TUPELO – The fight that Starkville has shown all year showed in its first postseason game.
The Yellow Jackets pestered Tupelo early and held off a late rally to win Game 1 of their Class 7A first-round series 6-5 on Thursday night.
Game 2 was Friday night in Starkville, with Game 3 to follow Saturday in Tupelo if necessary. Check cdispatch.com for continuing coverage.
“Obviously it started really well. We wanted to score first and try to pad that lead just because we knew how good of a team that is over there,” Starkville coach Mark Monaghan said. “That is a really, really, really good baseball team.”
After tacking on a run in the top of the first, the Yellow Jackets (19-9-1) put up a four-spot in the third to go up 5-0. The Golden Wave (20-8) got two runs in the bottom of the fourth, but a solo shot by Bradley Cohen made it 6-2 Jackets in the fifth.
Starkville’s hitters got after Tupelo’s top starter Brody Wilson. The Jackets were aggressive in the count and consistently put balls in play.
“In order for him to be successful, he’s going to have to throw it across the plate,” Monaghan said. “So we just needed to have an aggressive approach to not chase out of the zone, but be ready to swing the bat.”
Tupelo’s Kaleb Bobo roped a one-run double in the bottom of the fifth, then J.P. Enis singled in another to make it 6-4. In the bottom of the seventh, Landon Swinney knocked a one-run single to make it a one-run game, then the Golden Wave loaded the bases with two outs.
In response, Starkville went to Cohen to put it away. Facing Fischer Farrar, Cohen got down in the count 2-0 but threw three straight strikes, including a swinging strike three, to give the Jackets a 1-0 series lead.
“We just didn’t play real clean early on defensively,” Tupelo coach Scott Gann said. “At the plate, you could just tell we were pressing.”
Tyson Knox tossed five innings of four-run ball for Starkville. Will Akers went 1 2/3 with one run allowed before Cohen shut the door.
Torian Knox led the Jackets with three driven in – one on a sacrifice fly in the first and another on a two-run double.
“When times got tough, everybody was willing to pick the dude up right next to them,” Knox said. “If they made a mistake, the next dude came right back and picked them up, doing the job.”
Extra Bases
Big Inning: In the top of the third, Torian Knox brought home two on a double, and Zay Spencer and Murphy Gordon each singled in a run.
Big Stat: Starkville’s hitters struck out just once as a team.
Coach Speak: “‘You just need to relax. Go home, get a good night’s rest. That’s the reason why you play best two out of three, and you focus on tomorrow’s game. Finish that one, and then you get to Game 3, however that works out.’” – Gann’s message to Tupelo after the loss.
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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 31 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
