SENATOBIA - After a successful season that consisted of 37 wins and an appearance in the MACCC playoffs, six members of the Northwest baseball squad will continue their respective careers with a handful of four-year programs.

Outfielder Cade Greer and pitcher James Smith will take their talents to the University of Memphis, while infielders Jacob Hill and Cade Leatherwood will both play for Delta State University next season. Additionally, catcher Matthew Roncalli is heading to UAB and pitcher Mason Shropshire will suit up for UT-Martin.

Greer was one of two NJCAA Division II ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove winners, after finishing with a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage as the Rangers' everyday centerfielder. The Olive Branch native and Lewisburg High School alumnus also batted .415 as a sophomore, adding 17 doubles, a triple, a home run and 37 RBIs, earning All-MACCC honors and NJCAA Region 23 Gold Glove accolades.

For his career, Greer finished tied for the highest career fielding percentage at 1.000, joining Chad Wardlaw and Peyton Martin as the only three Northwest players to finish with a perfect fielding percentage in a minimum of 140 chances. He also ranks fourth in career sacrifice flies (11) with Gary-Scott Gabbert, tied for sixth in career doubles (26), tied for sixth in career hit-by-pitches (17), sixth in career on-base percentage (.486), eighth in career batting average (.380) and 10th in career base hits (115). 

Joining Greer with the Tigers will be James Smith, a two-way player for Northwest over the past two seasons. A former Ole Miss signee out of Northpoint Christian School, Smith appeared mostly in relief, but posted an 8-3 record on the mound with 27 strikeouts and two saves. At the plate, he batted .328 with 16 RBIs, five doubles and finished tied with a team-leading six home runs, joining Hayes Davis and Peyton Martin.

Though Smith only made six pitching appearances as a freshman, he batted .268 with seven doubles, a triple, four home runs and 11 RBIs during the Rangers' 2023 season.

An under-the-radar catcher during his two seasons at Northwest, Roncalli quietly blossomed into one of the team's best all-around players as a sophomore. The Saltillo native finished with the Rangers' fourth-highest batting average, hitting .338 with four doubles, a triple and 19 RBIs. Behind the plate, he finished with a .974 fielding percentage and caught 14 runners stealing, earning Honorable Mention All-MACCC recognition.

For his career, Roncalli threw out 22 runners on stolen base attempts, tying Matt Smith for the program's career record. 

As one of the Rangers' driving forces on the mound in 2024, Shropshire finished with a team-best 61 strikeouts, tying fellow teammate Scott Sharp. In 11 total appearances, the Collierville, Tenn. native posted a 4.78 ERA and a 2-3 record.

Shropshire made 15 pitching appearances as a freshman, mostly in relief. He finished with 28 strikeouts in 20.2 innings of work, while garnering a pair of saves.

Despite being a reliable batter, Hill was equally dangerous on the basepaths over the past two seasons. The Lewisburg native concluded his Northwest career as the program's all-time leader in stolen bases (62), surpassing the previous mark of 55 set by both James Lear (2013-14) and David Herrington (2016-17). Hill stole 41 of his bases as a sophomore, just shy of the single-season record of 46 set by Dalton Dulin in 2015.

Hill earned All-MACCC honors this season, batting .359 with eight doubles, three triples, three home runs and 21 RBIs. He also left Northwest in the record books, finishing second in runs scored (101), second in career triples (7), third in career at-bats (352), fifth in career hits (125), fifth in double plays turned (40) and tied for sixth in games played (96), along with Greer, Herrington and Wardlaw.

Leatherwood will join Hill at Delta State, after batting .353 with nine doubles, a triple, two home runs and 42 RBIs as a sophomore. As the Rangers' routine third baseman, the Collierville, Tenn. native finished with a .928 fielding percentage and 36 putouts with 80 assists.

As a freshman, Leatherwood saw action in 41 games, earning 36 starts. He finished fourth on the team with a .301 batting average, four doubles, three triples, a home run and 28 RBIs. Leatherwood also posted a .971 fielding percentage with 24 putouts and 43 assists in 69 total chances.

Since Mark Carson took over the head coaching reins ahead of the 2006 season, Northwest has produced 146 four-year players to NCAA and NAIA programs. Since 2014, a total of 92 Rangers have continued their careers at the four-year level.