PANAMA CITY, Fla. — The No. 3 Pearl River baseball team capped off a highly successful trip to the Panama City Beach College Baseball Classic Sunday afternoon by crushing Miami Dade 14-0 in six innings.
It was an incredible tournament for the Wildcats, finishing with a 3-1 record. PRCC’s only loss of the tournament was a 2-1 defeat at the hands of eventual champion Gulf Coast State. PRCC went on to beat Dyersburg State 7-0 and No. 16 Florida Southwestern 6-3 before taking down Miami Dade. PRCC’s pitching staff finished with the fewest runs allowed by any team and had the most shutouts (2). The Wildcats’ 14-run showing against Miami Dade was the most in a single-game during the tournament.
“We’ve made some mistakes, and we haven’t played well at times, but these guys just keep pushing and playing hard,” head coach Michael Avalon said. “If we can keep doing that, then I think we will have a chance to do something special this year. This has been a long trip, so we will get in the weight room, work on a few things, and be ready to play again at The Dub on Friday.”
Mississippi State signee JT Schnoor (Pascagoula; Resurrection) looked the part of a future SEC pitcher in his second start of the year. Despite working himself into a 3-0 count to the first Miami Dade (3-4 overall) batter he faced, he settled in to strike him out before sitting the next two batters in the frame down on strikes.
He picked up right where he left off in the second inning, retiring the side in order. Pearl River (4-1) rewarded him with an insurance run in the top of the third inning. Bryce Fowler (Madison; Germantown) singled and quickly stole second base before scoring when Hollis Porter‘s (Hurley; East Central) sent a ground ball past the diving second baseman for an RBI single, 1-0.
Schnoor made it nine consecutive batters retired to start the game with a perfect showing in the third frame. The right-hander extended his streak two more batters to begin the fourth before the Sharks broke up the no-hitter with a single. Schnoor recovered quickly by firing three straight pitches by the next batter to close the frame.
The Wildcats were electric at the plate in the top of the fifth inning, putting up a seven-spot to move ahead 9-0. A passed ball allowed Fowler to score the first run of the inning before Jeff Ince (Brandon; Jackson Prep) delivered the big blow of the frame. With two runners aboard, the switch-hitter blasted a three-run homer over the center field wall. Following an Alex Wade (Decatur, Ala.; Madison Academy) double, Marshall Phillips (Hattiesburg; Sumrall) laced an RBI double into the outfield and eventually scored when Caston Thompson (Jayess; Brookhaven Academy) lasered a double into left field. The final blow of the inning came from Fowler, who picked up a two-run triple, bringing home Thompson and Keegan Giger (Petal).
Konnor Graham (Hammond, La.) made his second appearance of the young season in the fifth inning and made it count, delivering a quick 1-2-3 inning.
PRCC’s offensive unit added five more runs in the sixth inning. The first three batters of the inning loaded up the bases, and JP Robertson (Madison; Germantown) was sent up for his first at-bat of the year. He fouled off the first pitch before taking four straight balls for a bases-loaded walk. Two runs came around to score when Trent Wright‘s (Birmingham, Ala.; Oak Mountain) ground ball to second base snuck by the second baseman for a two-run single. Giger kept the rally going one batter later, dropping a two-run single into left field to cap the scoring and make the game 14-0 Wildcats.
Carson Fair (Southaven) appeared for the second time this season in the sixth inning, trying to close the door. The freshman gave up a leadoff single but struck out the next batter on four pitches before inducing a game-ending double play.
LEADING THE WAY
Schnoor’s second start of the year was a good one, as he went four innings and allowed just one hit. He struck out six batters in the appearance. Graham finished with one inning pitched, striking out one.
“It took JT a couple of pitches to find it, and then he was really special,” Avalon said. “They had a really good arm going — maybe the best we’ve seen this season. JT matched him pitch for pitch and was a little bit better. He really set the tone for us. It was a big-time outing.”
Graham finished with one inning pitched, striking out one batter. Fair threw an inning, striking out one and allowing one hit.
Fowler once again led at the plate, finishing 3-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs.
“Fowler had two strikes all weekend and just had really tough at-bats,” Avalon said. “That’s what you want as a coach. He continues to find a way to keep fighting and be tough.”
Ince finished his day 1-for-2 with three RBIs, two runs and a walk. He also had a home run. Logan Terry (Semmes, Ala.; East Central) walked twice.
NEXT UP
Pearl River returns to Dub Herring Park on Friday for a 2/5 p.m. doubleheader against Baton Rouge.
TICKETS
Tickets are on sale now at PRCCAthletics.com/Tickets. General admission tickets are $8 per game. Season passes can be purchased for $75 for softball or a softball/baseball season pass can be purchased for $100.
HOW TO WATCH
The Wildcats will once again livestream all games for free at PRCCMedia.com/gold. Fans who have Roku, Amazon Fire or Apple TV devices can also watch the Wildcat broadcasts by downloading the “Pearl River CC” channel from their app stores.
Games can also be heard at WRJW 1320-AM, 106.9 FM and WRJWRadio.com.
For the latest on Pearl River Community College athletics, follow us on X (@PRCCAthletics) and Facebook (PRCCAthletics).
