CLINTON — Starkville continues to stay hot.
Behind a big first inning along with the pitching of Will Moody, the Yellowjackets got past Clinton 6-1 in a key Region 2-7A matchup at Arrow Field on Friday night.
With the win, Starkville (18-8-1) now extends their winning streak to seven games and clinches the No. 3 seed out of Region 2-7A. The Jackets will face Tupelo in the First Round of the MHSAA Class 7A baseball playoffs that begin on April 24.
“That was exactly what we wanted to do coming in here. We knew the situation Clinton was in, so if we could jump on them early then it would make it hard for them to play their game,” said Starkville head coach Mark Monaghan. “Couldn’t be more prouder of Will Moody. We’ve trusted him all year and he’s never extended himself in a game like that, so this was a big win.”
Starkville started the game off on fire scoring five runs in the top of the first inning to take a 5-0 lead as B.J. Hendrix scored off a throwing error and Taj Prater added an RBI single to center before Bradley Cohen delivered a three-run double off the wall in left.
The Yellow Jackets added a run in the third to take 6-0 lead on a fielder’s choice.
Hendrix had three hits, including two doubles, to lead Starkville offensively, while Cohen and Moody added two hits each for the Yellowjackets.
Moody (3-1) pitched a complete game scattering eight hits, a run, one walk, and had four strikeouts.
“We’re just now worried about getting ourselves better. We have one more regular season game next Saturday and I think we still aren’t playing our best,” Monaghan said. “Seven wins in a row in 7A baseball is hard to do. We don’t care who we’re playing in the playoffs, just a matter of once it gets to playoff baseball it’s a second season.”
Stone Crain took the loss on the mound for Clinton. Memphis signee Ethan Dodson had two hits to lead the Arrows (12-11, 3-7), who now are on an eight-game losing streak.
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