ALVA, OKLA - Ranger Baseball concluded the 2022 Ranger Festival with some fireworks in the ninth inning scoring five runs to complete a walk-off win over the Cowboys. The Rangers led most the way before a four run Cowboy ninth but Northwestern answered back for the walk-off win.
With the win Northwestern improves to 3-4 on the season to close out the opening seven games before conference play. The loss drops New Mexico Highlands to 0-6 on the season.
Emilio Lovato started the Sunday afternoon game for the Rangers throwing eight strong innings allowing two runs while striking out 10 Cowboy hitters. Dylan Collins would throw the final out of the ninth inning earning his first collegiate win with the Rangers.
The Rangers' offense was led by Shaughn Kelly with a team high two hits along with Blake Hoffman. Kelly added a team high 4-RBI in the win as well. Hayden Priest was second with three RBI in the afternoon. The Rangers hit three home runs, one each from Kelly, Priest and Dylan Norsen on a pinch hit home run to tie the game before Kelly's grand slam walk-off.
The Rangers got things started early in the game with a first inning lead. After Lovato worked around a two-out single. Kelly reached second on an error before Hoffman drove him in with an RBI double giving Northwestern the early 1-0 lead.
Lovato threw a shutdown inning with two strikeouts in the top half of the inning before the Rangers extended their lead in the second. Priest led things off with a solo home run to left field giving the Rangers a 2-0 lead.
Seven consecutive Cowboy hitters would be retired by Lovato before their offense struck in the fourth. After two singles and a strike out the Cowboys had runners on first and second with two outs before a Salas double to right center would tie the game at two.
The even score would not last long though as in the bottom half of the fourth the Rangers had runners on the corner when Priest would step in and hit a sacrifice fly scoring Hoffman as the Rangers regained the lead at 3-2.
Northwestern continued to hold the 3-2 lead as Lovato worked around a couple different jams with a runner on second in the sixth and runners on first and second in the 8th but he would strikeout 10 hitters in the afternoon and used that to escape multiple different situations holding the Northwestern lead.
The Rangers were able to extend the lead in the 8th though as a Koenig single scored Kelly pushing the Rangers lead to 4-2. Priest would then follow with his second sacrifice fly of the game, scoring Koenig for a 5-2 lead through eight innings.
The ninth inning is where things went wild for both teams. New Mexico Highlands had their first three hitters reach base safely as Edwin Colon came in for the save to work out of a bases loaded jam. He got the first two hitters out on a fly out followed by a strikeout before a bases clearing double tied the game at 5-5. The Cowboys would then take the lead on a single to right field giving them their first lead of the game at 6-5.
However, Northwestern was not done yet as Dylan Norsen hit a pinch hit home run to left center field to tie the game for his second of the season. Holdren singled to right center before Kitazaki and Hamakawa each reached base safely. Kelly then stepped up with the bases loaded as he blasted one to the left field for a walk-off grand slam to push the Rangers in front for the final time on a 10-6 win over the Cowboys.
The Rangers will now open conference play next as they get set to travel to Magnolia, Arkansas for a three game series against Southern Arkansas starting with a doubleheader on Friday the 18th with a one game Saturday the 19th.
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