Almost every other region in the “Southern Six” has somewhat of a clear picture of who’s in and who’s out as far as the playoff picture is concerned.
But that’s not the case in Region 7-6A. Not at all.
After Tuesday night’s action, both Ocean Springs and D’Iberville are both atop the region race with DHS at 5-3 and OSHS at 4-2 marks, while Pascagoula and St. Martin each come in at 2-3. The playoff push for all four teams resumes Friday night and then continues on Saturday afternoon as well. Pascagoula travels to D’Iberville Friday night as the Warriors celebrate “Senior Night”, before the two teams meet again Saturday afternoon at 2 .p.m, at Ingalls Field in Pascagoula.
Ocean Springs hosts St. Martin Friday night and then the two teams head back to St. Martin to end the series on Saturday afternoon.
It’s quite possible that the playoff race in Region 7-6A won’t be totally cleared up until next week, when Pascagoula and St. Martin finish the third game of their series in St. Martin. Game three of that match-up was suspended due to weather issues two weeks ago, with the game tied up at 3-3 in the fourth inning.
On Tuesday in St. Martin, the home-standing Yellow Jackets knocked the Greyhounds out of sole possession of first place in the loop with a 4-3 win in eight innings.St. Martin jumped out to a 2-0 lead scoring a pair of runs in the bottom of the second stanza. But the Greyhounds battled back to tie the contest up at 2-2 with two runs in the top of the fifth and eventually took a brief lead with a solo run in the top of the sixth.
St. Martin immediately re-tied the game with a run of its own in the bottom of the sixth, and then won it with a run in the bottom of the extra inning.
Sean Stigletts slapped a two-run single for St. Martin, while Caleb Lawrence cracked a pair of doubles and drove in a pair of runs including the game-winner. Tristen Junkert had a triple in the win as well.
Jack Jordan had an RBI-double for OSHS, and J.P. Ford added a run-scoring single. The Greyhounds out-hit SMHS six to five in the loss.
Junkert picked up the win with a little over two innings of relief work, while Griffin Frye came on in the eighth in relief of McCarty English and was tagged with the loss.
The Southern Miss signee McCarty started and hurled the first seven stanzas, and proved to be dominant at times as he scattered four hits and struck out 14 while walking just one.
Also on Tuesday night, in Gautier visiting D’Iberville forged that first-place tie with the Greyhounds thanks to a 3-1 win over “home-standing” Pascagoula.
The Panthers took an early lead with a run in the bottom of the second. But D’Iberville’s Dennis Krabbe delivered the biggest blow of the game in the top of the fifth frame when he mashed a two-run home run to put the Warriors in front for good. His blast also scored William Huffman, who singled just before Krabbe’s round-tripper.
The Warriors added an insurance run later in the same inning when Landon French reached base on a bunt single and then stole second base. Colby Wilson followed with an RBI-single plating French resulting in the final score.
Willie Sims drove in the Panthers’ lone run, as a duo of D’Iberville hurlers named Aiden held PHS to just three hits in the game.
Aiden Bellman started and worked into the bottom of the seventh, scattering the three hits while walking eight and striking out four to earn the win. Aiden Seymour replaced him with one out in the bottom of the seventh and a Panther runner on first, and Seymour sealed the win getting the final two outs to pick up a save.
Brayden Scott took the loss, working the first six frames and allowing six hits and all three runs while striking out 10 and walking just one.
