Game 3 of Bacone Series Moved To Monday

Game three of the opening conference weekend versus Bacone College has been moved to Monday at 2pm due to inclement weather. The two teams split the first two games of the series.

Knights Settle For Split In 1st Conference Games

Justin Keithley had 11 RBI on the day.

The 2010 Red River Athletic Conference baseball schedule started to day for the Northwood Knights, winners of their last eight and 17 of the last 18 games. The situation was just right for a quick start to the conference season. Bacone College was the only thing standing in their way.
NU sent their ace, Trent Montgomery, to the mound in game one. BC scored two runs in the first to take a quick 2-0 lead. Northwood responded with a run in the second as Shane Bagley scored on a sacrifice fly by Matthew Redding. Bacone added single runs in the third and fourth innings to extend their lead to 4-1.
After two walks and a single, Justin Keithley delivered a bases loaded double to center to tie the score at 4-4. The rally was shortlived as Bacone scored four runs in the fifth against Montgomery. Corey Sartor came on in relief of Montgomey but the Knights couldn't overcome the deficit, losing the first game 8-5.
The Knights redeemed themselves in the second game as they pounded out 22 runs on 18 hits, 11 for extra bases. In the second inning, NU scored five runs on four hits including another bases loaded double by Keithley. Justin Coats followed with a double to score Keithley. BC rallied with eight runs in the third against starter Kane Kimrey. Down 8-5, the Knights responded with three more runs to tie the score.
With the game tied at 10-10, the Knights finally put BC away with a nine run fifth inning. Keithley remained the hot hitter with an RBI double and a three-run homerun in the inning. Coats added a two-run homerun to left-center. Johnny Aldaz put the game away with a two-run homerun, his second homer of the game, as the Knights cruised to a 22-10 victory.

Justin Coats Named National Player of the Week

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Bennett Whitmore of Concordia (Calif.) has been named the NAIA National Baseball Pitcher of the Week and Justin Coats of Northwood (Texas) has been NAIA National Baseball Player of the Week, the National Office announced Tuesday. Whitmore and Coats are the first honorees of the 2010 season based on their performances from March 8-14. The pair was chosen out of a pool of conference player of the week selections among 20 conferences.

Whitmore improved to 5-1 with a 2.84 ERA in 7.1 shutout frames in Concordia's 4-0 upset of second-ranked Point Loma Nazarene (Calif.). The senior hailing from Fresno, Calif., equaled a season-high with 10 strikeouts.

The leftie ranks first nationally in innings pitched (50.2), third in wins (5), sixth in total batters struck out (44) and 10th in inning pitched per game (7.238).

Coats helped lead the No. 25 Knights to six wins last week, totaling 10 hits in 16 at-bats (.625). He had one triple and three home runs, driving in 16 runs.

A senior second basemen from Texarkana, Texas, Coats is ranked ninth nationally in total runs scored (30).

The next Player of the Week announcement will be on March 23.

Coats and Abbl Named RRAC Player and Pitcher Of The Week

WACO, Texas -- Justin Coats of Northwood University (Texas) stood out as the Red River Athletic Conference Baseball Player of the Week for March 8-14, while Northwood's Frank Abbl and Michael Kline of Bacone College (Okla.) were named RRAC Co-Pitchers of the Week for the same dates.

Coats, a senior second baseman from Texarkana, Texas, drove in 16 runs on 10 hits as the Knights went 6-0 last week. He started the week with a pair of home runs and six RBIs in a 13-3 win over Texas College. On Friday, Coats continued with a 4-for-5 performance with five RBIs in a double-header sweep of the University of St. Mary (Kan.). He followed with another home run and four more RBIs as Northwood took another pair of games from St. Mary on Saturday. For the week, Coats batted .625 and scored nine runs. The Knights moved to 21-6 on the season.

Abbl, a junior right-hander from Wilcox, Ariz., made his first start of the year after returning from shoulder surgery and combined with the Knights' Corey Sartor on a five-inning no-hitter. For his part, Abbl threw four innings with four strikeouts and a walk en route to a 16-1 victory over Texas College.

Knights Finish Weeklong Sweep

As quickly as one winning streak ended, another has started. The Knights baseball team's current streak hit six on Saturday as they swept the weekend series against the University of Saint Mary's 7-3 and 9-1.

Four NU pitchers combined for the game one victory. Jeff Sakowski picked up the win going three shutout innings giving up three hits and striking out three. The Knights used a balanced offensive attack in the 7-3 win. Seven of the Knight's batting order had hits including J.P. Cazares' three hits and an RBI. Darby Walker added two hits, an RBI, and two runs scored. Corey Sartor, Tyler Rucker, and Chase Campbell pitch four effective innings of relief.

NU pounded out nine runs on 12 hits on their way to a 9-1 game two victory. Sean Ayala (2-0) and Josh Matthews were effective in shutting down the Spires. Ayala pitched five innings giving up one run on four hits.

Northwood took a 4-0 lead in the first inning highlighted by a leadoff solo homerun by Darby Walker. Three more runs scored on a single by Humberto Miranda and a Spires error. NU put the game away with another three runs in the fourth. Miranda led off the inning with a solo homerun and Justin Coats added a two-run single to left.

The Knights (21-6) host Friends University on Tuesday before RRAC competition begins this weekend.

Knights Weekend Starts With A Bang

Even a strong north wind couldn't keep the Northwood Knights from taking two games from the University of St. Mary's on Friday. NU combined good pitching and solid hitting to beat the Spires 14-1 and 7-0.

