By BENJAMIN KLIEWER, Senior Reporter

Northwestern baseball player Yugo Hamakawa prepares to swing during the baseball game on Sunday. -Photo by Devyn Lansden

The Northwestern Rangers baseball team swept the Arkansas-Monticello Boll Weevils in all three games over the weekend series.


Game One was played on Saturday, with the Rangers winning 6-4. The Rangers trailed 4-1 at the bottom of the seventh inning. The Rangers came back by scoring five runs in the bottom of the seventh inning and eventually held on to win.


Brandon Holdren had 4 RBIs by the end of the night. Yugo Hamakawa scored two runs, and Brayden Koenig scored with one RBI and one run.


The final two games were played Sunday afternoon. Game One ended with a 12-11 win for the Rangers, and Game Two with a 14-12 win for the Rangers.


In Game One, the Rangers pulled ahead after scoring eight runs in the bottom of the fourth.


Koenig hit a home run with bases loaded and earned a grand slam. Dylan Norsen, Hamakawa and Hoffman and all hit in RBIs in the fourth inning as well.


Brandon Holdren reached five season highs in the three series against the Weevils. Holdren hit two doubles in the Sunday game, along with four runs batted in. On Saturday, Holdren had three hits in one game, two home runs and three total scored runs.


Holdren reached his season high of four assists during the Newman game on Feb. 9. He also reached a season high of seven putouts in the Feb. 6 Minn. Crookston game.


Following the weekend series, the Rangers travelled to Claremore to take on the Hillcats of Rogers State.


The Rangers started off strong with a two-run home run by Yugo Hamakawa in the first inning, but the Hillcats fought back to tie the game at two heading into the sixth inning.


The Hillcats scored seven runs across the sixth and seventh innings to take a commanding 9-2 lead that they held for the rest of the game.


The Rangers will be back at home Friday for a three-game series against East Central. Game One will be at 6 p.m. Friday at Glass Family Field at Myers Stadium.