Alva Review-Courier -

ALVA, Okla. – Northwestern Oklahoma State University softball cruised to a mid-week victory over Southwest Baptist Tuesday afternoon, defeating the Bearcats 12-3. Game Two was called off in the third inning due to weather.

Kalie Johnson supplied the Rangers with three RBIs on four hits and scored twice, while Lauren Adcock had three hits driving in three runs. Northwestern improved to 3-8 on the season and will return to conference play on Friday in a doubleheader starting at 3 p.m. when top-ranked Southern Arkansas travels to Alva.

Alexus Bailey and Taylor Zanca each had three hits, two runs and an RBI for the Red and Black. Morgan La Neve produced two hits, two RBIs and a run, with a home run.

Northwestern got on the board first in game when Zanca singled through the right side that scored Johnson from second and Bailey drove in Zanca with a single to left to put the Rangers ahead 2-0 in the bottom of the first inning.

NWOSU added to the lead in the bottom of the third with three more runs. Kameron Ryer scored on a fielder’s choice from Mesa Gann, Zanca came home on a Joey Casey groundout and Adcock doubled home Gann to stretch the Rangers' lead to 5-0.

After a 1-2-3 top of the fourth the Rangers got back to work on offense by adding two more runs. Johnson led off with a doubled down the left field line and then two batters later La Neve connected on a two-run home run to right field.

Southwest Baptist responded in the top of the fifth with their three runs. Nya Morgan and Aubry Hernandez connected on back-to-back doubles. Morgan’s double drove in Sam Moran and Janessa Rivera, then Morgan scored from the double off Hernandez’s bat to trim the Northwestern lead to 7-3.

In the bottom of the fifth, the Rangers responded back to the Bearcats getting two more runs. Adcock single back through the box drove in Bailey and then Johnson doubled in Morgan Welch, to put Northwestern in front 9-3.

The Rangers set Southwest Baptist down in order in the sixth and closed out the game in run-rule fashion in the bottom half of the inning. Northwestern loaded the bases with three straight infield singles by Zanca, Peyton Scott and Bailey, then Adcock singled back up the middle to drive in Kelsey Bushey and Johnson ended things with a double down the right field line to score Casey and Bailey to win 12-3.

Hannah Howell pitched a complete game to snag her third win of the season. She threw 6.0 innings allowing three runs on six hits and striking out two.

Game Two had gotten started before the weather intensified, causing the umpires to call off the game in the third inning. The game will not be made official or picked up later this season.