MILLINGTON, Tenn. - Facing a full week until the beginning of the NJCAA Region 23 Tournament, Northwest baseball added a quick midweek game against Southwest Tennessee on Wednesday, earning a 6-5 victory.
That bonus game also allowed sophomore
Walker Maranto to etch his name in the Rangers' record books. The Amory native finished with three doubles in the win, bringing his season total to 18 and surpassing a cluttered list of Northwest alums for the new single-season doubles record.Â
Maranto's new single-season record surpassed seven former Rangers that were all tied with 17, including Northwest Sports Hall of Famer Taylor Walker, former MLB Draft pick Dalton Dulin and current Memphis outfielder
Cade Greer. For his career, Maranto now has 23 doubles, which ranks eighth all-time.
As for the rest of the game, Northwest trailed most of the way, but rallied back in the top of the ninth inning with a pair of runs.
Mason McMillin knocked in the tying run on a single to center field, scoring
Meyer Maddox, and the go-ahead run scored on a rare steal of home from McMillin.
A combined 11 pitchers were used in the game, as both teams emptied their bullpens to warm up before the postseason.
Gavin McCoy (5-2) got the win in relief for the Rangers, striking out two batters against a walk and no runs allowed over the final two frames.Â
Payton Sanders started the game with a pair of strikeouts in one complete frame, issuing one walk and allowing an earned run.
Eli Deberry,
Connor McCaslin,
Jace Robinson and
Brady Stinnett all saw at least an inning of relief, with McCaslin pitching 2.2 scoreless frames.
At the plate, Maranto finished 3-for-4 with an RBI, while Maddox and McMillin each accounted for two base hits. Northwest finished with a combined 10 base hits in the win, compared to eight from the Saluqis.
With the victory, the Rangers officially conclude the regular season at 32-18 overall, while Southwest Tennessee dropped to 34-18. Northwest now turns its attention to the NJCAA Region 23 Tournament in Poplarville, where the eighth-seeded Rangers will face No. 9 seed Meridian in the single-elimination play-in game, scheduled for Monday, May 5 at 4 P.M.
