SENATOBIA - Behind a pair of strong pitching efforts from
Eli Deberry and
Will Howell, Northwest rolled to a Saturday sweep of Illinois Central with 10-0 and 5-2 victories.
With the sweep, the Rangers took the three-game series against the Cougars, with the finale scheduled for noon on Sunday. Northwest also ran its winning streak to seven games, improving to 11-3 overall.Â
Game 1 - Northwest 10, Illinois Central 0 (5 inn.)
Northwest scored six runs in the bottom of the first inning, setting the pace for a five-inning run-rule victory against Illinois Central.
An error by the Cougars' second baseman allowed
Jackson Jenkins to reach base and
Mason McMillin followed with a single to the shortstop. That paved the way for
Levi Lang to crush a three-run homer to left field, giving Northwest a 3-0 advantage.
After
Walker Sanders delivered a single up the middle and
Rob Hayes drew a walk,
Hallas Lawson delivered a two-out, two-run double to right center, stretching the Rangers' lead to 5-0.
Austin Batts then capped off the inning with an RBI-double to right center, scoring Lawson.
Illinois Central was held scoreless in the top of the second and Northwest picked up right where it left off in the home half of the same inning. McMillin delivered a leadoff single and Lang added a single, before a Sanders groundout made it a 7-0 lead.
Walker Maranto followed with a single to third base, scoring Lang and extended the Rangers' advantage to 8-0.
In the bottom of the third,
Meyer Maddox led things off with a solo homer to right field, giving Northwest a 9-0 lead. The final dagger came in the bottom of the fifth, when Maranto drew a bases-loaded walk to bring in the winning run.
Illinois Central was held to two base hits, while the Rangers totaled 10 hits. Lang, McMillin and Sanders accounted for two hits apiece, and Lang was credited with three RBIs.
In his first collegiate start, Deberry picked up his first career victory, striking out four batters against two walks and a base hit in four total innings pitched.
Mason Gillentine also tossed an inning of relief, striking out three batters against a single walk with one base hit allowed.
Blake Norton was handed the loss for the Cougars, lasting just one inning and surrendering six runs. Logan Justus also gave up three runs in two innings of relief and Billy Mini struck out one batter against four walks in 1.2 frames.
Game 2 - Northwest 5, Illinois Central 2
With both teams deadlocked in a 2-2 draw, Northwest finally broke free with a two-run frame in the bottom of the fifth and an additional run in the sixth inning.
Illinois Central struck first, starting with Ryan Brucker's double to right center in the top half of the first inning. Jayden Malone followed with an RBI base hit and later scored off an error, granting the Cougars a 2-0 advantage.
However, the Rangers responded in the bottom of the first with two runs of their own. McMillin drew a walk and then stole second base, followed by a walk to Lang. Back-to-back wild pitches followed, and McMillin scored from third.
Mason Gillentine then drew a walk of his own and got into a rundown, distracting the Cougars long enough to allow Lang to score the tying run.
Northwest had a chance to take the lead in the bottom of the second, but left two runners stranded. Meanwhile, Illinois Central was retired in order over the next three innings, keeping the score tied. The Cougars, however, did load the bases in the top of the fifth, but
Brennan Jones entered the game in relief with two outs, slamming the door on the potential go-ahead run.
That gave fuel to the fire for the Rangers in the bottom of the fifth, as
Tyler Sullivan's two-run double scored Lawson and
Tatum Turner, giving Northwest a 4-2 lead. Jones then held the Cougars to just one base hit in the top half of the sixth, and
Lake Reed scored on a wild pitch in the home half of the inning, moving the score to 5-2.
Gavin McCoy took the mound in the top of the seventh, retiring Illinois Central in order, picking up the save for Northwest.
Hits were minimal for both teams, as the Rangers were held to just three base hits and the Cougars picked up four. Neither team had any players finish with multiple base hits, but Sullivan's double was the biggest highlight for Northwest. Brucker was credited with a double for Illinois Central.
Will Howell started the game for the Rangers, tossing seven strikeouts against three walks and an unearned run in 4.2 frames. Jones picked up his first win of the season, issuing a pair of strikeouts with no walks or runs allowed in 1.1 innings.
Mason Lynch was handed the loss for the Cougars, striking out three batters against two walks and two earned runs. Kaiser Quick started the game for Illinois Central, walking five batters against four strikeouts.
