NAMPA, Id. – Northwest Nazarene delivered one of its most exciting finishes of the season in game three before dropping the series finale, splitting Saturday's doubleheader with scores of a 6-5 win and a 8-4 loss.
Game Three: 6-5 (T. Stolfich 2-0) The Nighthawks rallied late in dramatic fashion, walking off St. Martin's 6–5 behind a clutch ninth-inning swing from Kyle Becker.
Northwest Nazarene struck first in the fourth inning when Henry Henkel drew an RBI walk to bring home Adrian Arechiga for a 1–0 lead. St. Martin's answered in the fifth to tie the game and then capitalized on defensive miscues in the sixth to take a 3–1 advantage.
The Saints added another unearned run in the eighth to extend the lead to 4–1, but NNU responded in the bottom half of the inning. Henkel drove in a run on a groundout, and Jake Mestas followed with an RBI single to cut the deficit to one.
St. Martin's pushed across an insurance run in the ninth, setting up a 5–3 deficit heading into the final frame.
The Nighthawks refused to go quietly. Adrian Arechiga, Kaleb Karpstein, and Gavin Brubaker all reached to spark the rally, setting the stage for Becker. With the bases loaded, Becker delivered a three-RBI double to left-center, completing the comeback and sealing the 6–5 walk-off victory.
Becker led the offense with three hits and three RBIs, while Brubaker added three hits of his own. Henkel finished with two RBIs, and the Nighthawks totaled 13 hits in the win.
On the mound, Tyler Stolfich earned the victory in relief, closing out the final innings and giving the offense a chance to rally.
Game Four: 8-4 (G. Brubaker 1-2) In the series finale, Northwest Nazarene jumped out to an early lead but could not hold off a late surge from St. Martin's, falling 8–4.
The Nighthawks came out strong, scoring in the first inning on an RBI triple from Adrian Arechiga before adding three more in the third. Kaleb Karpstein delivered an RBI single, and Becker followed with a two-RBI double to give NNU a 4–0 advantage.
St. Martin's chipped away in the fifth inning, capitalizing on a combination of a sacrifice fly, errors, and a wild pitch to tie the game at 4–4.
The game remained tight until the seventh inning, when the Saints broke through with a four-run frame. A pair of two-out hits brought in multiple runs, flipping the momentum and putting St. Martin's ahead for good.
Despite early offensive success, the Nighthawks were limited to just four hits on the day and were unable to respond after the Saints' late rally.
Northwest Nazarene will look to bounce back as they prepare for their next conference matchup next week coming against the number two seed in the GNAC, Montana State Billings (20-19 overall, 14-10 GNAC) With the GNAC postseason already secured, the Nighthawks will aim to regain momentum heading into the final stretch of the regular season to clinch the number one seed in the tournament.
Nighthawks of the Day
Kyle Becker: 4-8, 5 RBIs, Run, 2 2B
Carter Walsh: 3-7, 2 Runs, SB, BB
Gavin Brubaker: 4-8, 2 Runs, 2B
