POPLARVILLE, Miss. — In a conference showdown that rarely comes easy, No. 1 Pearl River handled its business Wednesday night, sweeping Meridian 8-6 and 9-2 behind a pair of strong starts on the mound.
"We saw them (Meridian) a month or so ago. They're super talented and they're scary," head coach Michael Avalon said. "I don't know that we played well all the time, but it was well enough to win two games. They're a tough matchup for us and I was really proud of our arms tonight against a tough offense."
With other results around the league, Pearl River now has a two-game cushion atop the MACCC standings with 10 games left to play.
GAME ONE
Drew Harrison (Madison; Germantown) continued his dominant stretch to open the day, turning in his third straight quality start and giving Pearl River (34-8 overall; 16-2 MACCC) the stability it needed against Meridian (17-18; 4-12).
The Wildcats struck first in the second. Nico Williams (Gulfport) led off with a single, and Jackson Hood (Madison; Germantown) followed by driving a ball off the wall in right. A fortunate ricochet allowed Hood to cruise into third with an RBI triple, putting PRCC on the board. Kyler King (Picayune) added on with a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0.
Pearl River padded the lead in the fourth when Jackson Estes (Madison; Germantown) split the gap in left-center for an RBI double, extending the advantage to 3-0.
Meridian finally broke through in the sixth, stringing together a rally to trim the deficit to 3-2. The Wildcats wasted little time responding. In the bottom half, Estes jumped on a 1-0 pitch and launched a 386-foot solo home run to right-center, restoring a two-run cushion at 4-2.
The Eagles again answered in the seventh, cutting it to 4-3, but Pearl River delivered its most important swing of the game in the bottom half. With two in scoring position, Gatlin Pitts (Fairhope, Ala.; Bayside Academy) ripped a double down the left-field line to drive in both runs and push the lead to 6-3.
Insurance came in the eighth. Williams lifted a sacrifice fly, and Chap Cook (Canton; Canton Academy) later crossed the plate on a wild pitch, stretching the lead to 8-3.
Meridian didn't go quietly, blasting a three-run homer in the ninth to make it 8-6. With the tying run looming, PRCC turned to JP Abt (Brandon; Hartfield Academy). The right-hander needed just three pitches to record a strikeout and slam the door.
Harrison (7-0) earned the win, allowing two runs on six hits and three walks across six innings while striking out seven. Cal Culpepper (Meridian; Clarkdale) gave up one run over two innings, and Colin Jenkins (Mt. Olive; Simpson Academy) recorded two outs. Abt secured the final out.
Estes led the offense with three hits and two RBIs. Pitts, Cook, Hood and King each added two hits, with Pitts driving in two.
GAME TWO
Landon Watts (Picayune) got the nod in game two and grew stronger with every inning.
Meridian scratched across two runs in the second, but Pearl River immediately flipped the momentum. After Cook was hit by a pitch, Williams crushed a two-run homer over the wall in left to tie the game. Landon Hawkins (Sumrall) extended the inning, setting the stage for King, who delivered another two-run blast to give PRCC a 4-2 lead.
Pitts provided the highlight in the fifth, ambushing the first pitch he saw and sending it soaring over the videoboard for a towering 400-foot solo home run that brought the crowd to its feet.
The Wildcats broke it open in the sixth with a four-run frame. Jackson Beddoe (Sulphur, La.) punched a single through the left side, Estes drew a bases-loaded walk, and Cook dropped a two-run single in front of the right fielder as PRCC pushed the lead to 9-2.
From there, Watts took complete control. After the early hiccup, the right-hander dominated, retiring 15 of the final 18 batters he faced. In just his second career start, Watts went the distance, sealing a 9-2 win with a complete-game performance.
"Coach Avalon told me that I wasn't done. He told me I had to forget about the first inning," Watts said. "I wanted to go out and put up a zero each inning, and that's what I did."
Watts finished with seven innings of two-run baseball (one earned), allowing three hits and five walks while striking out seven.
Hawkins was the lone Wildcat with multiple hits. Cook, Williams and King each drove in two runs, while Hawkins and King both scored twice.
NEXT UP
Pearl River heads to Mississippi Delta on Saturday for a 2/5 p.m. doubleheader against the Trojans.
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