Jamestown North Dakota — Drew Schutt matched his career-high with four hits and Alec Rickabaugh pitched seven strong innings in leading Northwestern past Midland 10-7 in an elimination game played this evening at Jack Brown Stadim in Jamestown, N.D., site of the GPAC Postseason Tournament – Jamestown Bracket.
Northwestern improves to 23-24 on the season and will play the host Jimmies on Saturday at noon. Midland, who had defeated Morningside earlier in the day to keep its season alive, closes the year at 24-25.
Schutt went 4-for-6 with a pair of doubles, two RBIs and one run scored to pace the Red Raiders 13-hit attack. Schutt matched his career-high of four hits and put his team in front for good with an RBI single in the first inning, scoring Ben De Boer.
A.J. Nitzschke added two hits, including a two-run home run in the top of the second inning to put Northwestern up 3-0. De Boer totaled three hits from the leadoff spot in the line-up and Colton Harold went 2-for-5.
The Red Raiders scored another run in the fourth, when De Boer and Sutton Derr hit back-to-back two-out singles and Schutt drove in De Boer with a double. Midland answered with its first run off Rickabaugh in the bottom of the fourth but Northwestern tacked on three more runs in the top of the fifth for a 7-1 advantage. Britton Yoder delivered an RBI single and De Boer drove in a run after a sacrifice fly.
Leading 7-3, Northwestern picked up three big insurance runs in the eighth, led by Schutt with a double and run scored. The Red Raiders took advantage of two Midland errors in the inning.
Midland scored two runs in both the the eighth and ninth innings and had the tying run at the plate but Mason O’Donnell struck out pinch hitter Jack Barrios to end the game and pick up his second save.
Rickabaugh came up big for Head Coach Brian Wede’s squad, giving up seven hits and three runs in seven innings. The junior improved to 5-4 on the season and won his second consecutive start.
Sam Braun led Midland with three hits, including a two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning. Dakota Thornton and Chase Reynolds also totaled three hits each. James Scurto picked up the loss, giving up 10 hits and seven runs in 4.1 innings.
The Red Raiders came up just short, falling to Jamestown 9-6, in a winner’s bracket game played earlier in the day. Luke Hughes (1-5) fell to 1-5 on the year, giving up six hits and seven runs in 4.1 innings. The junior walked five and struck out one.
Both teams accounted for eight hits; Northwestern was led by Yoder who went 2-for-3 with a home run and double. Austin Zylstra and Schutt also went deep for Wede’s squad.
With Jamestown in front 4-1, Northwestern plated four runs in the fourth inning to briefly take the lead. Schutt led off with a solo home run, his 10th of the year, and Yoder also went yard, hitting a two-run shot later. The host Jimmies answered right back with three runs in the fifth, chasing Hughes with two outs in the inning.Lincoln Trujillo had a pinch-hit, two-run double.
Andrew Reed (3-1) earned the win, pitching 4.1 innings in relief. He allowed three hits and one run before leaving for Joe Harris, who pitched a scoreless ninth to earn his second save.
