Highlanders close out regular season with Ranger sweep

The McLennan Highlanders closed out the regular season with a doubleheader sweep of the Ranger Rangers on the road.

McLennan began the day with a 5-1 win over Ranger. Freshman Grant Miller pitched a complete-game no-hitter on the mound for the Highlanders.

The Highlanders scored a run in the first as Thomas Santos doubled and scored on a single by Keaton Milford.

McLennan added a run in the second as Mitchell Caskey walked, moved to second on a single by George Callil, moved to third on a fly out by Brooks Embry, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Aidan Shepardson.

Ranger's only run came in the bottom of the third as Daniel Goncalves walked, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Ricky Gerik, stole third, and scored on a McLennan error.

Two more Highlander runs scored in the sixth. Milford singled and Nick Thornquist drew a walk. Both runners advanced on a sacrifice bunt by Caskey and scored on a single by Josh Breaux.

Aidan Shepardson's homer in the seventh rounded out the scoring for McLennan.

The Highlanders got the 13-3 run-rule victory over the Rangers in the nightcap. Brady Childress got the win on the mound as the six Highlander pitchers combined to hold Ranger to just two hits in seven innings.

McLennan began the scoring with a run in the third as Embry singled, moved to second on a ground out by Callil, and scored on a double by Griffin Paxton.

The Highlanders added two runs in the fourth. Milford doubled and scored on a double by Caskey. Chase Sortor drew a walk, and Jackson Nichols was safe on a sacrifice hit. Embry followed with a fielder's choice, putting Caskey out at the plate. Callil was then hit by the pitch to score Sortor.

Ranger tied the game with three runs in the bottom of the fourth. Victor Bueno, Alex Garcia and Tucker Burton all walked. Bueno and Garcia both scored on wild pitches. Kyle Gonzales and Daniel Goncalves also walked. Burton then scored on sacrifice fly by J.J. Padilla.

McLennan took the lead with a run in the fifth as Paxton singled, moved to second on a wild pitch, advanced to third on a Ranger error, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Caskey.

The Highlanders added three runs in the sixth. Callil drew a lead-off walk and stole second, and Shepardson singled. Santos reached first safely on an error, allowing Callil to score. Milford then singled to score Shepardson and Santos.

McLennan sealed the run-rule win with six runs in the top of the seventh inning. Nichols walked, Embry singled and Callil was hit by the pitch, loading the bases. Paxton singled to score Nichols and Embry, and Callil scored on a sacrifice fly by Santos. Milford singled, and Caskey and Sortor both walked, bringing Paxton in to score. Nichols then singled to score Milford and Caskey.

The Highlanders advance to the Region V Tournament in Grand Prairie as the North's second seed. They will face Midland, third seed from the West, at 5 p.m. Friday.

McLennan 5, Ranger 1
McLennan 110 002 1 – 5 9 2
Ranger 001 000 0 – 1 0 0
Grant Miller and Nick Thornquist. Blake Hoffman, Trevor March (6) and Anthony Huggins. WP: Miller; LP: Hoffman. Leading hitters – McLennan: Thomas Santos (1-4, 2B), Keaton Milford (3-3, 2B, RBI), Aidan Shepardson (2-2, HR, 2 RBI) and Josh Breaux 1-1, 2 RBI). Record: McLennan 39-14 (24-7).

McLennan 13, Ranger 3
McLennan 001 213 6 – 13 12 0
Ranger 000 300 – 3 2 2
Daniel Cole, Tristen Bayless (3), Levi David (4), Brady Childress (4), Max Mize (6), Logan Freeman (7) and Jackson Nichols. Amado Almanzar, Tim Simpson (6), Patrick Rosborough (7), Dylan Hudson (7) and Ricky Rivera. WP: Childress; LP: Almanzar. Leading hitters – McLennan: Aidan Shepardson (2-5, 2B), Griffin Paxton (3-5, 2B, 3 RBI), Thomas Santos (0-3, 2 RBI), Keaton Milford (3-5, 2B, 2 RBI), Mitchell Caskey (1-3, 2B, 2 RBI), Chase Sortor (0-2, RBI) and George Callil (0-1, RBI); Ranger: J.J. Padilla (0-2, RBI) and Daniel Goncalves (2-2). Record: McLennan 40-14 (25-7).