Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score

ST. PAUL -- The Northwestern College baseball team won its second and third straight games this week with a doubleheader sweep over North Central University on a blistery Thursday afternoon at Reynolds Field.  The Eagles held off a seventh inning surge from the Rams to take the first game 10-8 before winning Game 2 by a 5-3 account.

Northwestern scored two runs right off the bat in the first inning of Game 1, taking advantage of three hits, including a double from Josh Markwith (Honolulu, HI/Kalani) (Honolulu, Hawaii/Kalani).  After North Central scored its first run of the game in the top of the second inning, the Eagles increased their lead to 6-1 with a four-run third frame.  Taylor Kauweloa (Kailua, Hawaii/Damien Memorial) (Kailua, Hawaii/Damien Memorial) led off with a double down the left field line before scoring on an RBI single from Markwith.  Cody Kielsa (Howard Lake, Minn./Rogers) (Howard Lake, Minn./Rogers) and Monte Abeler (Upsala, Minn./Upsala) (Upsala, Minn./Upsala) also crossed the plate in the bottom of the third.

NWC wasn't done scoring yet, scoring four more times in the fifth.  With the bases loaded and no outs, Andy Borud (Grand Marais, Minn./Cook County) (Grand Marais, Minn./Cook County), Nick Jones (Maple Grove, Minn./Wayzata) (Maple Grove, Minn./Wayzata) and Mike Sharp (Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove) (Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove) all scored.  The runs would prove to be essential as North Central turned up the heat in the seventh inning.  Josh Englund (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North) (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North), who started on the mound for the Eagles, struggled to get through the final inning with walks and wild pitches.  Closer Olyad Regassa (Minneapolis, Minn./Minneapolis South) (Minneapolis, Minn./South) came in to finish the job, earning the save while getting the game's final two outs.

Sharp made the most out of his leadoff spot in the batting order, going 4-for-4 in the game with an RBI and two runs scored.  Kielsa went 3-4 while helping his pitchers on numerous occasions with strong defense at third base.  Overall, the Eagles out-hit North Central 17-6.

The second contest of the day featured less than half of Game 1's run total without the big splurge at the end from the Rams.  A pair of North Central errors helped the Eagles score two runs right away in the first inning before NWC put another two-spot on the board in the fifth.  With runners on first and second, head coach Dave Hieb elected to play small ball, bunting them over to third before Mark Meredith (Robbinsdale, Minn./Armstrong) (Golden Valley, Minn./Armstrong) scored on a passed ball and Borud scored on an RBI single from Sharp.

Despite North Central scoring single runs in each of the fourth, fifth and sixth frames, the Eagles stayed the course, adding one more insurance run in the sixth when Brady Erickson (Chisholm, Minn./Chisholm) (Chisholm, Minn./Chisholm) doubled and ultimately scored in the same play due to an error by the Rams' left fielder.

Kyle Murphy (Farmington, Minn./Farmington) (Farmington, Minn./Farmington) threw the first three and two-thirds innings before yielding the mound to Regassa, who earned the win in just over an inning's worth of work.  Zach Markwith (Honolulu, Hawaii/St. Louis) (Honolulu, Hawaii/St. Louis) closed the game with a two-inning save.

The Eagles amassed only five hits in the game but left only two runners on base compared to 10 LOB for North Central.

Now 9-11 overall (6-3 UMAC), Northwestern will wait out unplayable weather conditions on Friday before hitting the road for a three-game series at the University of Minnesota-Morris on Saturday and Sunday.  Saturday's doubleheader against the Cougars is slated for a 2 p.m. first pitch.