ROGERS — The Northwest Arkansas All-Stars won two games Sunday to force a deciding championship game tonight at the 16-18-year-old North Arkansas Senior Babe Ruth State Tournament.
The All-Stars beat Jonesboro 16-3 Sunday night, and the teams meet again at 5 p.m. today for a trip to the Southwest Regional at Eagle Pass, Texas.
Derek Swan and Nick Brill combined for six hits and six RBIs in the win.
The All-Stars batted around in the top of the first inning, scoring seven runs on five hits and four Jonesboro errors.
Brill added a three-run home run in the third, and Swan and Brill had back-to-back RBI doubles in the fourth to trigger the mercy rule.
Josh Baker scattered four hits and struck out three in the five-inning victory.
Brill had four hits and five RBIs, including a two-run shot in the sixth, as the All-Stars beat Westark 9-3 earlier Sunday to advance to the title game.
16-Year-Olds
Bentonville beat Gentry 9-6 on Sunday to earn a rematch with the Northwest Arkansas All-Stars.
The All-Stars beat Bentonville 7-5 late Saturday in the semifinals. The championship game is set for 2 p.m. today, with an "if necessary" game at 8 p.m.
Stefan Smith had three hits and Andrew Halliburton and Craig Salvatore each hit two-RBI singles in the win.
Gary Williamson, who started a late-game rally with a two-run single, had two hits for Gentry. Gentry beat Westark 7-3 earlier Sunday to advance.
The All-Stars' Shane Perkins had two hits in Saturday's win against Bentonville, including the go-ahead RBI single in the sixth.