DECATUR – The story of the Northwest Mississippi Community College baseball team (34-19) this year has been never giving in, and once again, that came to fruition in their 8-5 extra-innings win over #2 East Central Community College (46-13) on Saturday night.
The win punches a ticket for Northwest into the Region 23 and Gulf District Championship Series beginning on Wednesday, May 13, hosted by #13 Jones College (38-16) from Ellisville and Community Bank Stadium.
Northwest handed the ball to Eli Deberry on the mound, and the sophomore starter put together his best start of the season, only giving up four runs, and only two earned, over six innings of work, holding the Warriors hitless through the first three innings with their only run coming from a walk and an error on a pickoff move pushing a runner to third and scoring him on a wild pitch.
That run woke up the Rangers as well, sparking a massive rally of their own with a single and a pair of walks leading to a run on a wild pitch, and setting up Evan Lightsey with the opportunity that he was all over. After battling through a 1-2 count, Lightsey was able to keep a deep fly ball just inside the right field foul pole, clearing the fence for a three-run homerun and a 4-1 lead for Northwest.
After a pitching change, John Whit Snopek made it a rude introduction to the game for the reliever, powering one out over the left-center field fence for back-to-back homeruns and a 5-1 lead.
With a boost from the offense, Deberry went back to work methodically, and despite an error on a swinging bunt that set up a run scoring after a two-out double, the Rangers would see him carry a 5-2 lead into the top of the seventh.
East Central was able to chase away Deberry after getting the first two batters on in the bottom of the inning, giving way for Tyler Sullivan who would get a sacrifice bunt, but would see a pair of runs score on a single and a fielder's choice that didn't result in an out.
That would see him give way to Tyce Powers, and the ace of the Northwest staff got a popout before he also fell behind a batter with a 2-0 count.
South McCoy would get the call for the third time in the tournament run to close out a game, and the freshman was up to the challenge, striking out the only batter he faced in the seventh inning with just four pitches, and working the next three innings as well.
Nursing a 5-4 lead, McCoy worked past a leadoff single in the eighth to record a zero. ECCC would follow that with another leadoff single in the ninth, tying the game at five on an RBI single but seeing the winning run thrown out at the plate.
Going to extras, the Rangers didn't wait long to get the game wrapped up. They used a leadoff error to get Mason Gillentine on base, and a wild pitch and a passed ball would move him to third. The Northwest center fielder would come home to score two batters later when Walker Sanders reached on a fielder's choice with Gillentine just sliding underneath a play at the plate to give NWCC a 6-5 lead.
Two more insurance runs came home with two outs on a single to left field by Preston Johnson, and with a three-run lead, McCoy had no trouble working through the final frame for the win, going 1-2-3 against the Warriors with a called strike three, punching the NWCC ticket to the championship series coming up on Wednesday.
Northwest has been in the championship series twice since the 2021 season, falling in sweeps both times. In 2021, it was on the road at East Central, who were #20 at the time. In 2024, they fell in a pair of games to Hinds Community College, falling 9-5 and 11-6.
The Rangers will be traveling to Jones College beginning on May 13 with a guaranteed game on May 14, and an if-necessary game set for May 15.
Keep up to date with everything new with Northwest baseball by visiting nwccrangers.com or by following along on Ranger social media accounts.
