Thief River Falls, Minn. - 

Northland Community & Technical College defeated Minnesota North College - Itasca 5-2 in the opening game of an MCAC Northern Division baseball doubleheader to clinch the 2025 MCAC Northern Division championship.

The Pioneers dropped game two by a score of 8-7 in nine innings. The two teams will continue their four-game series Saturday and wrap-up the 2025 season with a doubleheader in Grand Rapids, MN.

Game one
The Pioneers took the lead for good with a run on one hit in the bottom of the second. Gamaliel Vasquez singled to left to lead off the inning. Isaac Lopez was hit by the sixth pitch of his his at-bat to push Vasquez to second. Both runners moved up a bag on Austin Amesquita's sacrifice bunt, and Vasquez came around to score on an RBI groundout by Jeremiah Vallejo. 

The Pioneers added to their lead with four runs on three hits in the third inning to go in front 5-0. Dylan Smith, Joshua Torres, Justin Amesquita and Tyler Tamez all reached base and scored runs in the inning. 

Five runs would prove to be plenty of support for Northland starter Kyle Robinson, who went the distance and allowed two runs on five hits. He walked just one batter and struck out five. 

Game one RBI leaders for the Pioneers were Vazquez with two, and Justin Amesquita, Lopez, and Vallejo with one each. 

Game two
The Pioneers rode the momentum of their game one win to an early 1-0 lead in game two. Smith was hit by a pitch to lead off the game, but got out on a fielder's choice as Torres took his spot at first. Torres came around to score on an error by MNC-Itasca. 

The Vikings took their first lead of the game with a pair of runs in the top of the fourth, and they went in front by 5-1 score with three more in the fifth. The Pioneers got a run back in the fifth and tied the game with three more in the bottom of the sixth. 

Both teams plated runs in the seventh to send the game to extras with a 6-6 tie. The score remained knotted until the top of the ninth when the Vikings scored two runs on two hits. The Pioneers got a run back in the bottom of the ninth but left the game-tying run on third base as the final out was recorded. 

Vallejo and Austin Amesquita led the Pioneers in hits and RBIs in game two. Austin Amesquita went 3-for-5 at the plate with a run scored and a pair of RBIs. Vallejo went 2-for-4 with a home run, a run scored and three RBIs. 

Brandon Castilleja got the start for the Pioneers in game two and pitched five innings. He allowed two five runs, two of which were earned on six hits, walking three and striking out five. Kyle Richinsin pitched a scoreless inning of relief, with a walk and two strikouts in his inning of work. Torres pitched the final three innings for the Pioneers and took the loss, allowing three runs on two hits, with three walks and three strikeouts.