HATTIESBURG – The Presbyterian Christian Bobcats call it “Tough Tuesday,” and they proved it Tuesday night against Madison-Ridgeland Academy.
Led by senior Holden Dykes on the mound, PCS gutted out a hard-fought 2-1 win over the Patriots to start conference play 1-0. After starting the season 0-6 overall, the Bobcats are now winners of seven of their nine games to move their record to 7-8 overall. PCS will travel to MRA on Friday for a doubleheader to complete the three-game conference series.
“I think we’re just believing in ourselves,” first-year PCS coach Jarrett Hoffpauir said. “I told our guys from the get-go, ‘I don’t think we truly understand how good we can be,’ and every day I feel like we work harder and harder. We understand that we can compete with anybody, and it showed tonight.”
Dykes was stellar on the bump for PCS. He recorded 12 strikeouts and walked only one during his outing, and he gave up just one earned run on four hits. Of his 107 pitches, 67 were for strikes (63 percent), and all of his pitches were working.
“He’s been really good all year,” Hoffpauir said. “Tonight, he was lights-out. He was throwing all of his pitches for strikes in all counts. When he does that, he’s going to be tough to beat.”
His 12th strikeout ended the game, and it was probably his hardest-earned one, too. In the seventh inning with two outs, Dykes got two quick strikes on the MRA batter. After a ball, the home plate umpire asked the field umpire for help on a check swing on the fourth pitch, and he signaled no swing. After another ball narrowly missed the outside corner, Dykes got a called-third strike to end it.
And he let the MRA players know how excited he was to earn the complete game.
“Against a team like that, those guys swing it over there,” Hoffpauir said. “There’s not an out in that lineup, and he brought his A-game today.”
The Patriots appeared ready to tie the game in the seventh inning. Justin Williams singled to begin the inning, but PCS catcher Brady Logan threw out the would-be base stealer for the first out. Dykes then recorded back-to-back strikeouts to end the game.
PCS did the little things right all night as well. Trailing 1-0 in the third inning, Hoffpauir turned to the bunt to try and create some offense.
While no runs scored directly from a bunt in the third inning, the MRA pitcher, Patrick Smith, was certainly concerned with the threat. With a runner on base, he hit a batter and walked another to load the bases. Then another hit batter scored PCS’ first run.
“That’s our thing,” Hoffpauir said. “We try to get people uncomfortable, and that’s what I tell them every day. We’re not going to bop 20 home runs out of here this year, so we have to find a way to get some runs across. Running bases, stealing and bunting, that’s going to be our go-to.”
In the fourth inning, Dykes walked to lead off the frame. Then Hunter Jordan laid down a perfect bunt down the third base line for a sacrifice. The MRA pitcher fielded the ball but threw it away, and courtesy runner Layton Pitts scored all the way from first base to give the Bobcats a 2-1 lead.
“He got a great jump off the ball on the ground, and he never checked up,” Hoffpauir said. “Against a team like that, you have to take some chances, and he was on his horse.”
With Dykes on the mound, that score held up.
In the fifth, MRA led off the inning with a double, but Dykes struck out the side to preserve the lead. Then he faced the minimum in the final two frames finish it off.
Friday’s doubleheader at MRA begins at 4:30 p.m.
