East Central High School, Hurley, Mississippi. Photo: Bobby McDuffie/©228 Sports
There are two teams left from the “Southern Six” fighting for spots in their respective state championship rounds.
But the two separate situations for that pair of squads in completely different, except for one thing: win Monday night, and you’re in.
Game three in the Class 6A South State championship series is set for Monday night in Gulfport at Herbert Wilson Field as the home-standing Admirals host defending Class 6A state champion Northwest Rankin. The teams split a pair of games last week setting up the winner take all battle in the third and deciding game.
The Class 5A South State finals also include a defending state champion, as the East Central Hornets head to Soso to face off with West Jones in game two of that best-of-three match-up. The defending state champion Hornets took game one 8-0 at home in Hurley on Saturday.
There are already two teams from the “Southern Six” headed to Pearl next week to play for state titles, as yet another defending state champion in Class 1A the Resurrection Eagles wrapped up their third straight consecutive Class 1A South State crown completing a two-game sweep over Ethel Saturday night.
The Class 1 state final match-up is not yet set, as RCS awaits the winner of West Union and Vardaman in the North State finals. The state finals begin on Tuesday, May 30th at 1 p.m., at Trustmark Park in Pearl, Miss., home of the AA Mississippi Braves.
On the same night, St. Stanislaus wrapped up it’s first trip to the state finals in eight seasons as the Rock-A-Chaws swept Clarkdale in the Class 3A South State finals.
The win, coupled with a 5-1 win Thursday night in Bay St. Louis, moves SSC to 21-12 overall and sets up the state title tilt against Defending Class 3A state champion Amory. The last time the Rocks reached the state finals, they beat Houston in 2015 for the Class 4A state title.
The victory and sweep also served as a bit of revenge for SSC, as the Bulldogs eliminated St. Stanislaus in the Class 3A South State semifinals last season.
Amory finished the Class 3A North State finals with a sweep over Kossuth with two wins in a three-day span last week. The Panthers nipped the Aggies 7-6 on Wednesday at home, before hitting the road two days later on Friday and picking up a 7-2 win to wrap things up.
So will it be two, three or a grand slam of four squads from the “Southern Six” competing for state crowns in four different classifications beginning the day after Memorial Day. We’ll find out over the next two days, as long as the weather permits.
In Gulfport, the Admirals may face the toughest test of the two teams left standing hosting the Cougars. Gulfport pulled out an exciting 6-5 win in 11 innings at The Herb Thursday night to open the series, but Northwest Rankin covered quickly and grounded Gulfport 8-1 Friday night in Flowood to even up the series.
