Northwestern State forces extra innings before falling to UIW, 11-5

NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State baseball team played the first typical Friday night game of its Southland Conference schedule against Incarnate Word – for nine innings.

The 10th inning, however, was a different story.

UIW put together a six-run 10th, using only one run-scoring hit in that span, to pull away for an 11-5 win at Brown-Stroud Field.

“It was a good college baseball game, and the score is not indicative of it because we screwed it up at the end by not throwing the ball over the plate,” seventh-year head coach Bobby Barbier said. “Both starters threw the ball well. Both first guys out of the bullpen came in and did what they were supposed to do. One bounce here or one ball falls there and it’s a whole different game and we probably come out on the other side of it.”

The Demons (19-16, 5-5) got a quality start from left-hander Cal Carver, who allowed two earned runs in six innings, and rallied from a three-run eighth-inning deficit to force extra innings.

After UIW (22-16, 9-4) built its three-run, eighth-inning edge on Cameron Crotte’s two-run single, the Demons evened things with four straight two-out hits against Cardinal relievers Westin Walls and Steve Hayward (5-3).

Walls retired the first two hitters of the NSU eighth before it was the Demons’ turn to see soft contact go their way. Walls could not handle Daunte Stuart’s comebacker before Jake Haze beat out a high chopper to shortstop for an infield single.

Bo Willis followed with an RBI single to left field to drive Walls from the game and bring on Hayward, who leads UIW with four saves.

Hayward fell behind Broch Holmes before a called strike filled the count. Holmes smacked a game-tying, two-run double on a hanging slider, banging it off the left-center field wall.

Holmes reached third on a wild pitch before Hayward got a called third strike to strand him there.

“Big hit by Broch there,” Barbier said. “That game could have gone either way. We weren’t on the right side of it today. Hopefully, we come out play hard tomorrow and come out on the right side of it.”

Chase Prestwich (4-2) had escaped a similar jam in the seventh, stranding a runner on third after Warren Laster reached there with no outs. Prestwich was unable to do the same in the eighth as Crotte’s two-run single followed an intentional walk to Alec Carr, whose fourth-inning home run snapped a 2-all tie.

Crotte delivered again in the same situation in the 10th, flaring an 0-2 pitch to right field for a go-ahead RBI single that set in motion UIW’s six-run, 12-hitter inning.

Crotte’s two-run single in the eighth drove marked the third and fourth two-out runs for UIW, which got a two-out RBI single from Rey Mendoza in the first inning and a two-out RBI infield hit from Tony DeJesus in the second.

Each time, the Demons answered, starting with Jeffrey Elkins’ leadoff home run off UIW starter Kayden Cassidy. It was Elkins’ 30th career home run, putting him in a third-place tie on NSU’s career list with Chase Lyles – one off David Fry’s and Darryl Woods’ shared record of 31 home runs.

Elkins joined Lyles as the only Demons to have a 30-30 career as Elkins swiped his 30th career base earlier this season. Lyles finished his career with 30 home runs and 78 career steals.

Stuart had the second game-tying hit for NSU, drilling a two-out RBI single off Cassidy in the fourth.

Like Carver, Cassidy spun a quality start, allowing two runs in six innings while striking out eight.

The series continues at 2 p.m. Saturday with a matchup of right-handers. UIW will send Isaiah Zavala (6-0, 3.65) against Northwestern State’s Alex Makarewich (3-3, 6.34).

Incarnate Word 11, Northwestern State 5, 10 innings
UIW 110 100 020 6 – 11 9 0
NSU 101 000 030 0 – 5 8 1
W – Steve Hayward (5-3). L – Chase Prestwich (4-2). 2B – UIW, Warren Laster. NSU, Gabe Colaianni, Broch Holmes. HR – UIW, Alec Carr (10). NSU, Jeffrey Elkins (6). Highlights: UIW, Rey Mendoza 2-4, 2 RBIs; Cameron Crotte 2-5, 3 RBIs; Laster 2-4, 2B, RBI. NSU, Daunte Stuart 2-4, RBI.
Records: UIW 22-16, 9-4; Northwestern State 19-16, 5-5.