RiverHawks successful baseball season comes to an end
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. (BVM) 鈥� On May 15, the Northeastern State RiverHawks were set to take on Rogers State in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) quarterfinals. It was a tough battle all the way to the last out.聽
The game started off well for NSU as the RiverHawks brought a run across home plate in the first inning. That run came courtesy of a home run from Collin Klingensmith, his 10th of the season.
However, when it was Rogers State’s turn to bat, they would take the lead. With one out in the inning, six straight Hillcat batters reached base. Following the five runs put up by Rogers State, the RiverHawks put five batters on base, but only brought one run in. At the end of two innings, the scoreboard read 5-2 in favor of Rogers State.
In the bottom of the third inning, Jaxon Phipps hit a two-run home run to cut the NSU deficit to just one run. Phipps is now the program鈥檚 all-time leader in career RBIs. The RiverHawk squad was looking to turn the game around. However, Rogers State would get the run right back in the fourth inning.聽
No team would score until the eighth inning when the RiverHawks tied the game at six. With one out and the bases loaded, the RiverHawks brought two runs in.
In the top of the ninth inning, NSU closer Dakodah Jones entered the game hoping to give the RiverHawks a chance to walk-off in the bottom of the inning. But with two outs and one runner on base, Rogers State would bring two runs across.
With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Phipps would single. It was his third hit of the game. But NSU would do nothing else, and the game would end 8-6 in favor of the Hillcats.
This game marked the end of a successful season. With an overall record of 26-16, the RiverHawks were also 23-10 in conference play. With that record, NSU finished in second place in the MIAA.聽
This season marks the first time the RiverHawks finished 10 games over .500 since 2002.聽
The season ended in a back and forth battle. Klingensmith was a triple shy of the cycle. Norris and Phipps also had three hits.
— Northeastern State Athletics (@RiverHawkSports)
