POPLARVILLE, Miss. — The No. 5 Pearl River softball team sent 10 balls out of the park Tuesday night against rival Gulf Coast to earn a split against the Bulldogs. PRCC took game one 9-7 and fell in game two 14-11.
"Hitting 10 home runs in one day is impressive," head coach Christie Meeks said. "Our hitters never stopped battling even when we made mistakes on defense and with our pitching. Our offense handled the situation well and kept us in the games."
GAME ONE
Reigning MACCC Player of the Week Lainee Bailey (Walker, La.) backed up her selection in the bottom of the first inning, giving Pearl River (34-7 overall; 16-4) a 2-0 lead after blasting an opposite-field two-run home run over the right field wall.
The long ball aided Pearl River once again in the bottom of the second as catcher Caroline Lindsey (Gulfport) led off the inning by sending the third pitch of her at-bat flying over the right field wall, 3-0.
The Wildcats tacked on two more in the third to make it a 5-0 game. Ashlyn Dean (Carriere; Pearl River Central) picked up an RBI the tough way, getting plunked with the bases loaded to plate the first run. CharLee Meadows (Piave; Greene County) followed by drawing a bases-loaded walk.
The Bulldogs (31-15; 13-6) punched back in the fourth inning. After loading up the bases, a Gulf Coast batter sent a ball flying off the wall for a bases-clearing triple. She rounded third base, noticed that no one was watching and went the rest of the way home, 5-4.
MGCCC proceeded to tie the game and then take the lead with a two-run homer in the top of the fifth, 7-5. Forced to respond, PRCC did just that in the bottom half of the frame. Following an Anna Kate Rounsaville (Gulfport) single, Peyton Hoffmayer (Ocean Springs) destroyed a pitch over the heart of the plate for a game-tying two-run homer, 7-7.
Two incredible innings in relief from Bailey sent Pearl River to the plate in the bottom of the seventh in search of a run. Rounsaville started the rally, sending a single up the middle. That's when Lindsey stepped to the dish in a crucial situation. As she has done all season, Lindsey came up clutch, belting a two-run walk-off home run over the left field wall, 9-7.
Hoffmayer wrapped up the game 3-for-4 with three runs and two RBIs. Rounsaville finished with two hits and two runs scored. Lindsey picked up two hits, both of which left the yard.
Herrington threw 4 2/3 innings, allowing six runs on 10 hits and a walk. She struck out one. Rounsaville recorded an out, giving up one run on one hit. Bailey earned the win after throwing two innings of one-hit, one-walk softball.
GAME TWO
Pearl River had to play catch up right from the start of game two as the Bulldogs almost instantly went up 3-0, using an RBI single and a two-run homer. The Wildcats responded with a run in their half of the inning, scoring on a Bailey RBI single, 3-1.
The Bulldogs extended their lead to 7-1 in the second inning, doing all of its damage with two outs. Pearl River didn't give up there, though, using a big bottom half of the second to get back within one. Meadows chose a great time for her first long ball of the year in the inning, lacing a three-run shot over the center field wall. A Morgan Lavergne (Baton Rouge, La.; Central) single followed, and she scored when Bailey sent a towering two-run shot deep over the wall in left field, 7-6.
Three more crossed the plate for the Bulldogs in the third, making the score 10-6. Hoffmayer got one run back for PRCC, scorching her second home run of the day, 10-7.
The Bulldogs continued to pad their lead in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to push ahead 14-7. Bailey made it a three-homer day to open the bottom of the seventh. The blast pushed her season total to 16, inching her closer to the single-season Pearl River record of 18 set by Mary Grace Turner in 2019. Caitlyn Riche (Walker, La.) followed with a two-run homer and Dean made it back-to-back homers on back-to-back pitches in the following at-bat to make the score 14-11. The Wildcats added one more baserunner, but a lineout ended the game.
Dean and Bailey each had three hits. Lavergne, Hoffmayer and Riche each had two hits. Bailey collected four RBIs and Riche added two. Bailey had two homers, while Hoffmayer, Riche, Dean, and Meadows had one apiece.
Bailey allowed 10 runs on 11 hits and two walks in three innings of work. She struck out five. Daughtery allowed three runs on five hits in one inning. Herrington threw two innings, giving up one run on two hits and a walk. Rounsaville gave up one hit and walked one.
NEXT UP
The Wildcats head to Clarksdale on Saturday for a 2/4 p.m. doubleheader against Coahoma.
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