FAYETTE, Ala. - Friday's doubleheader at Bevill State went from sour to sweet for Northwest.
After dropping a forgettable 10-0 loss to the Bears in the opener, the Rangers righted the ship for the nightcap, earning a 7-3 victory and improving to 4-2 on the season.
In his second collegiate appearance,
Brennan Jones earned the win for Northwest on the mound, tossing six strikeouts against a walk and a hit in five complete frames. Sophomore
James Smith successfully closed out the game with a two-strikeout effort in the bottom of the seventh.
At the plate,
Jackson Jenkins went 3-for-3 with a pair of RBIs to lead the Rangers in Game 2. The freshman from Senatobia also drew a walk.
Northwest will return to action on Wednesday, February 21, facing Hinds and Mississippi Delta in a pair of games at Delta State University. The Rangers will take on Hinds at 2 P.M. and the Trojans at 5 P.M.
Game 1 - Bevill State 10, Northwest 0 (6 inn.)
After giving up two runs apiece in the first two innings, Northwest surrendered a three-run frame in the bottom of the third, falling behind 5-0 to Bevill State in the eventual shutout loss. The loss marked the first time the Rangers had been shutout in a game since March 19, 2022 at Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Leading 5-0, the Bears added two runs in the bottom of the fifth and another in the bottom of the sixth, closing out the game in run-rule fashion.
Bevill State outhit Northwest 13-4, with four Bears finishing with two or more hits.
Cy Craig,
Jacob Hill,
Cade Leatherwood and
Matthew Roncalli finished with one hit apiece for the Rangers.
Scott Sharp was handed the loss for Northwest after lasting 2.2 innings, allowing seven runs and two walks.
Drew Lamb and
Carson Fox each collected a strikeout in their respective relief appearances.
Game 2 - Northwest 7, Bevill State 3
Northwest came out swinging in the nightcap, earning three runs in the top of the second and two more in the top of the seventh, denying the sweep for Bevill State.
Hill led off the game with a single and eventually scored on Leatherwood's RBI-groundout to second base. The Rangers then increased their lead to 4-0 in the second inning, thanks to a series of walks and wild pitches from the Bears.
Cade Greer also delivered an RBI-single with two outs, scoring
Austin Batts.
Although Bevill State got a run back in the bottom of the second, Northwest responded with a two-out single from Jenkins in the top of the third, stretching the Rangers' lead to 5-1.
Bevill State trimmed the deficit to 5-3 in the bottom of the sixth, but
Gavin McCoy came on in relief to end the threat. From there, Craig and Jenkins delivered back-to-back RBI base hits, helping Northwest gain some insurance runs.
After surrendering a leadoff walk and a single, Smith settled in and delivered back-to-back strikeouts, before forcing the Bears into a groundout to end the game.
Jones issued six strikeouts in five innings to earn the win for Northwest, while Smith and Peyton Sanders combined for three strikeouts in relief.
Northwest finished with nine hits at the plate, led by three from Jenkins and one apiece from Craig, Greer, Hill, Lang, Leatherwood and Martin.
