ELLISVILLE — In a top-10 matchup, No. 3 Pearl River and No. 7 Jones split both games of a doubleheader between the two squads in conference play.
Jones rode a dominant pitching performance from Colton Smith to take Game 1, while Pearl River answered behind timely hitting in Game 2 to salvage the split in a key MACCC showdown.
Both schools displayed terrific pitching, with just 22 hits combined through both games, and both showed the ability to come up with important at-bats in key moments.
When two top-10 teams play, the margin for error is incredibly thin, and it showed during both games on Tuesday afternoon.
Game 1 – Strong outing from Smith, back-to-back homers lift Jones past PRCC 4-2
Jones leaned on Smith in the opening game, and the right-hander delivered one of his best outings of the season.
Smith worked seven innings, allowing four hits and two runs while striking out seven across 107 pitches.
It was a shaky start, however, as he walked the second and third Wildcats he faced in the first inning. Then, in the second, Gatlin Pitts put PRCC in front with an RBI single, and Nico Williams pushed across another with a squeeze bunt in the top of the third, putting PRCC ahead 2-0.
That’s when Smith settled in. He sat down the last 10 batters he faced in a row, taking control of the game.
“At first, I was a little uncomfortable on the mound, but after I got all the bad stuff out after the third inning, I really felt my slider working,” Smith said. “Once I was able to establish two pitches in the strike zone, I kind of felt like I had the hitters uneasy at the plate.”
At that point, Smith dictated the tempo of the game, using a sinker and sharp slider to keep the high-powered Pearl River offense off balance.
Jones head coach Wes Thigpen said Smith’s ability to adjust midgame is what separates him.
“He's just a competitor,” Thigpen said. “Made some adjustments in game that really nobody would know about, and it just kind of took off from there after the third inning.”
His final line: 7 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 7 K, 3 BB, 107 pitches.
After PRCC took a 2-0 lead, Jones answered and took the lead for good in the bottom of the third inning.
Kelan Guidry led off the frame by being hit by a pitch. Then, Chase Russell launched a ball 404 feet to straightaway center field for a two-run home run to tie the game. After that, Sanders Ainsworth blasted his eighth home run of the year to left field to give the Bobcats a 3-2 lead.
Dylan Champagne added his first career home run in the bottom of the sixth inning, a 376-foot shot to right field to push the lead to 4-2.
PRCC couldn’t get anything going against Smith, and Trevor Hodges earned the save with two innings of work, allowing no hits and striking out three.
Game 2 – PRCC uses five-run fifth inning to salvage split, 7-3
Coming off a big win in the first game, Jones had a chance early in the second game to capitalize on that momentum when it loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the first inning. But Pearl River starting pitcher Drew Harrison recorded back-to-back strikeouts and a flyout to end the jam.
PRCC head coach Michael Avalon was upset with the officiating after the walks in the first inning that loaded the bases but stayed composed to avoid being ejected.
“A lot of coaches would have lost it there, but I told our guys I wasn't leaving them,” Avalon said. “Drew had to pick us up, and he did. That was big time.”
Jones still took a 3-0 lead in the third inning when Guidry homered to left field, and Champagne and Gage Reeves each drove in a run.
But Thigpen knew the missed opportunity in the first inning would loom large.
“I felt like the game was in the first inning,” Thigpen said. “If we get a big blow there after coming off a big win in game one, I think that game's totally different.”
He was right. With Pearl River reeling, Nico Williams came to the plate in the top of the fourth inning with two outs and a runner on and launched a two-run home run to spark the offense.
“All I can do is just thank the Lord above for putting me in that situation,” Williams said. “All I wanted to do was show up for my team, and I'm just very thankful that I was able to get us that breakthrough that we needed.”
Williams said he was anticipating the pitch.
“It was a heater,” he said. “I was ready for it, and I knew I was going to get it.”
Avalon said the swing was exactly what his team needed in that moment.
“I literally told him, ‘Hey man, you need to go bust one for us,’” Avalon said. “That’s what type of kid he is. He knew in that moment we needed him to step up, and that’s exactly what he did.”
From there, it was all Pearl River. The Wildcats pushed five runs across in the fifth inning, aided by a couple of Jones errors and a two-run home run by Chap Cole to take a 7-3 lead.
Despite the loss, the Bobcats found positives in taking one game from a top-three opponent.
“At the end of the day, if you're going to win one, it might as well be game one,” Thigpen said. “But we've got a lot to learn from. We've got to get healthy.”
Jones lost both of its middle infielders to injuries during the doubleheader, adding another layer of adversity.
For Pearl River, the split, and the way it was earned carried weight for Avalon and the Wildcats.
“It's a tough place to play. It's a rivalry game,” Avalon said. “They're the No. 7 team in the country, and we knew we were in for a battle today. We're thankful to get out of here with a split.”
No. 7 Jones moves to 19-8 and 2-2 in MACCC play and will host Mississippi Delta on March 21. No. 3 Pearl River moves to 23-7 and 5-1 in conference play and will return home to face East Mississippi in a Saturday doubleheader, with Game 1 scheduled for 2 p.m.
