River splits with Co-Lin

POPLARVILLE Pearl River Lady Wildcats split with Copiah-Lincoln in MACJC South Division doubleheader softball action here Tuesday, falling to the Lady Wolfpack 4-3 in eight innings before bouncing back with a 3-0 shutout win in the nightcap game. PRCC, the reigning MACJC state champion, are now 18-16 overall and 10-8 in division play, while the Lady Wolves are 19-17 and 7-11. The River swept Co-Lin 9-3 and 10-3 (six innings) in a previous twin bill played March 10 in Wesson. In the first game, CLCC opened with back-to-back singles by Emily Smith and Lakin Lockhart, but both were left stranded at first and third after PRCC starter Heather Hester of Hancock County High struck out three straight to squash the threat. Pearl River managed a one-out base hit by Jordan Adams of DIberville High in the bottom of the inning. Both sides went three up, three down in the second with Lady Wolfpack starter Bethany Pinkston and Hester recording two Ks each, while Co-Lin managed a solo run in the top of the third. Smith and Lockhart both cracked one-out singles with Smith scoring from third when she stole home on Haley Sones foul out before Carrie Moak popped to second for the final out. After both sides went three up, three down in the bottom of the frame and the top of the fourth, the Lady Wildcats went up 2-1 in the fourth. Adams led off with a single to left center field and scored off Hester ensuing triple to right center. Brittney Gary of Slidell (La.) High then smacked a base hit down the third-base line to score Hester before Pinkston retired three straight to end the inning. After a scoreless fifth, CLCC tied it up in the top of the sixth. Sones led off with a line drive single to center field, moved to second and third off ground outs by Bobbie Cochran and Ashley Bounds, and scored off Stevie Wright base hit to right to knot things up at 2-2. Kacey Smith then walked, but she and Wright were left stranded when left fielder Taylor Seals of Picayune High made a impressive lunging snag of Sarah Anthony fly ball for the final out. In the bottom of the frame, PRCC left runners at second and third when Gary cracked a two-out single down the third-base line and Lacey Freeman of Forrest County AHS followed with a double to left before Janessa Dedeaux of Poplarville High flew out to left to end the inning. After a scoreless seventh, both teams kicked off the extra eighth inning with a runner at second. After Co-Lin lead off Cochran was thrown out on a bunt, Ashley Bounds and Wright cracked back-to-back singles to load the bases before Anthony followed with an up-the-middle, two-run base hit to make it 4-2 before Cochran grounded to second for the third out. In the bottom of the inning, Brandy Rester of Poplarville was Pearl River runner at second and she scored the game final run off Hester single to left. Hester moved to second on a wild pitch before Gary struck out and Freeman flew to the right field fence to end the game. Pinkston (12-6) got the win in going the distance, giving up eight hits and striking out eight; while Hester (7-9) got the loss. She also went the distance, giving up 10 hits, striking out six, and walking three. Smith paced the Lady Wolfpack at the plate with three singles, while Lockhart and Wright (one RBI) had two base hits each. Anthony (two RBIs), Bounds, and Sones all singled. Hester led the Lady Wildcats with a triple and a single (one RBI), while Adams and Gary (one RBI) has two base hits each. Freeman doubled and Alyssa Graeter of Poplarville High singles. Both teams played error free. In the second game, Pearl River went up 1-0 in the bottom of the first when lead off Rester outran a bunt for a base hit and Adams followed with a triple to right only to see Rester nailed at home plate. Adams scored off Hester single to right before Gary popped out and CLCC starter Anthony struck out Freeman to end the inning. In the top of the second, Moak led off with a base on balls, Anthony reached on an error, and Ashley McCaffery was belted by a pitch an out later to load the bases. Seals shined once again when she caught Cochran routine fly ball in left field then drilled a one-hop throw home to nail Moak for the double play. PRCC padded its lead with a solo run in the bottom of the third when Graeter led off with a double to left center field, moved to third on Rester sacrifice bunt, and scored off Adams sacrifice to left to make it 2-0 before Hester fouled out to end the inning. After the Lady Wolves went three up, three down in the top of the fifth, the Lady Wildcats scored their final run in the bottom of the frame. Gary and Freeman led off with pop outs before Dedeaux and Seals answered with singles to right field. Paris Redd of Greene County High then reached on an error, scoring Dedeaux to make it 3-0 before Graeter fouled out to end the inning. Again, Co-Lin went three up, three down, including back-to-back strikeouts by PRCC starter Sheila Hall of Dutchtown (La.) High, in the top of the fifth. In the bottom of the frame, Adams cracked a one-out single, Hester reached on a fielder choice, and Gary walked; which prompted the mound exit for CLCC starter Anthony for Brooke DeLaughter, who immediately walked Freeman to load the bases before Dedeaux hit into a force out to end the inning. In the top of the sixth, Erika Rutland led off with a walk before Lockhart and Sones cracked back-to-back line-drive single to left to load the bases. Hester relieved Hall at that point and balked in a run before retiring three straight, including a strikeout of DeLaughter for the final out. In the bottom of the inning, Seals led off with a single, but was thrown out at second on Graeter single an out later. Rester then outran a bunt for a base hit before Adams hit into a force out to end the inning. In the top of the seventh, Bounds led off with a single, but was forced out at second a strikeout later on Tammy Alford base hit. Rutland then walked, but Lockhart grounded to the pitcher for the game-ending out. Hall (10-7) got the win in her five innings on the mound, giving up three hits, striking out five, walking two, and hitting a batter; while Hester gave up two hits, struck out two, and walked one. Anthony (7-8) got the loss in her four-and-two-thirds innings of action, giving up seven hits, striking out one, and walking one; while DeLaughter gave up three hits, struck out one, and walked one. Co-Lin finished with five hits, led by Lockhart double and single, while Bounds, Smith, and Sones all had base hits. Adams paced PRCC 10-hit effort with a triple and a single (one RBI), while Graeter doubled and singled, Hester (one RBI) and Rester had two singles each, and Dedeaux and Seals had base hits. Redd had an RBI for the Lady Wildcats. Each team committed one error in the game. Pearl River hosts South Division rival East Central Saturday for its final home game of the 2011 season, before wrapping its regular season with road trips to division foes Mississippi Gulf Coast in Perkinston on Tuesday (3 p.m. doubleheader) and Jones County in Ellisville on Friday, April 22 (3 p.m. doubleheader).