SENATOBIA - With less than two weeks remaining until the start of the 2022 season, the Northwest softball program has finalized its schedule for the upcoming season.
Northwest will kick things off on Wednesday, February 2 against National Park College in a home doubleheader at the Senatobia Sports Park. The Rangers are then slated to close out non-conference competition in a pair of tournaments at Northeast (Feb. 15-16) and Hinds (Feb. 24-25).
From there, the Rangers will face a grueling three-date stretch to open MACCC competition, hosting Pearl River and Itawamba on March 12 and March 15, before traveling to Mississippi Gulf Coast on Saturday, March 19. Northwest went 0-6 in the regular season against the three teams last year, but lost a pair of close games to ICC and MGCCC in postseason competition.
After continuing a road swing at East Mississippi, Meridian and Northeast, the Rangers will return home to face conference heavyweight Jones College, another team that gave Northwest a heartbreaking loss in extra innings last season. The Bobcats and Rangers are scheduled to face off on Saturday, April 2 in Senatobia.
Home doubleheaders against Coahoma, Hinds, East Central and Mississippi Delta highlight the April portion of the schedule, while road tilts at Holmes, Copiah-Lincoln and Southwest Mississippi conclude the regular season slate.
Northwest finished 20-18 for the 2021 season, turning heads by blossoming into one of the nation's best hitting teams, earning a .376 team batting average, .617 slugging percentage, 410 hits, 83 doubles, 51 home runs and 287 RBIs, all of which set new program records.
Additionally, several players shattered single-season and career records at the plate, most notably
Saige Koczka. The current Memphis commit and NJCAA All-American is returning for a third and final season of eligibility and already holds career records in batting average (.486), hits (65) and home runs (14), while ranking third in career doubles (22) and RBIs (67).
Other notable returners include infielders
Kaitlyn Bednarek,
Maddie Brower,
Caylee Comer and
Molly Harris. All four players respectively rank second, third and tied for fourth in career home runs after only one season.
Northwest is anticipated to return to Ranger Softball Field on campus for the second half of the home schedule, while playing early season home contests at the Senatobia Sports Park off Interstate 55. All home games will be carried live on Ranger TV (nwccrangers.com) and Facebook Live.
All dates, times and opponents are subject to change. Fans are encouraged to check nwccrangers.com regularly for schedule updates.
