POPLARVILLE, Miss. — The No. 2 Pearl River baseball team made its final tune-up game before the Region 23 Tournament memorable Monday afternoon.
Not only did the Wildcats take down North Arkansas 11-4 to set a new program record for wins in a season with 47, but first baseman Hollis Porter (Hurley; East Central) broke the single-season home run record with his 20th blast of the year and Jeff Ince (Brandon; Jackson Prep) broke the single-season record for runs scored with his with his 77th of the season.
"This is just a special group of players," head coach Michael Avalon said. "They are very talented, but more importantly, they are the right people. What people don't know about this accomplishment is that this was an extremely tough schedule, maybe the toughest we've played to date. When you look at Pearl River baseball's tradition, this speaks to how special this team is."
The Wildcats now turn their attention to the upcoming Region 23 Tournament hosted at PRCC's Dub Herring Park May 13-17.
"We played a good ball club that has won over 30 games this season," Avalon said. "We wanted to go out today and make sure everyone was ready to go for Monday at our place. Our next goal is taking care of business Monday at 3:30 p.m. and defend our home field."
Pearl River (47-8 overall) took the lead emphatically in the bottom of the second inning. Following a Jeff Ince (Brandon; Jackson Prep) bunt single, the ever-dangerous Porter stepped into the batter's box. The left-handed hitter quickly displayed his strength, going the other way with an outside pitch to send it flying over the left field wall for a two-run homer. The blast was his record-setting 20th of the season, pushing him ahead of former NJCAA Player of the Year Tate Parker, who set the record during the 2022 season.
"When you have a special year by a team, there are special players," Avalon said. "Hollis and his daily performance has been a massive part of our success. He's very deserving of this accomplishment."
North Arkansas evened things up in the second, using a pair of triples and a single to get it done, 2-2. PRCC retook the lead in the fourth. Alex Wade (Decatur, Ala.; Madison Academy) ripped a single into right field and scored on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Jonah Katsaboulas (Brandon), 3-2.
Two crucial insurance runs scored in the fifth as Porter picked up his third RBI of the day with a double into right field, and Caston Thompson (Jayess; Brookhaven Academy) moved him across the plate with an RBI single, 5-2.
The Pioneers capitalized on a Wildcat error in the top of the seventh, picking up two runs with two outs. PRCC responded in the bottom half of the inning. Ince drew a walk, advanced to second on a groundout, moved to third on a single and crossed the plate on a passed ball, 6-4. The run set the program's single-season record with his 77th run scored of the year, passing Tate Parker's 2022 record.
The Wildcats pulled away in the eighth inning. Logan Terry (Semmes, Ala.; East Central) was plunked to begin the frame and moved to third thanks to a Creek Robertson (Oxford; Madison Central) double. Keegan Giger (Petal) didn't need long to bring them around to score, sending the second pitch of his at-bat into center field for a two-run triple. Ince followed up the at-bat by smacking a two-run homer over the wall in right field to make the score 10-4. It was his eighth long ball of the year. Marshall Phillips (Hattiesburg; Sumrall) made sure the damage wasn't done one at-bat later, battling out to a 2-2 count before smacking a ball over the left field wall, 11-4.
PRCC promptly closed out the game in the ninth to secure the victory.
The Wildcats used seven pitchers in the victory. Conner Ware (Madison; Germantown) started the game, allowing two runs on three hits in two innings of work. He struck out three. JT Schnoor (Pascagoula; Resurrection) pitched an inning, striking out one. Thomas Crabtree (Collierville, Tenn.) tossed the next two innings, giving up one hit and striking out four. Konnor Graham (Hammond, La.) threw the sixth inning, allowing one hit, one walk and punching out one. JP Robertson (Madison; Germantown) allowed two unearned runs on two hits. He added two strikeouts. Austin Tommasini (Madison; Madison Central) threw a flawless eighth inning, and Carson Fair (Southaven) struck out two of the three batters he faced in the ninth inning.
Ince led the way at the dish, finishing 3-for-4 with four runs and two RBIs. Porter picked up two hits and three RBIs. Phillips, Thompson and Ryan each had two hits in the contest as well.
TICKETS
Tickets for the upcoming Region 23 Tournament are available NOW at PRCCAthletics.com/Tickets. Tickers are $12 each day. Tournament passes are $43. Passes are on sale until 9 a.m. May 13. PRCC's box office is CARD ONLY. Cash will not be accepted at the gate.
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