ST. JOSEPH, Mo. -- The Northwest Missouri State baseball team improved to 21-22 overall and 15-15 in MIAA play with an 8-5 midweek victory over Missouri Western (13-28, 11-19 MIAA) at Griffon Baseball Field.

Logan Brasel (5-1) earned his fifth win of the season, tossing six solid innings. He allowed just two runs on four hits while striking out two. Jayme Fritts entered in the seventh to hold the lead, and Kayden Cook locked down the final 1 1/3 innings to secure the win.

Dylan Hufft paced the offense, going 3-for-4 with three singles and an RBI. Brady Miles added a 2-for-4 performance with a double and an RBI, while Ashton Neuman launched his ninth home run of the season—a three-run shot in the fourth inning.

The Bearcats collected nine hits and stranded just five runners, while Missouri Western tallied six hits and left seven on base.
Northwest jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning. Kaehuakai Young delivered an RBI single to score Ryan Williams, followed by a sacrifice fly from Sam Wornson that brought in Hufft. Missouri Western answered with a run in the bottom half on a wild pitch, but Brasel settled in and allowed just one hit through the next two frames.

Miles doubled home Evan Tocmo in the fourth to extend the lead to 3-1. After Jacob Selock was hit by a pitch, Neuman stepped up and crushed a three-run homer to left, pushing the lead to 6-1 and prompting a Griffon pitching change.

Selock added to the lead in the sixth with an RBI double to score Chester Brooks, and Brooks later brought in Hufft with a sacrifice fly in the seventh to make it 8-2. Fritts tossed a clean bottom half of the frame.

The Griffons scored three in the eighth to cut the deficit to 8-5, but Cook shut the door in the ninth with a perfect inning to seal the road win.