PURVIS – There was no doubt in Purvis coach Tony Farlow’s mind when asked if he had hoped he coached his last game at the very field named after him.
“I do,” Farlow said. “Actually, I do.”
The soon-to-be retired Farlow is now one game away from his Tornadoes punching their ticket to the state championship after Purvis defeated rival Sumrall 6-0 in Game 1 of the Class 4A South State series on Monday night.
That sentiment was shared with senior twin brothers Jojo and Jacob Parker, who combined for 15 strikeouts.
“Yeah, unfortunately, but fortunately, yes, I hope so,” said Jacob Parker on the possibility of playing his last game at Tony Farlow Field.
“I do for sure, hopefully we can get the job done tomorrow,” Jojo Parker said. “They’ve got their backs against the wall. We are going to be in a dogfight like we were tonight.”
Sumrall (25-8) had very few answers for the Parkers’ efforts on the mound, with Jojo accumulating 10 strikeouts and Jacob posting five.
Contrary to the final stat line, Jojo Parker hit the first two batters he faced, but quickly settled in.
“I usually hit a couple of guys, but I was trying to dial in,” Jojo said. “I had some adrenaline there because of the fans and stuff like that. I had to settle in and get refocused. I think all of (my pitches) were working. The changeup, curveball, and fastball. I think I threw my curveball 60% of the time.”
Jojo Parker then bounced back with three straight strikeouts to end the threat. The second inning mirrored the same result as Parker walking the first batter and striking out the next three. Notably, Parker didn’t give up his first hit until the fourth.
“We were talking about in the office what we are going to do if we have to go get Jojo early,” Farlow said. “He has shown a little bit of that all early, where he struggles a little bit, and then you can’t take him out because he is pitching fabulous.”
On the opposite side, Sumrall’s Drew Davis started out equally as dominant on the mound, but in the third inning he began to struggle. After hitting back-to-back batters, Purvis’ Paxton Cooper took a gamble and attempted to score from second on a wild pitch. Sumrall catcher Caden Cochran had to make a diving tag to get Cooper out. However, Davis walked another batter, and then Drew Swan delivered an RBI single to give Purvis a 2-0 lead.
Later in the third inning, Purvis picked up another run from a throwing error by the Bobcats. Cannon Turner extended the Tornadoes’ lead to 4-0 in the fifth with an RBI single.
“I had said that the team with the two-out hits will win the game,” Sumrall coach Andy Davis said. “We left 10 runners on base and struck out a lot of times, and they scored three runs with two outs.
“We didn’t get the big hit when we needed it.”
Sumrall’s best chance to get on the board came in the top of the fifth as the Bobcats loaded the bases with one out, but Jojo Parker delivered a strikeout and flyout to end the threat.
Jojo Parker hit two more batters in the sixth inning, which prompted Farlow to make a change on the mound. Parker not only delivered two strikeouts to get out of the jam.
“I’m just trying to throw strikes,” Jacob Parker said. “I know my stuff is really good, but obviously I have to command that. That’s just trying to throw strikes and help my team win. When my curveball is on, it’s pretty good.”
Then, at the bottom of the frame, Jacob Parker hit a 2-run homer to push the score to 6-0 before striking out the side in the top of the seventh to finish off the victory.
Sumrall will host Purvis for Game 2, with the first pitch tomorrow set for 7 p.m.
“We had key hits and things went our way tonight,” Farlow said. “It’ll be tough to go over there tomorrow and beat them with their season on the line. We have to go there and take care of business.”
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