By Logan Jones
Assist. Sports Editor
The Ranger baseball team opened up the month of March with a three-game series with the #18 ranked Southern Arkansas Muleriders this past weekend.
Despite putting up a good fight, the Rangers dropped all three games of the series.
The series opened with a double-header on a mild Friday afternoon.
SAU drew first blood in the top of the second inning, scoring two runs on three hits.
The Rangers answered back in the bottom of the inning, cutting the lead in half with an RBI single from Brock Randels.
Northwestern would extend their lead in the third, capped by a bases clearing, pinch-hit triple from Bryce Donavan that brought the score to 5-2.
The Muleriders quickly responded by scoring two runs in the fourth, and one in the fifth, tying the ballgame at 5-5. The score remained tied until the seventh inning where two costly errors allowed the Muleriders to plate two runs and giving them a 7-5 lead.
Despite attempts in the eighth and ninth, Northwestern could not shift the momentum, ultimately losing 7-5.
Game two of the double-header started out much like game one.
SAU scored two runs in the first and the Rangers responded with one of their own with an RBI single by Dash Johnson in the bottom of the inning.
In the third, two more Muleriders came around to score, giving SAU a 4-1 lead.
Northwestern would again retaliate by scoring another run in the bottom of the inning thanks to an RBI single by Colton Whitehouse and then again, driving in two more in the fourth.
After the fourth inning, both offenses seemed to stall as both teams tallied only three hits in the remaining three innings.
At the end of the seventh, the Rangers again lost the game by two with a score of 6-4.
The series finale was held on a brisk Saturday, but the cold weather did not stop the offensive output. Once again, SAU struck first scoring three in the first inning and one in the second.
The Rangers responded by putting up a 4-spot in the bottom of the second, tying the game at four a-piece.
Junior infielder Tanner Rutledge, who made his first Northwestern start, made his presence known by driving in three of five Northwestern runs, one of which came in the bottom of the third, giving the Rangers the lead.
The Muleriders would tie the game in the fourth, where the score stood until the seventh, when ASU took the lead on a sacrifice-fly, putting the Muleriders up by one.
Over the next three innings, Northwestern could not get any momentum going, ultimately losing by the score of 7-5.
The Rangers record moved to 3-6 in GAC play and 10-7 overall.
Next, the boys will travel to Tahlequah to play the Northeastern Oklahoma State Riverhawks on Tuesday, March 5, before making the trip to Monticello, Arkansas to take on UAM on March 8 and 9.