Cats win 7-2, now 5-0

Arkadelphia, AR - Anthony Caenepeel carried the day with a brilliant performance as Northwest defeated Ouachita Baptist University 7-2. The Bearcats are now 5-0 on the young season. According to the Northwest Missourian newspaper, the Bearcats 5-0 start is the best start since 1973. Anthony worked deep into the game and Jacob Wagner and Jimmy McElwain kept OBU off the board. Ozzie Adams and Landon Figg paced the Bearcat offense and the Bearcat defense did not commit an error. All the above ingredients is a recipe for a Bearcat win. The 5th win in a row. A hot start to open the season.

Offensively, Ozzie Adams came up with the big hit in the game to win the most valuable player award for the game. Ozzie went 1 for 5 with 3 RBIs (a loaded bases clearing double in the 6th inning). Landon Figg is having a terrific start to his NCAA Division 2 baseball career and went 2 for 4 (including a double) with 2 runs scored in the game. Garrett Fort picked-up a walk and scored a run in the game. Alix Herrera earned 2 walks, too. Matt Schingel, a 6'3" 200 lbs freshman from Crystal Lake, Illinois, made his Bearcat debut as the designated hitter in this game and went 1 for 2 on the day. James Holler went 1 for 3 with 1 run scored and 2 walks. Kevin Handzlik went 1 for 3 with 1 walk and 1 run scored in the game. Luke Hassman, also having a terrific start to his NCAA Division 2 baseball career, went 1 for 2 with 1 walk on the day. Aaron Barratt picked-up 1 RBI with a sacrifice and also scored a run. Jay Hrdlicka went 1 for 3 with 1 run scored. Logan Rycraft picked-up 1 RBI with a sacrifice and also earned a walk on the day. In total, Northwest scored 7 runs off of 8 hits, 5 RBIs, 8 walks, 2 strike-outs, and left 8 runners on base.

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

Pitching, Anthony Caenepeel put in a brilliant performance and earned his second win on the young 2017 season to move his record to a perfect 2-0. Anthony pitched 7.0 innings, allowed 3 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, 5 strike-outs, 1 wild pitch, 0 balks, and he hit 1 batter. Logan Moose came into the game in the 8th inning but had a tough day. In total, Moose worked 0.1 of an inning, allowed 1 hit, 1 run, 1 walk, 0 strike-outs, and he hit 1 batter. Jacob Wagner came into the game in the 8th to relieve Moose and closed out the inning. In total, Jacob worked 0.2 of an inning, allowed 0 hits, 0 runs, 0 walks, and 1 strike-out in the game. In the 9th inning, Jimmy McElwain came into the game to close it out. Jimmy pitched 1.0 inning, allowed 0 hits, 0 runs, 0 walks, 0 strike-outs and faced the minimum 3 batters.

NWMSU's story on the game - http://www.bearcatsports.com/news/2017/2/9/baseball-ouachita.aspx

Next, Northwest stays in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, to take on Henderson State University at 3pm.

Go Cats!!

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