CALDWELL, Idaho - Northwest Nazarene baseball opened the 2021 campaign on the right track on Saturday, defeating College of Idaho 8-6 and 5-1.
The Nighthawks and Yotes will play two more in Caldwell on Monday, with first pitch of game three of the series coming at 1:00 p.m.
Game One - NNU 8, C of I 6
NNU put six runs on the board in the first two innings to grab an early lead in the opener.
Shawn Grandmont scored the first run of the season, crossing the plate on a
Grant Kerry single in the first. The other five runs came in the second, as
Ryan Dearing drove in two runs on a single,Â
Haden Keller notched an RBI single, and
John Gonzalez tripled home two runs.
C of I got three runs back in the third, but Keller extended the lead with an RBI single in the fourth. The Yotes put up another three-spot in the fifth to cut the deficit to just one, 7-6, but NNU answered back in the sixth as Grandmont stole third and then scored on an error by C of I's catcher.
NNU was able to hold the Yotes off the board in the final four frames, with
Max Holtzclaw earning the save after getting the final four outs.
Kyle Ethridge received the win, going 3.1 innings with eight strikeouts.
Keller and Grandmont finished with two hits apiece, while Keller, Dearing, and Gonzalez all notched two RBI. Grandmont also tallied three runs scored and four stolen bases.
Game Two - NNU 5, C of I 1
The Nighthawks jumped out early again in game two, scoring three runs in the first inning. Gonzalez got things going with an RBI double, followed by a Kerry RBI groundout and an RBI single from
Quentin Ayers. NNU tacked on another run in the fourth, as
Kyle Payne singled home
Colton Moore.
The Yotes finally got on the board in the sixth, but NNU got the run right back in the seventh off an error.
Spencer Schwehr and Keller tossed the last three scoreless frames to seal the win.
Sasha Jabusch earned the victory on the mound with a great outing, allowing just three hits and no runs over five innings with five strikeouts. Dearing and Keller both had two hits for the Nighthawks in the nightcap.Â