SENATOBIA - Sophomore pitcher Brayden Sanders and freshman reliever Mason Shropshire each earned a pair of saves, as Northwest relied on the two pitchers to close out a pair of 4-1 and 2-1 victories against Bevill State on Sunday afternoon.

Sanders' save was the first of his collegiate career, as the Memphis signee fanned three batters against one walk over the final two innings of Game 1. Shropshire also struck out three batters over the final two frames of the nightcap, allowing no hits or walks.

Blake Loper and Zach Beasley earned the wins on the mound, with Loper's Game 1 victory being his first collegiate win. The Oxford native entered in relief of Brooks Rice, tossing a solid 1.2 innings with three strikeouts and no walks or runs allowed. For Beasley, it was only the second win of his Ranger career, as the Madison native threw one strikeout against two walks over 1.2 innings of relief.

Offensively, Hayes Davis finished a combined 3-for-4 in both games, blasting a home run in just his third collegiate at-bat. Freshman infielder Jacob Hill also went 2-for-3 at the plate and drew three walks.

Northwest (2-0) is scheduled to face Jackson State (Tenn.) on Wednesday at 1/4 P.M. Both games are scheduled to be carried on Ranger TV (nwccrangers.com/watch).


Game 1 - Northwest 4, Bevill State 1

A solid start from Brooks Rice and a nice relief effort from Blake Loper helped keep Bevill State off the board for four innings, as Northwest earned a 4-1 victory in the season-opener.

Rice gave up a single to Ayden Payne to lead off the first, but struck out the next four batters in a row. After surrendering three walks in the top of the second, Rice got out of the bases loaded jam with Payne's pop up to center field, denying an early lead for the Bears.

Rice delivered one final strikeout in the top of the third before being relieved by Loper, who came in and promptly delivered a pair of strikeouts to end the inning. After Robertson led off the fourth with a triple, Loper guided the Rangers out of the scoring threat with a strikeout, a fielder's choice that resulted in an out for Robertson and a pop-up to first.

With no score entering the bottom of the fourth, the bats went to work for Northwest. A leadoff walk to Davis set up a single through the right side from Cade Leatherwood and a sac bunt from Thomas Cheatham. Freshman Matthew Roncalli then laced an RBI-double to left, sending Davis across the plate for a 1-0 lead.

Griffin grounded out in the next at-bat, but not without scoring Leatherwood from third on the 1-3 play, stretching the Rangers' lead to 2-0.

With two outs in the top of the fifth, Bevill State finally got a run on the board with a sac fly from Parker Wells, but the Bears would leave another runner stranded to end the inning. From there, the Rangers added a pair of runs in the bottom of the fifth, thanks to an error on the second baseman that allowed Jacob Hill to score. Davis then teed off on a solo homer to left center, pushing the lead to 4-1.

From there, Sanders retired the Bears in order in the top of the sixth and left the bases loaded in the seventh, securing the win for Northwest.

Davis went 2-for-2 at the plate with a walk and an RBI, while Hill, Leatherwood, Roncalli and Griffin accounted for one hit apiece. The Rangers also struck out 11 batters in the contest, led by five strikeouts from Rice.

Payne accounted for three of Bevill State's four hits in the loss, while Brody Bickerstaff was handed the loss after allowing a run and issuing three strikeouts over three complete frames.


Game 2 - Northwest 2, Bevill State 1

Tied at 1-1 in the bottom of the fifth, a wild pitch made the ultimate difference as James Smith scored the winning run from third, helping Northwest seal the narrow 2-1 victory.

After Bevill State left the bases loaded in the top half of the first, the Rangers struck first on the scoreboard, thanks to Eli Selby's RBI-single to right center in the bottom of the first. 

From there, the game remained a 1-0 Northwest lead until the top of the fourth, when a wild pitch on ball four allowed Wells to score from third and tie the game at 1-1. 

Smith drew a leadoff walk in the bottom of the fifth and Hill delivered a bunt single to move Smith to second. A sac bunt by Larson Ingram got Smith to third and the wild pitch on Selby's at-bat sent Smith across the plate, regaining a 2-1 lead for the Rangers.

Northwest left one stranded in the bottom of the sixth, but Shropshire closed out the game by retiring the Bears in order in the top of the seventh.

Northwest finished with five hits in the nightcap, while the Rangers' pitching staff held Bevill State to one hit. Northwest combined for eight strikeouts, led by four from freshman Connor McCaslin and three from Shropshire.

Mason Raffauf lasted five innings on the mound for Bevill State with five strikeouts and four walks, allowing both runs for Northwest. Jesse Lang tossed the final inning of relief for the Bears, allowing just one hit. Read Full Article