Monday night was tough for Jarrod Parks.

The Starkville Academy baseball coach saw his Volunteers let an early lead slip away, ending in a loss to rival Heritage Academy at home. The defeat stung and he wasn’t going to forget it.

Parks challenged his team to respond and come out the next time they played their rival with the right attitude and a chip on their shoulder. His team responded well as the Volunteers beat the Patriots 12-2 in five innings in a Mississippi Association of Independent Schools Class AAA, District 2 game Wednesday night at Tripp Carson Field.

“I challenged them to bounce back with some authority,” Parks said. “I wanted to send a message and I think we did that. We played very well, one of our best games of the year.”

The Volunteers (12-3, 1-1 Class AAA, District 2) blew a four-run lead Monday and lost 7-5 to the Patriots (9-5, 1-1).

Like Monday, Starkville Academy took an early lead, but this time they tried to make it as much as possible. In the first inning the Volunteers sent 13 to the plate and scored seven runs to take a 7-0 lead. The Patriots used three pitchers and got out of a bases-loaded jam to avoid further damage.

Carter Roach and Kyle Faver had back-to-back two-run singles to put the Volunteers on the board.

“It’s so huge to get that momentum early, to get the energy going and possibly take the energy out of the stadium,” Parks said. “To kind of take them out of the game in the first inning was great.”

Starkville Academy increased the lead to 12-1 with a five-run fourth. Roach had an RBI double in the frame.

The junior second baseman committed two errors but made up for at the plate going 2-for-4 with two runs and three RBIs.

The Patriots scored on a run in the first on an RBI groundout by Brandon Jones to score Tyler Anderson who drew a leadoff walk. Heritage Academy scored another run in the fifth on an RBI single by Dylan Barker. The Patriots had the bases loaded in the fifth and were looking to extend the game, but Luke Templeton struck out Hunter Short to end the game.

“I think we did well and just kept plugging away,” Roach said. “We didn’t let them get much momentum, a little here and there, but then we stopped the floods.”

The seven-run first inning made it easy for Volunteer starting pitcher Landen Rogers. The junior right-hander got in trouble in the first with a leadoff walk and a double, but he got out of the jam with a flyout. After getting two quick outs in the second, he allowed back-to-back singles, but got a groundout to escape trouble again.

Rogers (4-0) threw four innings, allowed the one earned run, walked two and struck out five.

“I think that was a big booster,” Rogers said. “We’ve been practicing hard for it. We just came out here and played ball and played like we usually do.

“I had a lot of confidence with a seven-run lead. I just threw strikes and let my defense work. I knew they’d have my back.”

Rogers said the dugout had a workmanlike attitude after the first and everybody was not thinking the game was over. Rather they were staying focused to avoid another comeback.

Colt Chrestman and Will Holley each had two hits for Starkville Academy, while Faver had two RBIs. The Patriots had five hits and nobody recorded multiple hits.

Starkville Academy and Heritage Academy play again April 12 in Starkville in a rubber game. But for now Parks is glad his team responded in a way he thought was appropriate after the initial loss.

“It was awesome to get that win and it was very important,” Parks said.

Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait

Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.