Bearcat pitching and defense rebounds but Western wins 5-1

Maryville, Mo. - Missouri Western beat your Northwest Bearcat baseball team 5-1 on Tuesday in Maryville. Northwest's pitching and defense made a terrific rebound following the Southwest Baptist series but the Bearcats could not muster enough offense to run with the Griffons. Your Bearcat bullpen also had a terrific outing and threw nearly 4.0 innings of scoreless relief. Its only a matter of time before your Bearcats' offense explodes with serious run production. Northwest had runners on base throughout the game and just did not come up with the timely hit. With 10 runners left on base, Northwest was just as close to scoring 8-11 runs as 1. The B2R is always optimistic about the Bearcats but this team's offense is primed for a production explosion. With the play-off push well underway, Northwest's offense is about to put the team over the top. Despite the loss, your Bearcats maintain 6th place in the MIAA standings with a 13-13 conference record. The Bearcats are tied with Northeastern State University for 6th place. Northwest's overall record is 24-15.

While the team is disappointed with their 5-game losing streak, your Bearcats played better in today's game. The defense returned to error-free play making. The pitching did not let a single inning get away from them. The bullpen kept the opposing team off the board to give the team a chance to claw back in it. The hitting will come around and I feel bad for the opposing pitching staff that faces a ticked-off Bearcat squad. The B2R is confident with the adjustments made against Western today that Northwest will have a successful upcoming weekend.

Offensively, six different Bearcats had a hit in the game. Garrett Fort earned 2 walks and scored a run in the game as the center fielder. Ozzie Adams went 1 for 5 at second base. Luke Hassman went 1 for 3 (a double) at first base. Jay Hrdlicka earned a RBI and a sacrifice fly as the designated hitter. Kolby Greenslade went 1 for 4 with a stolen base at right field. Alix Herrera went 1 for 3 with a walk as the catcher. Aaron Barratt went 1 for 4 at right field. Logan Rycraft went 1 for 4 at short stop. In total, Northwest scored 1 run off of 6 hits, 1 RBI, 3 walks, 8 strike-outs, and left 10 runners on base.

Defensively, Northwest did not commit an error in the game.

Pitching, Eddy Kraber earned the start in the game but picked-up the loss to see his 2017 record go to 2-2. In total, Eddy worked 5.1 innings, allowed 6 hits, 5 runs, 2 walks and 3 strike-outs. In the 6th inning, Austin Battaglia came into the came and worked 2.2 innings, allowed no hits or runs, 1 walk, 2 strike-outs and he hit one batter. In the 9th inning, Nikko Pablo came into the game and worked 1.0 inning, allowed no hits, no runs, no walks and struck-out 1 batter.

NWMSU's article about the game - http://www.bearcatsports.com/news/2017/4/18/baseball-mo-west.aspx?path=baseball

Next - Your Bearcat baseball team will stay in Maryville this weekend to play the University of Central Oklahoma in a 3-game conference. A lot is at stake for both sides so expect an epic match-up between two proud squads. UCO is 12-14 in the MIAA and 22-15-1 overall in 2017. 

Go Cats!!

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