Bearcats get back on winning track
HENRY JANSSEN/DAILY FORUM
The Bearcat baseball team celebrates after Landon Figg’s walkoff single. Northwest won, 4-3.
After a disappointing pair of losses to Washburn last weekend, the Northwest Missouri State University baseball team got back on the right track on Thursday. The Bearcats walked away the victor with a dramatic 4-3 home victory versus Great Lakes Valley Conference foe William Jewell.
Landon Figg was the man of the hour with a walkoff single in the bottom of the ninth, despite falling 0-2 in the count with one out and the bases loaded.
“I think it was the third walkoff in my life,” Figg said. “Of course it feels good.”
William Jewell drops to 5-7, and the Bearcats advance to 12-8.
Nikko Pablo picked up Thursday’s win, and Eric Smith was credited for the loss.
The Bearcats trailed 3-1 entering the bottom of the ninth. The Cardinals scored two-thirds of their runs in the first inning before striking again in the fifth.
Northwest scored one in the first, and it took seven innings of scoreless play for the Bearcats to alter the scoreboard in a major way.
In the bottom of the ninth, Kolby Greenslade drew a walk on five pitches in the first plate appearance of the inning. Jay Hrdlicka followed up by also reaching first via base on balls. Aaron Barratt entered the game to run for him once he reached.
The next plate appearance, shortstop Logan Rycraft laid down a sacrifice bunt that advanced runners to second and third with one out. Ozzie Adams walked on six pitches the next plate appearance to force the score to 3-2, bringing third baseman Figg to the plate.
Figg drove a comebacker to centerfield to score the game winning runs.
Coming into the at-bat, Figg was 0-4 on the day. Furthermore, he had fallen far behind in the count before driving home the tying and winning runs.
“There wasn’t a whole lot. I just knew I wanted to see a pitch up, and I knew the tying run was on third,” Figg said. “I was just hoping I could hit a fly ball somewhere. When I fell behind 0-2, I knew I had to shorten up.
“That was a total team effort in the ninth inning. We were down the whole game, but we knew we had the last inning to do something. Everybody was just trying to find a way to get on first. Once you get the first one on, it just keeps going from there.”
Northwest’s Thursday win is the last weekday game that the Bearcats will play outside of the MIAA all year, aside from a trip to William Jewell on Tuesday, May 2.
The Bearcats play a pair of games against GLVC opponent Rockhurst on Saturday and Sunday. The former will be played in Kansas City, while the latter will be hosted in Maryville at 1 p.m.
Northwest coach Darin Loe said that his team is putting the pieces together at the correct time in the season. Although the Bearcats are middling with a 12-8 record, a ninth-inning come-from-behind-victory is as sweet as it could get for a coach looking to bolster morale.
He said that Figg’s hit was a stepping stone toward the level of mental toughness he wants his team to have down the stretch.
“He’s been struggling a little bit as of late, maybe not seeing the ball with a lot of confidence, but at the same time, he’s the guy we want at the plate when the game is on the line,” Loe said. “He found a hole up the middle, and we had speed on the bases. I’m happy for Landon, and I’m sure he’s got many more in him.
“We’ve been talking about the fight of our team for the past couple weeks. I think we were lacking that a little bit. We might have been a little bit unfocused and a little bit frustrated. We wanted to stay positive no matter what the score is, and stay fighting. Fight for nine innings and see what happens. Our energy level was great all day.”
DAVID MERRILL/DAILY FORUM
James Holler, despite a disappointing day at the plate, ropes one down the first-base line. Holler struck out three times on the afternoon, but the Bearcats won 4-3 over William Jewell.
HENRY JANSSEN/DAILY FORUM
Northwest’s Luke Wilkinson drives one to right-center on Thursday afternoon. The Bearcats defeated William Jewell, 4-3.
HENRY JANSSEN/DAILY FORUM
Northwest righty Eddy Kraeber hurls a pitch on Thursday afternoon. Kraeber went six full innings, and the Bearcats defeated William Jewell 4-3. Nikko Pablo was credited with the win.
HENRY JANSSEN/DAILY FORUM
Second baseman Ozzie Adams fields a ball cleanly in Thursday’s 4-3 victory over William Jewell. The Bearcats play again Saturday at Rockhurst at 3 p.m.
