Northwest loses all three to Arkansas-Monticello

The Northwest Missouri State baseball team dropped both games of a doubleheader Saturday against Arkansas-Monticello, resulting in a three-game series sweep.

Arkansas-Monticello won the first game 8-7 and the second game 11-1. The Boll Weevils began the series with a 19-7 win over Northwest Friday.

Northwest (0-3) failed to win a game in a season-opening series for the fourth consecutive year. The Boll Weevils improved to 4-3 overall.

In game one, the Bearcats again fell behind early when UAM pushed one run across in the first inning. However unlike Friday, Northwest rallied limiting the damage to just one run before tying the game in the top half of the second.

The Boll Weevils would hold a 6-1 until the fifth when Northwest would battle back. Scratching away at the UAM lead, Northwest took the lead in the top of the seventh when Luke Lawyer doubled to left giving the Bearcats a 7-6 lead.

A solid pitching effort from Marcus Garrett and Chase Anderson helped Northwest hold the lead as the pair scattered nine hits over 7.2 innings and combined for six strikeouts.

In the bottom of the eighth UAM would tie the game, before a walk-off double ended the game giving the Boll Weevils the 8-7 comeback win.

Four different Bearcats recorded multiple hits while Eric McGlauflin led Northwest going 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs.

Game two belonged to the Boll Weevils as they scored 11 runs on 12 hits ending the game via run rule in the eighth inning.

Ryker Fox picked up the loss going four innings and scattering four hits while allowing just four runs. All four runs came in the first inning however before the junior settled in to pitch three scoreless innings.

Although a strong outing on the mound for the Bearcat hurlers in the finale, the UAM pitching staff was even better allowing just two hits over eight innings and striking out six.

Charlie Krueger and Ryan Abernathy recorded the only two hits for Northwest in the loss.

Northwest continues its season opening road swing as they open MIAA play next weekend at Northeastern State.

Friday's results

It was not the ideal start for the Northwest Missouri State baseball team as they fell in the season opener 19-7 to Arkansas-Monticello Friday afternoon.

The Bearcats fell to 0-1, as their bats picked up where they left off in 2012. Unfortunately their pitching struggled in the opener as the Boll Weevils improved to 2-3 on the young season.

UAM got off to a hot start in the bottom of the first, as the Boll Weevils batted around en route to an eight run first inning. Bearcat starter Blane Reutter was unable to get out of the first frame being charged with seven earned runs in 0.2 innings of work.

Being faced with a 10-run deficit the Bearcat offense came alive in the top of the third. Back-to-back singles from Luke Lawyer and Jon Pomatto set the stage for Brandon Huske who singled through the right side scoring both Lawyer and Pomatto.

One batter later, Ryan Abernathy scored on a sacrifice fly from Eric Swain after Abernathy had singled to load the bases for Huske. Abernathy led the Bearcats going 4-for-5 with two doubles in the loss.

After holding UAM scoreless in the bottom of the third frame the Boll Weevils' offense pounded out six more hits to push their lead to 16-3.