ELLISVILLE – The 12th-ranked Jones County Junior College Bobcats notched two impressive victories over Southwest Mississippi Wednesday afternoon at Community Bank Park.
JCJC scored nine runs in the third inning and whipped the Bears 13-1 in five innings in game one. In game two, the Bobcats completed the sweep with a 5-1 decision.
JCJC, 21-7 overall and 8-4 in the MACJC goes to Itawamba for a 2 p.m. doubleheader on Saturday.
The Bears, 7-16 overall and 4-8 in the conference, host Northwest on Saturday.
Bobcats 13, Bears 1
(5 innings)
After allowing one run and three hits in the first inning, Will Freeman (Semmes, Alabama) only allowed one more baserunner the rest of the way. Freeman, 4-1, finished with a four-hitter with one strikeout and one walk.
JCJC got an RBI single from Jake Mason (West Lauderdale) in the bottom of the first to tie the game at 1-1.
The Bobcats sent 13 batters to the plate in the third when they took control of the game. A grand slam by Cooper Brune (Ocean Springs) was the highlight of the inning. A two-run double by Stephen Matthews (Tupelo) was also a big hit in the inning.
Matthews also had a two-run double in the fourth inning.
Matthews finished with two doubles and four RBIs. Luther Woullard (D’Iberville) doubled and singled, while Mason and Trace Henry (Mooreville) each had two singles. Brune had the grand slam, while Robbie Woody (Madison Central), Brandon Hale (Pontotoc) and Luke Hudson (Presbyterian Christian School) had singles.
Starter Gage Kiser went 2.2 innings, allowed five runs, four hits, walked two, struck out two and took the loss. Ethan Campo, Lane Gordon and Kyle Dillard also pitched for the Bears.
Zach Dearman and Quartez Brown doubled for Southwest and Michael Buck and Paco Bello added singles.
Bobcats 5, Bears 1
Starter Tyler Spring (Stone), who recently committed to Mississippi State, got the win in game two. He went five innings, allowed one run, three hits, walked three and struck out seven as he improved to 4-1. Bryce Fagan (Petal) tossed the final two innings, allowed no runs, two hits and struck out three.
Jones took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first when Henry led off with a single, stole second, went to third on a ground out by Woody and scored on a Woullard single. Mason followed with a single and Hale’s single scored Woullard.
The Bears made it 2-1 in the third.
JCJC ended the scoring with three runs in the fourth.
Mason and Hale led off with walks and Hudson Harris (West Jones) sacrificed the runners. Hudson and Matthews followed with run-scoring singles and Matthews later scored on an error.
Henry, Woullard, Mason, Hale, Hudson and Matthews each singled for the Bobcats.
Tyler White singled twice for the Bears, while Kyle Singleton doubled. Dearman and T Tez Cole added singles.
Matthew Graves went the first three-plus innings, allowed four runs, four hits, walked two and struck out one. Jarid Sturgeon pitched the final three innings, allowed one run (unearned), two hits and struck out two.
