DECATUR - Battling numerous weather delays on Friday, Northwest rallied back from a 12-8 Game 1 loss to play into extra innings in the nightcap, only for East Central to take a 6-5 victory on a walk-off home run in the eighth inning.
Northwest fell to 19-19 on the season and 9-13 in the MACCC, while East Central moved to 26-12 overall and 12-10 in conference play.
Northwest will travel to Mississippi Delta on Wednesday, April 20 for a 1/4 P.M. twinbill. The Rangers will then return home on Saturday, March 23 against Copiah-Lincoln for one of two final home doubleheaders.
Game 1 - East Central 12, Northwest 8
An early 1-0 Northwest lead was erased with a five-run frame in the bottom of the second by East Central, as the Warriors got the best of the Rangers in the opener.
Trailing 5-1 entering the top of the fourth, the Rangers picked up two runs, only for the Warriors to add two of their own in the bottom half of the fourth for a 7-3 lead.
Another run in the bottom of the fifth made it an 8-3 lead for East Central, but Northwest once again tried to rally with two in the sixth and one in the top of the seventh. The Rangers were able to close the gap to 8-6, only for the Warriors to tack on four runs in the bottom of the seventh to pull away for good.
Perhaps the biggest highlight of the game for Northwest came from
Tyler Byrd, who went 3-for-4 at the plate with two home runs and six RBIs. The additional five hits were scattered across the lineup.
Colton Presley was dealt the loss on the mound, falling to 4-2 after allowing five runs and two walks. The Rangers' pitching staff combined for 11 strikeouts, including three apiece from
Zach Beasley and
John Luke Marlin.
Game 2 - East Central 6, Northwest 5 (8 inn.)
In a back-and-forth battle between East Central and weather, Northwest fell in walk-off fashion on a home run from Clay Cook in the eighth inning, as the Rangers fell in a sweep.
Much like Game 1, Northwest struck first in the top of the first inning, only for East Central to plate three runs in the bottom of the first, giving the Warriors the 3-1 lead.
Northwest added another run in top half of the second to close the gap to 3-2, before both teams went scoreless over the next two innings. The Rangers responded with two runs in the top of the fifth to gain a brief lead, only for the Warriors to add two more runs and regain the 5-4 lead.
Northwest forced extra innings after tying the game in the sixth, but the Warriors got the walk-off win in the eighth inning.
Landon Rogers led the Rangers at the plate with a 3-for-4 effort, a home run and an RBI.
Cameron Lancaster also totaled two hits and one RBI, while
Peeko Townsend finished 1-for-3 with a home run.
Connor Spencer was handed the loss, despite tossing 2.1 solid innings of relief with six strikeouts.
Jaylon Buckley also threw 4.1 innings with three strikeouts.
