Bearcats go 1-2 on opening weekend
ALVA, Okla. — The Northwest baseball team opened its season over the weekend with a three-game road trip in Oklahoma, winning its final game of the weekend.
The Bearcats opened with a 12-11 loss Friday afternoon to Northwestern Oklahoma State.
Northwest trailed 10-4 after three innings before battling back with seven runs over the final three innings, including a four-run eighth inning.
After Northwestern Oklahoma took a 4-1 lead, the Bearcats put together a three-run third inning to tie the game at 4-4.
The Bearcats then gave up six more runs before scoring one of their own in the seventh and four in the eight.
Freshman catcher Nick Howard hit a pinch-hit two-run homer to cut the score to the final margin in the ninth inning.
Junior shortstop Nick gotta, sophomore left fielder Kolby Greenslade, senior first baseman Steven Garber, senior catcher Blake Hardegree and sophomore right fielder Austin Wulff all recorded two hits. Gotta and Greenslade each drove in a pair of runs and Wulff hit a solo home run, the Bearcats’ first run of the game.
Sophomore Austin Battaglia was tagged with the loss after allowing two runs and six hits over 3.2 innings of work in relief of sophomore starter Hondo Pearcy.
Northwest split a pair of contests Saturday, losing 9-7 to Regis University before avenging Friday’s loss with a 16-4 victory over host Northwestern Oklahoma in the nightcap.
Regis broke a 6-6 tie with three runs in the ninth. The Bearcats, who scored five runs in the eight, could only muster one run in the bottom half of the ninth to open the season 0-2.
Gotta went 2-for-2 with three runs, a triple and three walks. Howard, who again came on as a pinch-hitter, had two hits and five RBI, including an eighth-inning grand slam. Greenslade also had two hits.
Sophomore Anthony Caenepeel went seven innings, allowing six runs, but junior Rob Heinrichs, who faced four batters in the ninth and allowed three runs and four hits, was saddled with the loss.
The Bearcats broke the final game of the weekend open with a six-run third inning.
Freshman Brad Roberts picked up the win, throwing four innings with eight strikeouts and three runs allowed.
Northwest scored two runs in the second, six in the third, two in the fourth and one in the eighth.
Garber went 3-for-4 with three RBI and two doubles. Gotta recorded two more hits to go along with three RBI and Greenslade went 2-for-6 and stole a pair of bases.
Howard, who served as the designated hitter, had a pair of doubles with three RBI, bringing his weekend total to 10.
Junior catcher Derek Meyer went 2-for-4 and sophomore third baseman Luke Wilkinson drove in three.
Freshman Joseph Hietpas, sophomore Taylor Bruch and sophomore Nikko Pablo combined to allow just one run while striking out eight in five innings of relief.
The Bearcats (1-2) begin a four-game series with Cameron University at 2 p.m. Friday in Lawton, Oklahoma.
