POPLARVILLE, Miss. — The No. 3 Pearl River baseball team rebounded nicely Sunday afternoon against No. 20 Parkland. After dropping a tough contest on Saturday, the Wildcats collected 14 runs on 12 hits and allowed just one run to run-rule the Cobras 14-1 in seven innings.
"We beat a really good team that had some really good arms on the mound," head coach Michael Avalon said. "We knew they would be tough when we decided to bring them down here. It was good to see us respond from yesterday how we did.
"When you play good teams, you've got to battle. It makes you tougher. The fire purifies you. Our guys will stick together and become brothers, and it will be fun to watch."
Avalon talked about the high-level baseball played at The Dub all weekend.
"Everyone that came down here for this weekend is going home with two wins and two losses," he said. "That's the quality of baseball that was played here. I'm thankful those guys came down to play."
Pearl River's (14-5 overall) JP Robertson (Madison; Germantown) toed the rubber for the fourth time this season to open the day, and it was clear that he was locked in from the start against Parkland (3-4). The freshman struck out three batters in his first inning of work, blowing a 92 miles per hour fastball past the final batter of the inning.
The electric first inning by JP Robertson fueled the Wildcat offense, who promptly took the lead in the bottom of the first. Bryce Fowler (Madison; Germantown) laid down a bunt that rolled perfectly down the third base line for an infield single and eventually scored when Jeff Ince (Brandon; Jackson Prep) ripped an RBI single right back the middle, 1-0.
JP Robertson again retired the side with minimal baserunners in the second, which allowed the locked-in Wildcats to head right back to the plate. With one out, Logan Terry (Semmes, Ala.; East Central) walked to the dish and bashed the first pitch thrown to him over the left field wall for his second long ball in the last two games. A few batters later, the bases were loaded for Ince, who mimicked his earlier single almost identically, sending a laser right back up the middle to drive in two runs, 4-0.
PRCC struck for five more runs in the third. Creek Robertson (Oxford; Madison Central) collected the first RBI of the inning, getting hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. The ever-dangerous Hollis Porter (Hurley; East Central) entered the left-handed batter's box to follow. The first pitch thrown to him was wild and allowed a run to score. He eventually worked a 3-1 count before fouling off two pitches. His timing was perfect on the next pitch as the NJCAA's leading home run hitter blasted a three-run shot over the left field wall — his ninth of the season — to make the score 9-0.
The gem continued for JP Robertson in the top of the fourth, striking out two batters and forcing a ground out to end the frame. The inning set up another solid offensive frame for the Wildcats in the bottom half of the inning. Keegan Giger (Petal) brought home a run on a fielder's choice to first base, and Terry followed by sending a double off the center field wall for an RBI. Fowler drove an RBI single into the outfield to make it a 12-0 lead for the Wildcats, and Ince made the score 13-0 with an RBI single. Fowler added another RBI single in the fifth to extend PRCC's advantage to 14-0.
JP Robertson's complete domination finally ended in the top of the seventh as the Wildcats made a pitching change. A run finally crossed the plate for the Cobras before PRCC brought in Carson Fair (Southaven). The right-handed flamethrower wasted no time putting an end to the contest, striking out all three batters he faced and topping out at an incredible 95
miles per hour in the inning.
BY THE NUMBERS
JP Robertson was dominant from start to finish, throwing six shutout innings and allowing just three hits and one walk. He struck out nine Cobra batters.
"He's thrown big game after big game this season," Avalon said. "We went back to that well again, and he was ready. That was his best outing this year. It was special to see him do that against a really, really good team."
Dylan Wallace (Columbia) gave up one run on two hits and one hit batter. Fair struck out all three batters that walked to the plate against him.
Terry had a phenomenal day at the plate, finishing the contest 4-for-4 with four runs scored and two RBIs. He only needed a triple to complete the cycle.
"Logan is really starting to come around," Avalon said. "He's got a chance to be a special player for us. He reminds me of (former Wildcat) Wiley Cleland, and I think a lot of Wiley."
Fowler finished the day 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs. He also walked and stole a base. Ince finished 2-for-3 with four RBIs and two walks. Porter was 1-for-2 with three RBIs, two walks and one hit-by-pitch. He left the yard in the game.
NEXT UP
On Wednesday, Pearl River hosts a rivalry round-robin as Gulf Coast and Jones College come to Dub Herring Park. PRCC takes on Gulf Coast at noon and Jones College at 6 p.m. The Bulldogs and Bobcats play each other at 3 p.m.
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).