GOODMAN, Miss. — The No. 5 Pearl River baseball team continued its impressive run of form Friday afternoon, going on the road and sweeping Holmes. The Wildcats took game one 9-2 and game two 9-6.
Pearl River has now won 21 consecutive games and remains the only unbeaten team in MACCC action.
“Going on the road in this conference is very tough. We drove three hours to Goodman, played a nine-inning game, and then played a seven-inning game,” head coach Michael Avalon said. “It wasn’t as clean as we’d like it to be, but we are glad to get out of there with two wins. We’re proud of our guys for taking care of business, and now we can rest and celebrate what is most important this weekend.”
GAME ONE
Extra-base hits were abundant for Pearl River (34-5 overall; 14-0 MACCC) in its first game of the day against Holmes (9-21; 1-13) as the Wildcats knocked seven of them.
Starting pitcher Caleb Dyess (Carriere; Pearl River Central) threw back-to-back three-up, three-down innings to send the Pearl River offense to the plate in the third. Keegan Giger (Petal) started the party by turning on a pitch and sending it flying over the right field wall for his second homer of the year. Hollis Porter (Hurley; East Central) continued his torrid home run-hitting pace to follow. With Bryce Fowler (Madison; Germantown) standing on first base, the left-handed hitter sent a ball to the warning track in left field. The outfielder jumped for the ball, and it caromed off his glove and over the fence for a two-run homer, 3-0. The blast was his NJCAA-leading 16th of the year, bringing him three home runs shy of tying the program record.
Another long ball extended the Wildcat lead in the fourth inning, this time off the bat of Alex Wade (Decatur, Ala.; Madison Academy). He worked himself into a 2-2 count before sending a two-run shot over the left field wall to extend the lead to 5-0.
The Bulldogs finally got to Dyess in the fourth inning. They picked up a leadoff double before Dyess struck out two straight batters. He gave up an RBI single and a walk before picking up his third punch out of the inning, 5-1.
Holmes loaded up the bases in the fifth, and although the Wildcats turned a double play, the Bulldogs picked up a run, 5-2.
Wade’s big bat came into play again in the sixth inning. With Jonah Katsaboulas (Brandon) standing on second after a double, Wade sent the first pitch thrown to him over the wall in center field, 7-2. The blast was his second of the day and seventh of the season.
A Katsaboulas RBI single in the seventh and a JP Robertson (Madison; Germantown) pinch-hit RBI single in the ninth set the score at 9-2 heading into the final half inning, where the Wildcats closed out the game to earn a victory.
Dyess threw five innings of two-run baseball, allowing five hits and two walks. He struck out seven batters.
“Dyess has been consistent for us,” Avalon said. “He seems to have some traffic but makes pitches and gets out of jams. He pounds the zone.”
Carson Fair (Southaven) threw the next three innings, striking out five and allowing two hits and a walk. Konnor Graham (Hammond, La.) recorded the final three outs, walking one and punching out two.
Fowler had a 3-for-5 day from the leadoff position, scoring one run.
“When Bryce can stay even-keeled and play with that specialness — he’s really fun to watch,” Avalon said. “He had a really good day today.”
Katsaboulas also had three hits, going 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI. Wade picked up two hits — both left the ballpark. He had four RBIs.
“Wade is just getting more comfortable,” Avalon said. “He left Auburn three or four months ago. The more he gets comfortable, the better he will be. He has a lot of potential. We’re thankful to see him continue to get better.”
Giger went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run. Jeff Ince (Brandon; Jackson Prep) walked twice.
GAME TWO
The Wildcats put their starting pitcher in a good position in the top of the first inning of game two, scoring two first-inning runs on RBI singles off the bats of Creek Robertson (Oxford; Madison Central) and Porter, 2-0.
With an early advantage, JT Schnoor (Pascagoula; Resurrection) went to work in the bottom of the first, forcing a first-pitch groundout and striking out the next two Bulldogs.
Holmes used the long ball to pull within one in the second inning as the leadoff batter sent a ball over the center field wall, 2-1.
With Fowler aboard on a single and Creek Robertson on base via a walk, Porter brought a run home on a groundout. Two batters later, Marshall Phillips (Hattiesburg; Sumrall) brought in another run with a groundout, 4-1.
Holmes made it a two-run deficit in the fifth with an RBI single, 4-2.
Pearl River added what proved to be five crucial insurance runs in the top of the seventh. Logan Terry (Semmes, Ala.; East Central) walked to lead off the inning and eventually scored when Fowler hit a double into left field. Creek Robertson didn’t need long to bring him around the bases, sending the second pitch thrown to him into left field for an RBI single. Creek Robertson scored on a passed ball a few pitches later. Before the frame ended, Katsaboulas brought in a run with a double, and Wade picked up another big RBI with a single into left field, 9-2.
The runs in the top of the seventh were massive for the Wildcats as Holmes plated four runs before the game was finally closed, 9-6.
Schnoor threw 4 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on six hits and a walk. He struck out eight.
“JT just ran out of gas a little bit,” Avalon said. “He’s thrown a lot of innings for us so far this year. He gave us what we needed, which was a quality start.”
AJ Hansen (Mobile, Ala.; McGill-Toolen) threw an inning, allowing a hit and a walk while striking out one. Austin Tommasini (Madison; Madison Central) threw 1 1/3 innings, allowing four runs on one hit and a walk. He struck out four.
Fowler, Creek Robertson and Katasboulas all had multi-hit games. Wade and Creek Robertson each walked twice.
NEXT UP
The Wildcats head to Copiah-Lincoln on Tuesday for a 3/6 p.m. doubleheader. The games will be livestreamed on colinathletics.com/watch. The games can also be heard at WRJW 1320-AM, 106.9 FM and WRJWRadio.com.
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