth, using three singles in the inning and getting RBIs from Jake Vernon and Blake Deatherage, to extend the lead to 7-0.
David Herrington reached on a walk to start the Rangers' half of the eighth, and two batters later,
Jordan Volner smashed his second home run of the season to right-center to make it 7-2.
Brooks Boolos capped the scoring with an RBI-groundout in the bottom half of the ninth to make the final 7-3 Rend Lake.
Seven different Warriors had a hit in the win, while Northwest was held to six.
Jarod Wright and Matt Herman dueled it out on the mound in the nightcap, combining for 12 strikeouts against two walks, before making way for an exciting 4-3 walk-off finish.
Scoreless through four innings, Rend Lake struck first in the fifth. After getting the leadoff man on by way of a Ranger error, Cody Clark hit a two-run shot to left field to make it 2-0 in favor of the visitors.
Northwest responded in its half of the fifth, using a
Will Brooks leadoff single and
Hunter White double to put the go-ahead run at the plate.
Grant McMinn then unloaded on a 2-1 breaking ball deep and over the wall in left to give the Rangers their first lead of the day at 3-2.
The Warriors tied the game at 3-3 in their half of the sixth, using a two-out double from Bruggenjohann that scored Clark after reaching on a leadoff error.
J.G. Lipscomb entered in relief of Wright to start the seventh on the mound and retired Rend Lake in order.
McMinn singled to start Northwest's half of the seventh and was pinch run for by
Zack Pope who was sacrificed over by
Brody Catt. After a fly out moved Pope to third with two away, Herrington's high chopper over the head of the pitcher allowed the winning run to cross for the walk-off win.
Lipscomb picked up his first win of the season after Wright scattered one earned run on five hits in six solid frames.
Herrington, Brooks, White and McMinn combined for all eight Ranger hits in the nightcap.
Northwest will host Southwest Tennessee in a 2 p.m. doubleheader on Wednesday, Feb. 22. Live stats will be available.
