Coming into Game 17 there was three teams left all playing for the national championship in the JUCO World Series. One of the three remaining teams is the North West Florida Raiders, only undefeated left standing in the tournament. At the end of the day both North West Florida State and McLennan Community College want the championship trophy in their hands carrying it out once they leave Grand Junction, Colo.
The final score of the game saw McLennan leave winning 5-1, the game lasted two days due to a weather delay pausing the game for the evening. The game picked up where they left off, McLennan 4-1 lead in the top half of the sixth. The Highlanders picked up one more run aiding their lead. Will Fox got on base for out of his five at-bats. Braxton Wilks got on all three times he got up to bat. Unfortunately for the Raiders their 10-run averaging offense fell short of the average, in what seemed as if the Raiders bats went flat. Every swing the hot offense had the hitters tried to do too much with the swing, which resulted in pop-ups. Too much of the struggle for the Raider offense the credit can go to starting pitcher Jack Finnegan and relief pitcher Dustin Jourdan.
Finnegan threw five innings of electric stuff throwing the Raider hitters off balance. Finnegan also allowed on run with four walks and four strikeouts. Throwing 89 pitches all before the down pour of rain that postponed the game for the evening. Jourdan picked it up from the mound for the Highlanders when the game resumed. Jourdan walked one striking out five batters in four innings of relief work. Jourdan also fooled the Raider hitters getting a majority of the outs by way of pop-ups or balls hit right to the fielders.
The 5-1 win for McLennan puts them against Walters State Community College for 18. Where the winner will play North West Florida State, who lossed their first game of the tourney, who advances to the championship, they advance because they have played the most amount of games at five. The loss gives the Raiders a day off awaiting the winner of the Walters State vs. McLennan game.
