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--- Viking Headlines ---
5/20 - Falcons end Vikings season in 5, 11-0
Northwest fantastic season came to an end in the final 16 of the 4A state playoffs with an 11-0 loss to Southeast Guilford. The Vikings defense broke down in the first inning leading to nine unearned Falcon runs. The Viking offense never recovered and only had two base runners all night, an infield single and a reached on an error. Southeast would also tack on a run in the second and fourth innings to end the game after the top of the fifth by the 10 run rule.
Although the Vikings would liked to have had a better showing against the Falcons, they still have lots to be proud of this year. After a 3-5 start, Northwest won 16 of its last 21 games. The Vikings finished third in the Coastal Athletics Easter Spring Break Tournament in Wilmington going 2-1. Three of the participants in that tournament are in the final 4 of the 4A East. Northwest won its third conference tournament in four seasons, beating second seeded Southwest Guilford and first seeded Glenn to capture the title. The Vikings made it to the round of 16 in the 4A state playoffs for the fourth time in seven years defeating South Mecklenburg and nationally ranked Charlotte Providence along the way.
Northwest finished the season at 19-10. It was the third highest win total of a Sonny Gann coached team (24 2007 and 21 2009) since taking over the Northwest program in 2005.
| NW | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
4 |
|
| G | 9 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
X |
11 |
9 |
1 |
5/18 - Viking shock Panthers 5-3 for second round win
Northwest went down to Charlotte Providence and shocked the #1 ranked team in the state and nationally ranked in two polls, 5-3. The Vikings used the long ball and great pitching and defense to pull the upset.
Northwest, 19-9, will travel to Southeast Guilford in the final 16 Friday night at 7:00.
The Vikings jumped on the Panthers with two early runs in the first. Adam Swim doubled with one out and Ben Schmucker homered to right center with two outs to put the Vikings ahead 2-0. The Vikings left the bases loaded in the first as Duncan Everett singled and Keaton Haack doubled following the Schmucker home run.
Steven Plante singled with one out in the fourth and moved to second on a passed ball. Sanders Kuxhausen followed with a single to move Plante to third. Swim then hit a sacrifice fly to centerfield to score Plante and extend the Viking lead to 3-0. The following inning, Everett and Jackson Bellenkes hit solo home runs to extend the Northwest lead to 5-0.
The Vikings had chances to tack on runs in the sixth and the seventh but left five runners on in those innings.
Keaton Haack started the game and pitched two solid innings striking out three. Unfortunately, Haack took a fast ball off the hand in an at bat in the top of the third and had to leave the game. His status for Friday is doubtful.
Duncan Everett entered the game in the third and got off to a shaky start, hitting the first batter he faced and giving up a single. Everett settled down and got the next Providence hitter, who has signed with N.C. State, to fly out to right. Everett then coaxed the next hitter, a Clemson signee, to swing at his splitter. Plante fielded at third, stepped on the bag and threw across the diamond for the inning ending double play.
Everett would then retire six hitters in order the fourth and fifth before running into trouble in the sixth. Everett give up a two out three run home run in that inning, but struck out the final batter of the inning.
Everett allowed two runners in the seventh, but worked through it to close out the game. Sanders Kuxhausen snagged a line drive for the last out and the upset was in the books, Northwest 5 Charlotte Providencene 3.
| NW | 2 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
5 |
10 |
0 |
|
| P | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
3 |
6 |
0 |
STATS:
Adam Swim 2 for 3 2B, run, RBI
Ben Schmucker 1 for 2 2 run HR
Duncan Everett 2 for 4 HR
Jackson Bellenkes 1 for 2 HR
Steven Plante 2 for 3 run
5/13 - Vikings advance to second round with 7-4 over Sabres
Northwest used a big first inning, good defense and pitching efforts from Duncan Everett and Adam Swim to survive and advance 7-4 over South Mecklenburg in the North Carolina 4A West state playoffs. Next up for the Vikings, now 18-9, is Charlotte Providence, the current #1 ranked 4A team in the state. Game time will be 7:00 on Tuesday night.
In the bottom of the first Adam Swim singled with one out to get the rally started. Following a fielders choice, Ben Schmucker singled to move Chris Corbett to second. Duncan Everett the reached on an error to load the bases. Corbett would score on a wild pitch to give the Vikings a 1-0 lead. Keaton Haack followed with a single up the middle to score Schmucker and Jesse Juday, Everett's courtesy runner, to extend the Viking lead to 3. Jackson Bellenkes then cackled the trees in left field on a 3-1 pitch to give Northwest a 5-0 lead after the first.
Sanders Kuxhausen led off the bottom of the second with home run to straight away center to tack on another run for Vikings.
The Vikings would push their final run across in the fourth. Kuxhausen started the inning off with a single and moved to second on a Sabre error.
Schmucker then singled home Kuxhausen for the final Northwest run. Everett went five and two thirds innings allowing 3 runs, 6 hits, striking out nine and walking three. Everett only allowed three base runners the first five innings before running into some trouble in the sixth. Swim entered a 7-3 ball game with two out and the bases loaded and got the Sabre hitter to pop to short. Swim would surrender a run in the seventh, but struck out the last South Meck hitter with runners on second and third to preserve the win.
| SM | 0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
1 |
4 |
8 |
2 |
|
| NW | 5 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
X |
7 |
11 |
1 |
STATS:
Sanders Kuxhausen 2 for 4, HR, 2 runs
Ben Schmucker 3 for 4, run, RBI
Keaton Haack 1 for 3, 2 RBI
Jackson Bellenkes 1 for 3, 2 run HR
Nick Mahaffey 2 for 3