River splits with East Central

POPLARVILLE Pearl River bombarded East Central with a lopsided 12-2 victory in five innings in the first game of an MACJC South Division baseball doubleheader before the visiting Warriors rallied from a four-run deficit in the final inning to take a 9-7 win in the nightcap game here Saturday in Wildcat Stadium.PRCC is now 19-11 overall and 4-6 in division play, while ECCC is 18-12 and 6-4.In the first game, the Wildcats went up 1-0 in the bottom of the first when lead off Braxton Lee of Picayune High smacked a line-drive double down the first-base line and scored off an up-the-middle single by Chase Toussaint of Petal High. Pearl River loaded the bases when Chase Lewallen of Sumrall High reached on a fielder choice and Toussaint slide untagged into second and Matt Linton of East Central High was hit by a pitch, but Aaron Lee of Pearl River Central High struck out to end the inning.Rubert Alcantara belted a two-out home run over the left field wall for East Central in the top of the second to make it 2-1, while PRCC padded its lead with two more runs in the bottom of the frame.Austin Carter of Sumrall High led off with a bloop single to center field before Ryan Best of Oak Grove High reached on an error. After Carter moved to third off a fly out to center, he scored on a wild pick off throw to first. Toussaint followed with a single and Best scored off Lewallen ground out to second before Chad Livingston, a Southeastern Louisiana transfer who prepped at Slidell (La.) High, grounded to second for the final out.The Warriors scored its last run of the game in the top of the third when Kyle Henson led off with a single, moved to second off Terrance Steele sacrifice bunt, and scored off Fred Hampton double. After Kalik May walked, Tim Anderson hit into a double play for the final outs.In the bottom of the inning, Linton cracked a one-out single before ECCC starter Fernando Gonzales belted back-to-back batters Aaron Lee and Carter with pitches load the bases. Linton scored The River fourth run when Best reached on a fielder choice before Braxton Lee grounded out to short to end the inning.Pearl River pitcher Ryan Deemes out of Holy Cross High in Chalmette, La., struck out three straight in the top of the fourth, while Gonzales was relieved by Evan Humphries with one out in the bottom of the frame after he belted Lewallen with a pitch and walked Livingston. After Humphries retired designated hitter Clint Willoughby of Clinton High, Lewallen and Livingston advanced on a passed ball before Lewallen scored off Linton single and Livingston was nailed at home for the final out.Pearl River unleashed a seven-run barrage in the bottom of the fifth to end the game via the 10-run rule. Aaron Lee led off with a single before Carter doubled off the left field wall and Best walked. That prompted the mound exit of Humphries for Coy Sorenson who immediately pushed in PRCC sixth run by hitting Braxton Lee, the only batter he would face, with a pitch. Jordan Mixon then took over the mound and immediately gave up a two-run double to Toussaint and a two-run single to Lewallen before Shawn Wiseman relieved.Wiseman walked Livingston before hitting Marcus Lawton Jr. of Biloxi High with a pitch to load the bases. After Linton popped out to short, Aaron Lee crushed a two-run single to end the game at 12-2.Deemes (3-0) got the win in going the five-inning distance, giving up four hits, striking out six, and walking one; while starter Gonzales (5-2) got the loss in his three-and-a-third on the mound. He gave up five hits, struck out two, walked one, and hit four batters before Humphries relieved for one-third in the fourth, giving up two hits and walking a batter. Sorenson belted the only batter he faced with a pitch in the fifth, while Mixon gave up hits to the only two batters he faced in the fifth. Wiseman gave up a hit, a walk, and a hit batter in the final inning.Alcantara homered (one RBI) for the Warriors, while Hampton doubled (one RBI), and Henson and David McAdory both had base hits.Toussaint paced the Wildcats 11-hit attack with a double and two singles (two RBIs), while Carter doubled and singled, Aaron Lee (two RBIs) and Linton had two base hits each, Braxton Lee doubled, and Lewallen singled (two RBIs). Best also had an RBI for Pearl River.ECCC committed two errors in the game to PRCC one.In the nightcap game, Pearl River went up 2-0 in the bottom of the first when Lewallen cracked a two-out single and wound up at third off a wild pick off throw to first. He scored off Livingston double down the first-base line before Krisjohn Wilkerson out of St. Stanislaus College in Bay St. Louis reached on an error and Livingston scored on a wild pitch.After starter Blake Dubuisson hit Linton with a pitch, he exited the mound for Marc Cruso who saw Aaron Lee hit into a force out