Cardiac Cats force extras but lose in 10th
Warrensburg, Mo. - Central Missouri defeated Northwest 6-5 after the Bearcats forced extra innings in a brilliant comeback in the 9th on Friday in Warrensburg. Heading to the top of the 9th inning, Northwest was down 4-1 and Central brought in their closer. What happened next was an epic flurry of emotions to cap an exciting college baseball game.
In the 9th, Nick Gotta legged-out an infield single to start the inning. Kolby Greenslade reached first base on a fielder's choice with Gotta getting thrown out at second base. With one out, Ozzie Adams singled to center field and Greenslade advanced to second base. With runners on first and second base and one out, Jake Lewis walked to load the bases. Aaron Barratt then singled to center field to score Greenslade and make the score 4-2 UCM lead with the bases still loaded and one out. Garrett Fort then reached first base on a fielder's choice with Barratt being thrown out at second base (6-4) for the second out but, importantly, Ozzie Adams scored to change the score to 4-3 UCM. UCM then throws a wild pitch and Jake Lewis scored to tie the game 4-4. Garrett Fort advanced to second base on the wild pitch as well. Derek Meyer then grounded out to end the inning.
In the 10th, James Holler singled to center field to lead off the inning. Jay Hrdlicka executed a perfect sacrifice bunt to advance the runner to second base. With one out, Nikko Pablo came into the game as a pinch runner for Holler. In a rush of excitement I cannot adequately describe, Nick Gotta singled to center field and Nikko Pablo flew home touching home plate ahead of the tag for Northwest to take a 5-4 lead. After a flurry of pressure, UCM got out of the inning without any further runs allowed. In the bottom of the 10th, UCM scored two runs with the game winning run scoring with 2 outs and a fly ball that was just out of the reach of a diving Garrett Fort. A UCM dog pile at second later and the final score was 6-5 UCM. You have to love college baseball. The thrill of a 9th inning rally, a 10th inning lead, and the heartbreak of a walk-off loss. Best thing - we get another crack at the Mules on Saturday in Game 3.
Offense - Nick Gotta was the offensive MVP for Northwest in Game 2. Gotta went 3 for 4 with 1 RBI, 1 run scored, 2 walks, and 2 stolen bases. Gotta was the spark-plug for the Bearcats offense in a remarkable performance. Ozzie Adams went 2 for 6 with 1 run scored while playing second base. Kolby Greenslade went 1 for 4 with 1 run scored, 2 walks, and 1 stolen base. Aaron Barratt went 1 for 1 with 1 RBI in a pinch hitting role late in the game. James Holler went 1 for 5 while playing both right field and third base. In total, Northwest scored 5 runs off of 8 hits, 4 RBIs, 8 walks, 3 strike-outs, and left 14 runners on base.
Defense - Northwest was charged with 4 errors in the game which led to 2 unearned runs.
Pitching - Anthony Caenepeel earned the start for Northwest in Game 2 and did an outstanding job. In total, Anthony worked 6.1 innings, allowed 9 hits, 4 runs (3 earned), 1 walk, 3 strike-outs, 2 wild pitches, 0 balks, and he did not hit a batter. In the 7th inning with 1 out, Hondo Pearcy came into the game and also did an exemplary job in relief. In total, Hondo worked 1.2 innings, allowed 0 hits, 0 runs, 1 walk, 1 strike-out, 0 wild pitches, 0 balks, and he hit 1 batter. Carson Smith came into the game in the 9th to force the game into extras. In total, Carson worked 1.2 innings, allowed 2 hits, 2 runs (1 earned), 1 walk, 1 strike-out, 0 wild pitches, 0 balks, and he hit 1 batter.
NWMSU Athletics' Dept story link - http://www.bearcatsports.com/news/2016/3/25/baseball-at-central-missouri-march-25.aspx
Next - Northwest plays Game 3 of the UCM series on Saturday. First pitch is set for 1pm. Stay tuned to www.bearcatsports.com for any last minute changes in game time due to a rain forecast this afternoon in Warrensburg.
Go Cats!!
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