POPLARVILLE – Team Larson and Team Crim closed out the Deep South Summer Collegiate Baseball League’s regular season with hot bats going at it in the league’s final doubleheader of the regular season.
For both teams, at the helm of the slugfest was Southern Miss’ hitters Gabe Montenegro, Will McGillis and Reed Trimble, who combined to finish the doubleheader 9-for-15 while driving in 10 RBIs and drawing six walks.
In Game 1, Team Larson came away with a late come from behind win over Team Crim.
Team Larson opened the game with a 3-0 lead as an RBI single from McGillis, a wild pitch and a fielder’s choice scored the first three runs.
In the second inning, Crim responded with two runs from a sac fly RBI and a fielder’s choice.
McGillis added to Team Larson’s lead as he knocked in a run on a fielder’s choice in the third inning. Ben White (Copiah-Lincoln CC) added two more runs from an RBI single to extend Team Larson’s lead 6-2.
Team Crim again responded with a three-run frame in the third inning. Trimble delivered an RBI double with John Mitchell (Meridian CC), adding a run with an RBI single. Keegan Ward (Co-Lin CC) helped cut Team Larson’s lead 6-5 with an RBI single.
Team Crim’s offense continued to succeed in the fourth inning as Trimble tied the game with another RBI double. Team Crim then took a 7-6 lead with Mitchell hitting an RBI sac fly. In the fifth inning, Team Crim plated two more runs from a wild pitch and an infield RBI single from Elijah Watts (Mississippi Gulf Coast CC) to extend the lead 9-7.
Despite the turnaround, Team Larson answered big with six runs scoring in the fifth and sixth innings. A fielder’s choice RBI and an RBI double from Petal alum Josh Cary (MGCCC) tied the game 9-9. However, Team Crim ran out of pitching in the sixth inning, walked the bases loaded and then walked three runs. McGillis then capitalized with a three-run RBI triple.
“I was working on things,“ McGillis said. I was just trying to get off good swings throughout different counts. I feel like I was able to do that. (I was also working on) technical things with my bat path and different postures with my body. Really just getting in a good position to hit was the main thing.”
In a late effort in the sixth inning, Trimble hit a solo home run for the final score of 13-10.
“Yesterday I was awful,” Trimble said. “I think I went 0-for-2 with two strikeouts. It was just bad at-bats. Today, I didn’t hit at all in the batting cages before the game, so I don’t think I’m going to hit before games for a while. I tried to relax today. I was being more quiet with my body, and it worked out. I was just seeing the ball really well.”
In Game 2, Team Crim answered back with a 5-1 win against Team Larson.
On the mound, Team Crim earned a strong start from Tyler Stuart, who in three innings allowed three hits and struck out two batters.
In the first inning, Trimble’s power carried over as he opened the game with a solo home run. Notably, Trimble hit a home run from both the left and right side of the batter’s box.
“It almost did not get out. It hit the very top of the wall and bounced over,” Trimble said. “He threw me a couple of fastballs that I was on, and then he threw me a low changeup. I thought he was going to come back with something slow, and it was a changeup. I kept my hands back and put a good swing on it.”
In the third inning, Mitchell added a two-run RBI double. Team Crim tacked on two more runs with a sac fly and a wild pitch.
Team Larson scored its only run of the second game on a wild pitch in the sixth inning.
At the end of the day, McGillis was 2-for-5, drew two walks and hit five RBIs while Montenegro finished 3-for-5 with one RBI for Team Larson. For Team Crim, Trimble reached base in every at-bat as he was 4-for-4 with four RBIs and drew four walks.
