POPLARVILLE, Miss. — The No. 2 Pearl River baseball team saw beach balls Saturday afternoon against Coahoma, clubbing 12 extra-base hits on the way to a pair of run-rule victories.
The Wildcats took down the Tigers 12-0 in seven innings in the opener and won game two 13-3 in five innings.
"We responded and played well after Wednesday night, and I'm proud of the guys for that," head coach Michael Avalon said. "After we gave up the three-spot in the third, I pulled the team together and asked if they were going to finish things off, and they did that."
GAME ONE
Patrick Spencer Jr. (Greenville; Washington School) was nearly untouchable on the mound for Pearl River in game one, allowing his offense to go to work. Over the course of four innings, Spencer Jr. punched out nine Tiger batters, allowing just two hits and two walks.
Pearl River opened the scoring in the bottom of the first on a two-run triple off the bat of Jaxon Milam (Phenix City, Ala.; Glenwood Academy). An inning later, PRCC tacked on a four-spot. A Keegan Giger (Petal) single and an RBI fielder's choice from Jacob Keys (Brandon) gave PRCC the first two runs and brought up Caston Thompson (Jayess; Brookhaven Academy) got what was going to become an incredible day started by bashing a two-run homer off the scoreboard in right-center field, 6-0.
It was another four-run inning in the fourth for PRCC, extending the Wildcat advantage to 10-0. Keys knocked a two-run double into the gap and scored on a single by Thompson. Jackson Hood (Madison; Germantown) capped the scoring in the frame with a hard-hit single off the glove of the Tiger third baseman.
Pearl River added two final runs in the fifth inning of the afternoon. Keys cashed in a sacrifice fly, and Giger scored on a wild pitch to get it done, 12-0.
PRCC used three pitchers across the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to secure the run-rule victory.
Giger was 3-for-4 with two doubles from the top of the Wildcat order, driving in a run. Thompson went 2-for-3 with three RBIs and a run scored. Topher Jones (Hernando) also had a two-hit day. Keys had three RBIs and three runs scored.
Spencer Jr. earned the win with four innings of scoreless baseball, tying his season-high of nine strikeouts. He scattered two hits and two walks.
"Spencer was sharp early," Avalon said. "He throws really hard, so it gets tough to maintain that after 70 pitches. He really threw well today."
Drew Harrison (Madison; Germantown) threw a scoreless inning with a punchout. Peyton Lacy (Pass Christian) struck out all three batters he faced in an inning of work, and AJ Hansen (Mobile, Ala.; McGill-Toolen grabbed a strikeout in an inning of work.
GAME TWO
A five-inning first inning put Pearl River on the front foot in game two. With a runner aboard, Keys smacked a double into right-center for the first run. Thompson bashed his second two-run long ball of the day a batter later, 3-0. It was the first baseman's 10th of the season. Jones found his way aboard on a walk and Ethan Garner (Gulfport) swatted a two-run shot to make the score 5-0.
Thompson made it an incredible three-homer day in the second inning, smacking a 1-0 pitch over the wall for his third two-run home run of the day, 7-0. Hood joined the hit parade shortly after. The freshman hit a ball the opposite way. It didn't initially look like it was getting out of the park but continued to carry before dropping over the wall for a two-run homer, 9-0.
The Tigers sliced into the lead in the third inning, cutting the deficit down to six runs with three runs, 9-3. The Wildcats got two of the runs back in the bottom half of the inning, scoring on a Giger ground out and tacking on the next when Keys put a charge into a baseball for a solo shot, 11-3.
The Wildcats put the game to rest in the fifth inning. The first run scored on a wild pitch, and Thompson ended the game with a sacrifice fly, 13-3.
Thompson was 2-for-2 with five RBIs and a walk. He hit two homers. Giger went 2-for-3 with an RBI and three runs scored. Keys finished with two hits and an RBI. Hood and Garner each drove in two.
"When the conditions are like they were today — you want Caston at the plate," Avalon said. "He really barreled the ball up today."
"People are careful with me at the plate," Thompson added. "I've been really patient, working the counts and waiting on my pitch. I just kept it simple through the zone."
Jacob Johnson (Carriere; Pearl River Central) tossed a pre-determined three innings to earn the win. He allowed three runs on four hits and a walk. He struck out two. Landon Watts (Picayune) threw two innings and allowed one hit and two walks — he tallied one strikeout.
NEXT UP
Pearl River remains at Dub Herring Park on Tuesday for an ever-important matchup with rival Gulf Coast. The doubleheader will begin at 3 p.m.
TUNE IN
All home Pearl River baseball games are livestreamed for free at PRCCMedia.com/Gold. Fans with 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 will also 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.
For the latest on Pearl River Community College athletics, follow us on X (@PRCCAthletics) and Facebook (PRCCAthletics).