to end the inning.The Warriors loaded the bases in the top of the second off a single and two hit batters, but couldnt push a run home; while in the bottom of the inning Braxton Lee reached on an error with two outs, stole second, and scored off Toussaint double to left field to make it 3-0 before Lewallen lined out to short to end the inning.East Central responded with two runs in the top of the third when Hampton led off with a double down the third-base line and moved to third off May ground out before Henson was hit by a pitch. Hampton scored off a wild pitch before Velez singled in Henson to make it 3-2. After Velez was nailed at second on an attempted steal, Leal walked and Alcantata hit into a force out for the final out.Pearl River answered with two in the bottom of the inning when Wilkerson drew a one-out walk, courtesy runner DaVonte Linear of Wayne County High stole second, moved to third off Linton ground out, and scored off Aaron Lee double to right. Carter followed with an RBI single to left to make it 5-2 before Best struck out to end the inning.After the Warriors went three up, three down in the top of the fourth, the Wildcats padded their lead in the bottom of the frame. After lead off Braxton Lee popped out, Toussaint crushed a homer over the left center field wall before Lewallen walked. Mixon was relieved by Brock Ward at that point, who immediately picked off Lewallen at first and belted Livingston with a pitch before Wilkerson fouled out to end the inning with The River up 6-2.In the top of the fifth, May outran a one-out bunt for a base hit before Tim Anderson belted a two-run homer over the left field wall to cut Pearl River lead to 6-4. That prompted the mound exit of Wildcat starter Christian Talley of Hancock County High for Anthony Lusco of Bay High, who immediately retired Velez before Leal doubled down the first-base line. After Alcantara was hit by a pitch, McAdory singled, but Leal was nailed at home for the final out.In the bottom of the inning, Carter and Best drew a two-out base on balls, which prompted Casey Wells relief of Ward. Carter scored off Braxton Lee double off the center field wall to make it 7-4 before Toussaint grounded to first to end the inning.After Lusco gave up a lead off double to Nick Hodges in the top of the sixth, he was relieved by lefty Scott Ashford out of Catholic High in Baton Rouge, La., who retired three straight. PRCC went three up, three down in the bottom of the inning.East Central unleashed a game-winning, five-run effort in the top of the seventh. Lead off Anderson singled and Velez walked before Ashford struck out Leal, belted Alcantara with a pitch, and gave up an RBI single to McAdory to make it 7-5.With the bases loaded, Brandon Pennington of Sumrall High relieved Ashford and immediately gave up two unearned runs to tie it up when Henson reached on a fielder choice before striking out Terrance Steele. Hampton drove in the game-winning runs with a single to center before May grounded to first for the final out.Linton led off the bottom of the frame with a double off the left field wall, but Wells struck out three straight to end the game.Wells (4-0) got the win, giving up one hit and striking out four; while starter Dubuisson went two-and-a-third, giving up three hits and hitting two batters. Cruso pitched an inning, giving up two hits; Mixon two-and-a-third, giving up a hit, striking out two and walking two; and Ward one inning, walking two and hitting a batter.Pennington (4-3) got the loss despite pitching only two-thirds of an inning. He gave up a hit and recorded a strike out, while starter Talley when four-and-a-third, gave up five hits, struck out three, walked one, and hit three batters. Lusco pitched two-thirds of an inning after relieving in the fifth, giving up two hits and hitting a batter; while Ashford pitched one-and-a-third, giving up two hits, striking out one, walking one, and hitting a batter.Hampton paced the Warriors 10-hit effort with a double and a single (two RBIs), while McAdory (one RBI) and Velez (one RBI) had two base hits each, Anderson homered (two RBIs), Hodges and Leal doubled, and May singled. Henson also had two RBIs for the winners.PRCC finished with eight hits, led by Toussaint home run and double (three RBIs); while Aaron Lee (one RBI), Braxton Lee (one RBI), Linton, and Livingston (one RBI) all doubled and Carter (one RBI) and Lewallen both had base hits.East Central committed two errors in the game to Pearl River one.The two teams eye a South Division rematch Wednesday, April 25, with a 3 p.m. doubleheader in Decatur, marking the 2012 regular-season finales for both squads.Pearl River returns to action Tuesday when South Division rival Southwest Mississippi plays host in Summit (3 p.m. doubleheader), before division foe Hinds hosts Friday, April 6 (1 p.m. doubleheader).