SENATOBIA - Saturday produced a mixed outcome for the Northwest baseball team in its doubleheader with Illinois Central.

Northeast earned a 6-3 victory in Game 1, thanks in part to solid pitching efforts from C.J. Lofton and relievers Blake Loper and Brayden Sanders. The win helped the Rangers achieve an 8-0 record, marking the program's best start since the 1989 season.

However, a ninth win was not in store for the Rangers in the nightcap, as Illinois Central churned out 10 base hits and a handful of homers in a 14-2 run-rule victory for the Cougars. 

Illinois Central concludes the weekend road trip with a 1-2 overall record, while Northwest dropped to 8-1 after the finale. The Rangers will turn their attention to Wednesday's round robin in Decatur, consisting of non-conference games against East Central and Jones College.


Game 1 - Northwest 6, Illinois Central 3

Sophomore C.J. Lofton picked up his second win on the mound and Brayden Sanders earned his third save of the season, as Northwest held off Illinois Central to clinch the weekend series.

Lofton lasted the first five innings for the Rangers, issuing a career-best eight strikeouts with a walk and three runs allowed. Sanders pitched the seventh inning and surrendered a leadoff walk before retiring the side.

Scoreless after an inning and a half, Northwest struck first in the bottom of the second. Hayes Davis led off the inning with a triple and would later score off Cade Leatherwood's sac fly to right field.

Illinois Central responded right back in the top half of the third inning, thanks to Beau Durbin's RBI-double to left center, tying the game at 1-1.

Starting with the second inning, Northwest would add a run or more in every frame. The Rangers regained the lead with two runs in the bottom of the third, as a solo homer from Cy Craig and a sac fly from Peyton Martin made it a 3-1 advantage.

Lofton kept the Cougars off the board and the basepaths in the fourth, sending all three batters down swinging. In the bottom of the fourth, a bases loaded walk to Craig brought in James Smith from third, stretching the Rangers' lead to 4-1.

Though Lofton ran into a bit of trouble to start off the fifth, the sophomore recovered from a leadoff walk and a Matt Evans homer to retire the next three batters, keeping Northwest ahead 4-3.

After delivering a single to the outfield with one out, Leatherwood helped Northwest add some insurance in the bottom of the fifth. With two outs, the Collierville, Tenn. native stood at second base and drew an errant throw from the Cougars' catcher on a failed pickoff attempt. The ball would escape into the outfield, allowing Leatherwood to round third and score, pushing the Rangers to a 5-3 advantage.

Illinois Central left two stranded in the top half of the sixth and a passed ball allowed Northwest to add the final run in the home half of the inning. 

Northwest scattered all six of its base hits across the lineup, with Craig, Davis, Leatherwood, Jacob Hill, Tyler Pearson and Eli Selby each collecting a base hit. Additionally, Pearson, Smith and Peyton Martin collected one stolen base each.

Gage Burdick was handed the loss for the Cougars, finishing with five strikeouts and three earned runs allowed in three innings of work. Kaiser Quick tossed the final three frames for Illinois Central, earning three strikeouts. Evans went 2-for-2 at the plate to lead all Illinois Central hitters.


Game 2 - Illinois Central 14, Northwest 2 (5 inn.)

For the first time all season, pitching was not a strong suit for Northwest in a 14-2 run-rule loss to Illinois Central.

Five pitchers were used for Northwest, but the Cougars' bats came alive early and often. A pair of leadoff singles and a walk loaded the bases, and Camden Porter cleared the infield with a grand slam, putting Illinois Central ahead 4-0.

Northwest got a run back in the bottom of the first off a bases loaded hit-by-pitch and Logan Eldridge retired the side in the top of the second. However, Illinois Central responded with a two-run homer from Jackson Powell, stretching the deficit to 6-1.

Illinois Central kept the momentum going in the top of the fourth, adding five more runs, before finishing with three more in the top of the fifth. As for Northwest, the bats simply couldn't get going against the Cougars' pitching staff.

Down 14-1 in the bottom of the fifth, the Rangers got base hits from Davis, Loper and Brandon Bruckman, even earning another run on Davis' RBI-single. Illinois Central's lead was never in danger though, and Ian McGhiey retired the final two Northwest batters to preserve the victory.

Northwest was outhit 10-4 in the contest, led by Hayes' 2-for-2 effort. Four different players came away with two base hits for Illinois Central.

Eldridge was handed the loss in the finale, striking out four batters while allowing seven runs in three complete frames. Cooper Mitze, Owen Bruce and Rudy Baldwyn helped steer the Rangers out of the fourth inning, while Scott Sharp finished out the final inning on the mound.

Jake Jacek left with the win on the mound for Illinois Central, striking out three batters against three walks in three complete innings. Read Full Article