HANCEVILLE, Ala. - After dropping the opening contest to Wallace State despite two runners reaching base in the seventh, Northwest battled back to a 4-3 victory in an extra-inning affair on Saturday afternoon.
Northwest improved to 3-5 on the season, while snapping the Lions' seven-game winning streak with the Game 2 loss. Wallace State concluded the day with a 9-3 overall mark.
Sophomore
Peeko Townsend finished with the Rangers' most impressive effort at the plate, going 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs. On the mound, pitchers
Brayden Sanders and
Colton Presley collected eight strikeouts apiece, while
John Luke Marlin picked up the victory in Game 2.
Northwest will look to next week's schedule, which includes three doubleheaders against Freed-Hardeman JV, Jackson State (Tenn.) and Rend Lake. The Rangers and Freed-Hardeman will battle in a 2/5 P.M. twinbill on Monday, February 28 at Jim Miles Field, with coverage available on Ranger TV.
Game 1 - Wallace State 5, Northwest 2*
(*The attached box score is incomplete, ending in the top of the seventh inning on Logan's at-bat. A completed box score will be added as soon as possible and all stats will be updated.)
Thanks to back-to-back fielding errors in the top of the first, Northwest was able to strike first, only for Wallace State to tack on three more in the bottom half and two more in the fifth in a 5-2 loss for the Rangers.
Caleb Hobson led things off with a single through the left side and
Alan Kivett reached on a fielder's choice. With two outs on the board,
Wesley Lester turned a fielding error into two bases, which allowed Kivett to score the Rangers' first run from second base.
In the next at-bat, Townsend also reached base on an error by the second baseman, scoring Lester from third and giving Northwest the quick 2-0 advantage.
However, Northwest would see its lead evaporate quickly in the bottom of the first, as a leadoff single from Ben Arnett and back-to-back walks loaded the bases for the Lions. Mason Walker tied the game up with a two-run single to right field and a Dan Stewart RBI-single allowed Wallace State to make it a 3-2 lead.
From there, Sanders would settle in for the next few innings, delivering back-to-back strikeouts to end the first and keeping the Lions off the board until the bottom of the fifth. The freshman transfer from Ole Miss was handed the loss, but tossed a new season-high of eight strikeouts in the starting effort.
Meanwhile, Wallace State pitcher Dylan Rhadans did his part for the Lions as well, tossing six complete innings and finishing with 10 strikeouts against one walk. Northwest scattered three more hits over the next six innings, but were unable to tie or regain the lead.
Wallace State finally added some cushion in the bottom of the fifth, as the Lions' leadoff batters reached first on a walk and hit-by-pitch. As the Rangers made a call to the bullpen for
Jake Savage, the Lions added a pair of runs on two sac flies to right field, taking the 5-2 lead.
Northwest threatened in the top half of the seventh with runners on first and second and one out on the board, but were unable to rattle closer Cade Henry, resulting in the Lions hanging on for the victory.
Unofficially, Northwest finished the game with four hits, two of those from Townsend. Hobson and
Ryan Lee also added one hit apiece, with Lee's coming in the form of a double in the top of the third.
As a team, Wallace State earned five hits, with Arnett finishing 2-for-3 in the leadoff spot. Stewart, Walker and Mason Mann were credited with the Lions' remaining hits.
Northwest sophomore
Josh Hill earned two strikeouts in 1.2 relief innings, totaling 10 strikeouts for the Rangers' pitching staff. Both teams combined for five errors, with three coming from the Lions.
Game 2 - Northwest 4, Wallace State 3 (8 inn.)
Although Northwest saw its one-run lead slip away in the bottom of the seventh, the Rangers redeemed themselves with a run in the eighth inning and
John Luke Marlin slammed the door in the bottom of the eighth, helping Northwest hold on for the one-run triumph.
Northwest went down in order to open the contest, giving way to a single and an error from the top of the Wallace State batting order. However, the Lions would go down empty-handed in the bottom of the first, thanks to back-to-back strikeouts from Presley on the mound.
For Presley, the Hernando native totaled eight strikeouts in just his second appearance of the season. He lasted five complete innings, striking out a season-best eight batters against a walk and a pair of earned runs.
After two scoreless innings, Wallace State got on the board in the bottom of the third, thanks to a two-run shot to left field from Mitchell Heer. Townsend would answer the call in the fifth though, teeing off on a two-run homer in the same spot, tying the game at 2-2.
Townsend would later give Northwest the lead in the top of the seventh, as his sac fly brought in Lester from third. Down to its last strike in the bottom of the seventh, the Lions forced extras on an RBI-single from pinch-hitter Austin Roberts.
Northwest was left unfazed by the tying run however, as Hobson led off the top of the eighth with a double to center. Fortunes would really favor the Rangers on the next at-bat, as Kivett's sac bunt attempt instead resulted in an errant throw from the first baseman, allowing Kivett to take second and Hobson to score what would turn out to be the game-winning run.
Facing two outs against Marlin in the top of the eighth, Wallace State got Walker on base with a fielding error. However, the Lions were unable to tie up the contest this time around, as Stewart flied out to Hobson for the third and final out.
Wallace State finished 6-5 in total hits, while the Rangers committed two errors against one for the Lions. Sophomore
Cameron Lancaster led Northwest with a 2-for-3 outing, while Hobson, Lester and Townsend accounted for the remaining hits.
Heer led the Lions with a 2-for-4 effort and two RBIs, while four other batters finished with one hit each.
Marlin earned the win on the mound for Northwest, improving his season record to 1-0. The Tupelo native and UAB signee struck out a pair of batters and allowed an earned run, while C.J. Lofton tossed a scoreless sixth inning of relief with one strikeout.
For Wallace State, Owen Arndt struck out seven in five complete innings for the no-decision. Brayden Rowe was handed the loss in relief, finishing with five strikeouts and three walks over the final three innings.