Northwood scored in every inning in the five inning contest. The Knights scored five runs in the second and seven runs in the third to put the game away. Humberto Miranda led the Knight's offense with three hits including two doubles, an RBI, and three runs scored. Justin Keithley was 3 for 4 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Jeff Sakowski added three RBIs with a homerun in the third, his fifth of the season. Kane Kimrey (4-2) picked up the victory going five innings and giving up one run on six hits.

Justin Coats sparked the Knight's offense in game two. NU jumped on USM early scoring two runs in the first inning on an RBI single by Coats. Shane Bagley scored Coats on a two-out double to left-center. The Knights scored three more runs in the second on an RBI double by Keithley and an RBI single by Coats. Darby Walker (2-0)and Tyler Rucker combined for a two-hit shutout.

Knights Toss No Hitter Vs Texas College

One streak ends and another begins. The Northwood Knights baseball team's 10-game winning streak came to a halt with a loss to the University of Houston-Victoria. Another winning streak began on Tuesday as the Knights disposed on Texas College 13-3 and 16-1.

The domination was complete as the Knights pounded out 29 hits including 11 extra-base hits. The pitching was also impressive as three hurlers gave up five hits in two games.

The Knights opened game one scoring five runs in the first and second innings to take a 10-0 lead. Pitcher George Isabell was firmly in control in route to a 13-3 victory. Isabell went the distance giving up three runs (one earned) on five hits and struck out five. Justin Coats, Humberto Miranda, and Shane Bagley supplied most of the offensive power. Coats was 2 for 4 with two homeruns and six RBIs. Miranda was 2 for 3 with a homerun and a double and two RBIs. Bagley added two hits including a homerun and a double and five RBIs.

Frank Abbl and Corey Sartor starred in game two as the NU pitchers combined for a no-hitter. Abbl pitched four hitless innings striking out four. Sartor finished the game giving up a run on a sacrifice fly.

The Knights built a 6-0 lead through three innings before an offensive explosion in the fourth. NU paraded 14 batters to the plate scoring 10 times on nine hits highlighted by a two-run homerun by Bagley. Darby Walker was 2 for 4 with a solo homerun and Matthew Redding was 3 for 4 with four RBIs.

The Knights (17-6) host the University of Saint Mary's in a four-game weekend series beginning Friday at Knight's Field

Knights Win Streak Falls One Game Short Of School Record

The streak continued on Saturday as the Northwood Knights carried a nine game winiing streak into the weekend series against the University of Houston-Victoria at Knights Field.
The Knights combined the solid pitching of Trent Montgomery and offensive power to take an 8-4 first game victory. Montgomery needed 99 pitches, 69 for strikes, to dismantle the Jaguars. He surrendered four runs, one earned, on six hits and struck out nine for his fourth win of the season.
The Knights jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first highlighted by a two-run homerun by Adam Humes, his first of the season. UHV tied the game in the second aided by three Northwood errors. The Knights took the lead for good in the fourth sending nine batters to the plate scoring five runs on four hits. With two-outs, Justin Keithley delivered with a two-run double to right-center. Justin Coats followed with another run scoring single. After Jeff Sakowski walked, Humes doubled in two more runs. Montgomery (4-1) slammed the door to extend the winning streak to 10.
The good fortune ended for Northwood in the second game. The Jaguars jumped on starter Kane Kimrey (3-2) for 10 runs, seven earned in 1 1/3 innings. The Knights scored three runs in the first two innings on a solo homerun by Justin Coats and a two run blast by Johnny Aldaz but it wasn't enough as UHV pulled away for a 16-3 victory.

Knights Extend Winning Streak To 9 Games

George Isabell and a pack of relievers tossed the Knights to a 5-1 victory over Austin College on Wednesday. Isabell (2-0) picked up the win pitching four innings giving up a run on one hit while striking out four.

The Knights broke the game open in the second inning. Down 1-0, J.P. Cazares delivered a two-out, bases loaded double to right-center that scored two runs. Humberto Miranda scored on an error during the play. Darby Walker followed with a single scoring Cazares to take a 4-1 lead.

NU's Sean Ayala, Chase Campbell, Garret Randle, Corey Sartor, and Tyler Rucker all pitched an inning of relief without surrendering a run.

Northwood (14-5) extends their winning streak to nine games. The Knights will host the University of Houston-Victoria for a three-game weekend series starting Saturday.

Knights Sweep RRAC Weekly Awards

WACO, Texas -- Matt Ginn of the University of Texas-Brownsville and Jeff Sakowski of Northwood University (Texas) were tabbed as the Red River Athletic Conference Baseball Co-Players of the Week for Feb. 22-28, while Northwood's Trent Montgomery garnered the pitcher of the week award for the same dates.

Sakowski, a senior outfielder from Arlington, Texas, followed up last week's player of the week award with another noteworthy effort in a three-game sweep of Oklahoma Wesleyan University. He was 6-for-9 batting with four doubles and four RBIs in the series with a pair of hits in each game. Sakowski drove in two runs to open the series as Northwood won, 5-2, and he provided the difference with an RBI in a 2-1 win to close it out. The Knights improved to 13-5 overall.

Montgomery, a junior right-hander from Athens, Texas, earned the win in Northwood's 5-2 win over OWU. He tossed a complete-game five-hitter while allowing just one earned run and a walk. Montgomery recorded six strikeouts.