SENATOBIA – Northwest trailed in the latter innings in both games against Holmes on Tuesday evening at Jim Miles Field before rallying for a pair of 7-6 (10 innings) and 7-4 wins to sweep the Bulldogs.
Northwest improved to 17-9 overall and 5-3 in the MACJC, while Holmes fell to 11-15 and 2-6 in conference play.
In a back-and-forth affair in the opener, Holmes rallied to tie the game in the fourth, fifth and ninth inning to eventually force extra innings before a walk-off single from
Brooks Boolos in the 10th ended it.
Northwest led 2-0 after three on an RBI-single from
Bailey Nix and a wild pitch that scored Boolos after a leadoff single in the third.
Holmes tied the game at 2-2 in the fourth, only to see the Rangers retake the lead in the bottom half, 4-2, after two-out RBIs from
Dakota Dailey and Boolos.
Chandler Powell singled and scored on an error before Jeb Malley's RBI-single tied the game at 4-4 for Holmes in the fifth.
Scoreless in the sixth and seventh, Holmes took its first lead in the eighth, 5-4, on Landry Newsom's two-out RBI-single through the left side.
Northwest immediately responded with a pair of runs in the bottom half to retake the lead, 6-5, using
Grant McMinn's RBI-double and two Bulldog errors to plate
Baron Davies and
Zack Pope.
Errors, however, plagued the Rangers in the ninth and Holmes was able to tie the game again, 6-6, when Powell scored on a sac fly.
Unable to win it in the bottom of the ninth, Northwest found the walk-off winner in the 10th. After back-to-back strikeouts to start the frame, Dailey walked to keep the inning alive and stole second before Boolos' RBI-single to right plated Dailey for the 7-6 victory.
J.G. Lipscomb was unable to get the save in the ninth but was credited with his second win of the season in two innings of work.
Harrison Sandridge went seven innings in a no-decision, scattering 10 hits, four runs (two earned) and eight strikeouts.
Northwest racked up 12 hits in the win, with
David Herrington, Nix and Boolos each picking up three hits for the Rangers.
Leading 2-0 after three innings once again in the nightcap, Northwest had to rally from a 3-2 deficit in the fourth and turned to its bullpen in
Trey Morrison and Lipscomb who closed the door on the Bulldogs in a 7-4 win.
Kyle Moore held Holmes without a hit the first three frames but the lone two he allowed in the fourth allowed the Bulldogs to plate three runs for a 3-2 lead. A hit-by-pitch and back-to-back walks allowed Brodie Threet to double and score two and an error in the outfield plated the third run.
Northwest pushed back in front, 4-3, in the bottom of the fourth thanks to
Hunter White's sac fly that scored Herrington after a triple and
Aaron Campbell's solo blast to left.
Holmes tied it at 4-4 in the fifth on Keelyn Johnson's RBI-single to left, only to see the Rangers score three in the bottom of the fifth to put it away. Boolos' two-run single to right proved to be the game-winner, with Herrington adding an RBI-single.
Morrison tossed two innings in relief, striking out the Bulldogs in order in the sixth to earn his second career win. Lipscomb tossed a scoreless seventh to earn his seventh career save and sixth of the season (third in NJCAA).
Herrington, the reigning MACJC Player of the Week, added three more hits in game two to finish 6-for-9 on the evening, and
Will Brooks was 3-for-4 with three doubles and two RBIs.
Northwest will continue a 10-game homestand on Saturday, April 1 hosting Copiah-Lincoln in a 2 p.m. twinbill.
