Blayze Berry’s complete-game pitching performance and an eight-run sixth inning in game two lifted the East Mississippi Community College baseball team to a 9-3 win over fifth-ranked East Central Community College and a split of a doubleheader to open the MACCC season on Friday at Gerald Poole Field in Scooba.
In the opener, the Lions jumped out to aa 5-0 lead but fell 14-10 despite hitting five home runs.
Berry, a sophomore from Heritage Academy in Columbus, was locked in a pitching duel with ECCC’s Grant Edwards for most of the nightcap. The Lions manufactured a run in the third when Berry beat out a potential inning-ending double play at first, allowing Austin Garrison to score.
It stayed 1-0 until the uprising in the sixth, as EMCC sent 13 batters to the plate. The inning featured a two-run single by Ethan Medlin and run-scoring singles by Beau Bates, Trey Trosclair and Hunter French.
Berry, a UAB signee, scattered seven singles along with two strikeouts and two walks to record his first win of the season. Berry, Medlin and French each had two hits for the Lions (6-8, 1-1 MACCC).
In contrast, the opening nine-inning game featured a combined 31 hits, including seven home runs, with each team using four pitchers.
Wesley Sides and Bates homered on consecutive pitches in the opening frame put EMCC on top 3-0. A two-out, run-scoring single by Medlin in the second inning followed by Sides’ second homer in as many at-bats to lead off the third increased the lead to 5-0. Sides has five home runs on the year.
The Warriors took a 6-5 lead by batting around in the fourth inning, but Coby Holmes’ first career home run tied the game. East Central went ahead for good with four runs in the fifth.
Trey Trosclair homered leading off the sixth for EMCC, Kade Shannon’s sacrifice fly made it 11-8 in the seventh, and the Lions closed the scoring with RBI doubles by Trosclair and Holmes in the ninth.
Holmes went 4 for 4 and was hit by a pitch, while Sides and Trosclair each had three hits.
Millsaps 4, The W 2: Millsaps third baseman Chris Hart greeted Owls reliever Tyler Temple with a one-out home run to left to snap a 2-2 tie in the bottom of the sixth inning, and the Majors went on to defeat the Owls on Friday at Twenty Field in Jackson.
Temple and Tanner Evans combined to hold the Majors scoreless the rest of the way, but the Owls’ cold bats kept the Millsaps lead safe.
Kirby Ross pitched two hitless innings to open the game for the Owls, who got on the board first in the top of the third. With two outs, CJ Wise reached on an error, stole second and scored on an error off the bat of Blaize Gann for a 1-0 lead.
But the Majors took the lead back in the bottom of the inning, as a single, a hit batter and a two-out error loaded the bases for Sam Pitre, who doubled to left-center for two runs.
The Owls tied it in the top of the sixth when Austin Telano walked, moved to third on a double by Tanner Evans and scored on Joel Estabrook’s sacrifice fly.
Estabrook and shortstop Landon Clark had the Owls’ other hits.
Softball
ECCC 8-5, EMCC 3-1: The Lions opened the MACCC softball season with two losses Friday in Decatur.
In the opener, two costly infield errors and a two-run home run by Mattie Hodge fueled a five-run third inning against EMCC starter Laken Firth.
The Lions’ runs came on a Celeste Study two-run home run in the fourth and a two-out RBI single by Carley Martin in the fifth.
In the second game, Study’s home run tied the game at 1-1 in the second inning for the Lions (3-16, 0-2 MACCC). She leads the team with four home runs.
The Lions tied the game at 1-1 a frame later on Study’s second homer of the day and team-leading fourth of the season.
East Central’s Rae Rae Evans retired the next 11 batters and limited the Lions to three hits.
Women’s golf
SEC honors Lopez Ramirez
Mississippi State’s Julia Lopez Ramirez was named SEC Freshman of the Week after her third top-five finishes in as many tournaments during the spring season.
Lopez Ramirez, who finished in a tie for fourth at the 50th Annual VyStar Gators Invitational, shot 2-over 212 in three rounds for the Bulldogs. She entered the final round in a tie for 15th at 3-over but jumped up the leaderboard with a 1-under par 69. That extended her freshman record of rounds in the 60s to nine.
Lopez Ramirez has three individual titles and six top-five finished in nine tournaments.
Men’s tennis
Mississippi State 4, LSU 3
Singles: Florian Broska (MSU) d. Ronald Hohmann 4-6, 6-2, 6-2; Nemanja Malesevic (MSU) d. Vlad Lobak 6-4, 6-4; Kent Hunter (LSU) d. Carles Hernandez 6-2, 6-4; Gabriel Diaz Freire (LSU) d. Bautista Vilicich 6-3, 6-3; Boris Kozlov (LSU) d. Gregor Ramskogler 7-5, 4-6, 1-0 (10-4); Alberto Colas (MSU) d. Benjamin Ambrosio 6-0, 7-6 (7-3).
Doubles: Ramskogler-Broska (MSU) d. Hohmann-Lobak 6-3; Davide Tortora-Nemanja Malesevic (MSU) d. Diaz Freire-Hunter 7-5; Nick Watson-Kozlov (LSU) d. Colas-Hernandez 6-4.
Records: Mississippi State 11-5, Texas A&M 11-6.
Huntingdon 9, The W 0
Singles: Carson Sands d. Mikey Duncan 6-1, 6-1; Clint Robinson d. Sam Yarborough 6-0, 6-1; Lane Young d. Kory Scales 6-0, 6-0; Prosser Crow d. Allen Lewis 6-0, 6-0; Cameron Reed d. Jacob Vickers 6-0, 6-0; Domenic Terrell d. Victor Gomez 6-3, 6-1.
Doubles: Sands-Young d. Duncan-Luis Leal Jr. 8-0; Robinson-Reed d. Scales-Tanner Collins 8-0; Terrell-Crow d. Vickers-Gomez 8-0.
Records: Huntingdon 1-5, The W 1-5.
Women’s Tennis
Texas A&M 7, Mississippi State 0
Singles: Carson Branstine d. Emmanouela Antonaki 6-3, 6-2; Tatiana Makarova d. Tamara Racine 6-1, 6-0; Mary Stoiana d. Chloé Cirotte 7-6 (4), 6-4; Jayci Goldsmith d. Alexandra Mikhailuk 4-6, 6-4, 1-0 (10-3); Gianna Pielet d. Alessia Tagliente 6-3, 6-2; Jeanette Mireles d. Marta Falceto 6-3, 6-3.
Doubles: Cirotte-Racine led Goldsmith-Makarova 4-2, unfinished; Branstine-Stoiana d. Antonaki-Falceto 6-1; Mireles- Pielet d. Magda Adaloglou-Mikhailuk 6-0.
Records: Texas A&M 17-1, Mississippi State 8-6.
Huntingdon 8, The W 1
Singles: Kennedy Harp (H) d. Emma Potter 6-0, 6-0; Meredith Head (H) d. Terraline Green 6-0, 6-2; Alonda Weaver (H) d. Sarah Kackley 6-2, 6-3; Marisa LaJone (H) d. Mallery Parker 6-1, 6-1; Morgan Mumper (H) d. Mandy Ferguson 6-1, 6-0; Karina Garica (MUW) d. Katelyn Morris 9-8.
Doubles: Allexii Bassette-Madeline Creel (H) d. Potter-Nicole Rensink (H) 8-0; Mumper-Allison Stegall d. Kackley-Parker 8-5; Morris-Emily Fendley (H) d. Green-Ferguson 8-1.
Records: Huntingdon 4-3, The W 0-5.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
Join the Discussion