MERIDIAN - With two outs and the bases loaded in the 10th inning of a decisive Game 3 of the weekend's NJCAA Region 23 Play-In series against Northwest and Meridian, it was up to sophomore
Wesley Lester in a win or go home scenario.
Lester chose the more exciting option, blasting a grand slam over the wall in center field, pushing Northwest ahead for good in a 14-11 stunner over Meridian, the MACCC's second seed and the No. 6-ranked team in the NJCAA.
For Northwest, the outcome continued a trend of the Rangers fighting back in must-win situations. Just over a week ago, Northwest needed a victory against Southwest Mississippi in the regular season finale just to make it into the postseason. Then, after dropping a 10-3 result in the opener against Meridian on Thursday night, the Rangers held off the Eagles in the second game and rallied from a 10-3 hole to force extra innings and the comeback.
Northwest improved to 26-22 with the victory, as Meridian saw its season come to an abrupt end at 34-13 overall. The Rangers have made the postseason every year during coach
Mark Carson's 17-year tenure, except for 2008 and a COVID-19 shortened 2020 campaign.
Much like they had done in the other two games of the series, the Rangers came out aggressive at the plate to open Game 3.
Cameron Lancaster got Northwest on the board first with an RBI-single to center, before Lester's double down the right field line made it a 2-0 lead in the first inning.
Meridian immediately responded, as Bo Gatlin tied the game up on a two-run homer and a rundown between first and second allowed Jalen Cowan to score from third later in the inning, pushing the Eagles ahead 3-2.
Northwest went down scoreless over the next three innings as Meridian poured on the runs. Gatlin's single in the second made it a 4-2 advantage for the Eagles and a four-run bottom of the third buried the Rangers into an 8-2 hole.
Ryan Lee would finally get Northwest back on the board in the top of the fifth, scoring
Caleb Hobson from third on a single through the left side. However, the Eagles countered with Cowan's two-run homer later in the fifth, making it a 10-3 lead for the home team.
Facing the end of their season, the Rangers refused to back down. Lester sparked the comeback with a solo homer in the sixth and Lancaster's two-run double in the seventh brought the score back to 10-6. Lester once again delivered another Northwest run with a single through the left side and a two-run shot from
Peeko Townsend silenced the crowd, pulling the Rangers within a run, trailing 10-9.
Meridian's powerful offense was shut down completely in the bottom of the seventh, as Northwest closer
Connor Spencer came on for the biggest relief outing of his career. After issuing a leadoff walk, Spencer struck out two Eagles and another flied out to left field for the third out.Â
With the Eagles held scoreless, the Rangers saw their chance to tie it up in the top half of the eighth. Two walks to Hobson and
Hunter Cramer got things going for the Rangers and a rare error by the Meridian shortstop scored the tying run with one out.
Meridian was once again held scoreless in the bottom of the eighth and so were the Rangers in the top of the ninth. The Eagles got the winning run aboard with an infield error in the bottom of the ninth, but Spencer forced the Meridian batters to pop up, fly out and strike out to end the threat and send the game into extra innings.
A strikeout and a groundout put two quick outs on the board for Northwest in the top half of the 10th. Just when it seemed like Meridian would get out of the inning,
Landon Rogers provided a two-out single and then stole second base on the next at-bat. An intentional walk to Lee was followed by an unintentional walk to Lancaster and with the bases loaded, Lester put his name in the eternal lore of Northwest baseball with the dramatic grand slam.
Tasked with now protecting a 14-10 lead in the bottom of the 10th, Spencer struck out Cowan for the first out before back-to-back base hits gave Meridian a run back. A walk would later put two runners on for the Eagles with two outs, but the tying run at the plate popped up to
Tyler Byrd at third base to secure the comeback for the Rangers.
Spencer's six strikeouts over the final four innings helped earn him the win, improving his career record to 2-2. Starter
Brayden Sanders struck out two batters over 2.1 innings, while
Josh Hill delivered three strikeouts in his two innings of relief.
Gunnar Dennis got the start for Meridian and tossed five strikeouts over five complete frames, before the Eagles turned to Thursday night's starter Cole Boswell out of the bullpen. Boswell lasted 1.2 innings and surrendered five runs, helping the Rangers rally back.
At the plate, Meridian edged Northwest 13-12 in total hits. Lester went 4-for-6 with a double, two home runs and seven RBIs, while Rogers finished the day 3-for-6 with a double. Additionally, Lancaster finished with two hits and three RBIs, while Townsend's homer brought in two runs.
Ke'Shun Collier led the Eagles with a 3-for-6 effort at the plate, while Gatlin went 2-for-4 with four RBIs.
Northwest will have roughly a week off to prepare for the NJCAA Region 23 Tournament, scheduled for May 16-20 in Poplarville. Hosted by the MACCC's top seed Pearl River, the tournament will feature the Rangers, along with Hinds, East Mississippi, Jones College and LSU-Eunice. (Bracket details and ticket information will be released in the coming days.)
