The McLennan Highlanders and Ranger Rangers split today's doubleheader, also splitting the conference series with two games each.
Ranger took game one 7-6.
McLennan began the scoring with a run in the bottom of the second. Britton Moore, Xander McAfee, and Sam Flores all walked, loading the bases. Moore then scored on a fly out by Karson Krowka.
The Highlanders added a run with Aidan Kuni's solo home run in the second.
Ranger took the lead with four runs in the fourth. Gilberto Torres and Jhanel Bautista both singled, and EJ Alanis walked to load the bases. Kade Wood followed with a triple to clear the bases. Wood then scored on a single by JT Thompson.
Another Ranger run scored in the fifth. Jaden Adams walked and Torres singled. Torres was out at second on a fielder's choice by Bautista. Adams then scored on a wild pitch.
Ty Johnson led off the bottom of the fifth with a solo home run for the Highlanders.
Ranger added two more runs in the sixth. Thompson singled and Adin Morehouse walked. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch, and Thompson scored on another wild pitch. Adams walked, and Morehouse scored on a wild pitch.
McLennan scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh but couldn't complete the comeback. Krowka and Johnson were both hit by the pitch. Cole Dillon doubled to score Krowka, and Johnson scored on a wild pitch. Kuni was hit by the pitch and Dillon scored on a passed ball.
The Highlanders bounced back to get a 10-0 walk-off run-rule victory in game two with Connor Zaruba picking up the win on the mound.
The first two McLennan runs came in the bottom of the first. Johnson and Dillon were hit by the pitch, ad Kuni walked to load the bases. Johnson scored on a passed ball, and Dillon was out at the plate on a fielder's choice by Moore. Kuni then scored on a balk.
Two more Highlander runs scored in the third. Elijah Rodriguez and Johnson both walked and advanced on a sac bunt by Dillon. Kuni then singled to score both runners.
McLennan added four runs in the fourth. Krowka waked, and Flores and Rodriguez both singled to load the bases. Dillon walked to score Krowka, and Kuni was hit by the pitch, scoring Flores. Chase Brown came in as the pinch runner for Kuni. Moore singled to score Rodriguez, and Halligan walked to score Dillon.
The Highlanders sealed the win in the bottom of the fifth. Flores singled, advanced on a passed ball and scored on a double by Rodriguez. Johnson then doubled to score Rodriguez, ending the game.
Ranger 7, McLennan 6
Ranger 000 412 0 – 7 8 1
McLennan 011 010 3 – 6 6 1
Joseph Lee, Micah Ford (5), Trevor Mathis (7), Caleb Bunch (7) and Adin Morehouse. Zach Cawyer, Jackson Mayo (5), Henry Cone (6), Wyatt Wiatrek (7) and Jason Hawkins. WP: Lee; LP: Cawyer. Leading hitters – Ranger: Gilberto Torres (2-4), Kade Wood (2-3, 3B, 3 RBI) and JT Thompson (2-4, RBI); McLennan: Ty Johnson (2-3, HR, RBI), Cole Dillon (1-4, 2B, RBI), Aidan Kuni (1-2, HR, RBI) and Karson Krowka (0-1, RBI). Record: McLennan 33-18 (15-12).
McLennan 10, Ranger 0
Ranger 000 00 – 0 3 0
McLennan 202 42 – 10 8 0
Michael Minaya, Parker Bigham (1), G'anni Cade (4), Bladmir Ramirez (4) and Jaxon Haynes. Trent Shaw, Connor Zaruba (3) and Brodey Williams. WP: Zaruba; LP: Minaya. Leading hitters – Ranger: Gilberto Torres (1-2, 2B); McLennan: Elijah Rodriguez (2-3, 2B, RBI), Ty Johnson (1-2, 2B, RBI), Cole Dillon (0-0, RBI), Aidan Kuni (1-1, 3 RBI), Britton Moore (1-3, RBI), Katcher Halligan (0-1, RBI) and Sam Flores (2-3). Record: McLennan 34-18 (16-12).
