GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — In a battle of the No. 3 and No. 4 ranked teams in the NJCAA, both facing elimination from the Alpine Bank Junior College World Series, it was No. 4 Northwest Florida that came out on top.
The Raiders used a mix of speed and power to knock out No. 3 Iowa Western with an 11-5 victory at Suplizio Field on Sunday night.
The Reivers were seeded third in the tournament, Northwest Florida No. 2, and both were upset in Saturday's opening round.
Northwest Florida (37-14, 1-1 JUCO) stole six bases and used its base running prowess to put pressure on the Reivers (54-10, 0-2 JUCO) from the start, with Colby Jones swiping two bags. A four-run third inning broke a 2-2 tie, an inning in which the Raiders stole four bases, one of which was compounded by a throwing error.
Jones drove in the first run of the third inning, and Bryce Hubbard came through with a two-run single. Two more runs came home in the fourth to push the lead to 8-2 before the Reivers got their offense going again.
In the top of the sixth, Iowa Western loaded the bases with two out, and and other walk got one run home, with another scoring on a passed ball.
Back came Northwest Florida, this time with power. With one runner on first, Jones hit a home run to left center, followed by a towering shot by Jaquae Stewart that landed halfway up the outfield bleachers.
Stewart, the Raiders' big freshman first baseman, showed his nimble feet and athleticism several times by stretching for throws, including one in which he did the splits and rolled over to make a catch, his foot never leaving the bag.
Down 11-4 in the seventh inning, the Reivers threatened to get back into the game, with Brayden Smith leading off with a double. Two hit batters loaded the bases, but reliever Bryon Rincones left the bases loaded with a fly ball out foul to right and a groundout.
Iowa Western center fielder Josh Wakefield made a spectacular catch in the seventh when the Raiders needed only one run to end the game on the run rule. With two out and a runner on second, Jones hit a ball that looked to be well over Wakefield's head, but he chased it down, making a diving, rolling catch on the warning track to extend the game.
Mack Estrada picked up the victory by allowing four runs on seven hits over 6.1 innings. He struck out seven and walked three. Noah Scott took the loss, allowing seven runs on nine hits over three innings.
Jones drove in four runs and Stewart and Hubbard two each for Northwest Florida, which plays Shelton State at 1 p.m. Monday in another elimination game.