HAMMOND, La. — The No. 1 Pearl River baseball team got its National Championship defense started with a bang on Saturday at Alumni Field on the campus of Southeastern Louisiana. The Wildcats swept NJCAA Division I foe Wharton County, winning game one 6-2 and taking the nightcap 6-1.
"The infield played really well today, and we pitched the heck out of the ball," Pearl River coach Michael Avalon said. "For a first game of the year, I was very, very proud of the guys. I really like to win games when I know that we can play better. That was a really good ball club over there, so these wins were big for us."
GAME ONE
Will Passeau (Mobile, Ala.; St. Paul's) earned the first start of the season for Pearl River (2-0 overall) and worked around a weak single to retire the side in the first inning.
PRCC went quietly in its first turn at the plate of 2023 but got the scoring started with a bang in the bottom of the second. Ian Montz (Lafayette, La.; Acadiana) singled just out of the reach of the diving Wharton County (1-5) first baseman and Logan Walters (Petal) followed it with a chopped single between the third baseman and shortstop. Preston Soper (Madison; Germantown) then stepped up to the plate and demolished an opposite-field 3-run homer over the left field wall to push PRCC ahead. The next two Wildcats to bat were retired but the Wildcat bats the scoring didn't end. Parker Ryan (Madison; Jackson Academy) poked a single into left field and swiped second base a pitch later. Gabe Broadus (Wilmer, Ala.; Faith Academy) drove him home moments later with a single. A ball off the bat of Alex Perry (McComb; North Pike) scored the last run of the inning after the WCJC third baseman missed his target on the throw to first base. The big inning set the Wildcats ahead 5-0.
Passeau had a big inning in the top of the third, striking out three batters to keep the game scoreless.
After a quiet fourth inning, Blake Gollott (Saucier; D'Iberville) made his collegiate pitching debut to begin the fifth inning. After an infield single, Gollott induced a ground ball that Blaise Breerwood (Poplarville) flipped to his middle infield partner Broadus who in turn threw to first for a double play. The next WCJC batter lined a ball to centerfield for the final out.
Wharton County used a double and a bloop single to plate a run in the top of the sixth, 6-1.
The Pioneers scratched across another run in the top of the seventh inning, but Gollott was eventually able to close the door and secure the 6-2 victory.
Passeau finished his first outing of the season with four innings and five strikeouts against four hits. He allowed no runs.
Gollott tossed three innings, allowing five hits, one walk and two runs. He struck out three batters.
Soper led the way for PRCC, finishing 2-for-2 with a homer and 3 RBIs. He also drew a walk.
"That home run just shows you his strength," Avalon said. "He may be a secret right now, but he won't be for long. When he steps into that box he gets people's attention. He had some great at-bats today."
Ryan finished 2-for-3 in the contest.
GAME TWO
The nightcap saw Snead State transfer Luke Lyon (Hattiesburg; Oak Grove) take the ball first for PRCC. The right-hander induced a pair of flyouts and a groundout to get out of the inning quickly. Broadus led off the bottom of the first with a double, but the Wildcats weren't able to bring him around.
The first run of the game came in the top of the third when Wharton County laced a solo homer over the wall in right field. PRCC matched the run in the bottom half of the inning. Blake Hooks (Petal) tucked a ball down the left field line for a double. A Hunter Sute (Tuscaloosa, Ala.; American Christian Academy) single into left field pushed Hooks to third base and then Broadus brought him home with a towering sacrifice fly to square the game, 1-1.
The Wildcats took the lead in the bottom half of the fourth, 2-1. Perry led things off with a double off the glove of the diving Pioneer centerfield. Walters then moved him over to third base with a blooper that fell in center field. Soper delivered again in the next at-bat, driving a single into right field to bring home Perry.
Hooks entered in relief to begin the fifth frame. The first batter walked but Hooks got the next batter to bounce back to him for a double play. He finished off the inning with a pop-out to shortstop.
PRCC added another in the fifth. Sute hit a ball along the ground and an error allowed him to advance to second. Broadus then brought him home with a single, increasing the lead to 3-1.
Hooks escaped a jam in the sixth. Despite getting the first two batters to pop out, Hooks walked three consecutive batters to load the bases. He got the next batter to ground a ball back to him and he jogged over and tossed it to first base for the out.
Three more runners crossed home plate for the Wildcats in the sixth, increasing the lead to 6-1. Hooks led off the inning with a double and Sute promptly brought him home with a single. A flyout to left field advanced Sute to third and then Breerwood was hit by a pitch. Perry then brought home Breerwood after his ball in play resulted in an error.
Landen Payne (St. Martin; Ocean Springs) made his first pitching appearance since suffering an injury in last season's Region 23 Tournament and shut the game down instantly to secure the 6-1 victory.
Lyon pitched four innings, allowing three hits, two walks and one run. He struck out two batters. Hooks threw two innings and Payne tossed the final inning of the night.
Broadus went 2-for-4 with a double and Hooks went 2-for-3 with two doubles.
NEXT UP
The Wildcats return to action Sunday against the Pioneers once again. The doubleheader will be held at Russo Park on the campus of Louisiana-Lafayette. The first pitch is set for 2 p.m.
TUNE IN
The game will be available over the air in Pearl River County by tuning into 1320 AM and 106.9 FM. The radio broadcast is also available at WRJWRadio.com and by downloading the WRJW app.
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