POPLARVILLE, Miss. — It was a great day from start to finish for the No. 3 Pearl River baseball program on Saturday at Dub Herring Park. The day began with a special Alumni Day celebration and was capped off by a dominant sweep of Holmes. The Wildcats grabbed game one 12-1 in seven innings before winning game two 9-2.

“It was a good rebound for us on the mound from the past week. I was glad to see guys come out and command the zone,” Pearl River coach Michael Avalon said. “When we needed to make a pitch and keep them off the scoreboard, we were able to do it. At the plate, we had better approaches. We just need to continue to work on our offensive efficiency.”

Avalon also talked about holding Alumni Day prior to the doubleheader.

“It’s always so awesome to see all of these guys come back,” he said. “You can see how much it means to them when they step on the field again. From a coaching perspective, I love getting to get back together with guys who I was fortunate enough to coach. It’s truly a special day.”

GAME ONE

Cortez Dennis (Wiggins; Stone County) toed the rubber to begin the day for the Wildcats (29-7 overall; 10-4 MACCC). The sophomore right-hander struck out the first batter he faced and a few batters later he forced Holmes (6-24; 2-12) to ground into a double play.

PRCC put up two quick runs in their half of the first, 2-0. Gabe Broadus (Wilmer, Ala.; Faith Academy) was plunked by a pitch and Preston Soper (Madison; Germantown) laced a single into right field. Alex Perry (McComb; North Pike) brought home the first run of the inning and two batters later Ian Montz (Lafayette, La.; Acadiana) drove in a run with a single.

The Wildcats tacked on four more runs in the second. Hunter Sute (Tuscaloosa, Ala.; American Christian Academy) got the party started by going the opposite way and into the left center field gap for a double. After a Blaise Breerwood(Poplarville) hit-by-pitch, Broadus Drove a single into left field for an RBI. Soper followed him up by knocking a ball right back where it came from for a two-run single. Logan Walters (Petal) capped off the big frame by smashing a double off the left field wall for an RBI.

Another run was scored in the third when Marshall Phillips‘ pop fly was dropped by the Bulldog second baseman. The run made the score 7-0.

The baseball wasn’t finding Wildcat gloves in the fourth inning as three weakly hit singles fell and allowed the Bulldogs to get on the board for the first time. PRCC added on two runs in their half of the inning, 9-1.

Three runs in the sixth inning put the game in run-rule territory, 12-1. A wild pitch allowed Montz to score and then Pearl River brought in Cole Fletcher (Picayune; St. Stanislaus) to pinch-hit. The sophomore laced a 1-0 pitched off the wall in left field and slid into third base safely with a two-run triple.

JT Schnoor (Pascagoula; Resurrection) came in to pitch the final inning and struck out two of the three batters that he faced to secure the victory.

Soper, Walters and Montz all finished the game with two hits. Soper, Montz and Fletcher had a pair of RBIs each. Breerwood and Sute finished with three and two walks, respectively.

Dennis tossed four innings to earn the win. He allowed one run on three hits and struck out four. Cameron Fennell (Long Beach) threw

two innings, allowing one hit and one walk. He struck out three batters. Schnoor struck out two batters in one inning.

GAME TWO

Will Passeau (Mobile, Ala.; St. Paul’s) worked around a walk in the first inning to retire the side, setting up a big inning for the Wildcat bats. Broadus led off with a double and walks by Perry and Walters set up Montz in a big spot. Facing a 2-0 count, the sophomore hit a moonshot that got caught in the wind and carried out for a grand slam. The blast was his sixth of the season. Fletcher chased the Bulldog soon after starter by knocking an RBI single into left field, 5-0.

A sacrifice fly off the bat of Walters in the second scored Soper and made the score 6-0.

Holmes got two runs back in the fourth, but Pearl River matched it with three of its own in the bottom half of the inning. A Soper walk was followed by a Walters single and Montz slashed a single through the right side of the infield for an RBI. With Montz on first and Walters on third, Montz took off for second to force a throw down. As soon as the catcher released the ball, Walters dashed for home and slid in safely. Montz grabbed second on the play. A few batters later, Fletcher drew a bases-loaded walk to pick up an RBI, making the score 9-2.

Luke Lyon (Hattiesburg; Oak Grove), Blake Gollott (D’Iberville) and Bobby Magee (Petal) each turned in a solid inning of relief in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to secure the 9-2 victory.

Passeau finished with four innings pitched, allowing three hits, two walks and two unearned runs. He struck out four batters. Lyon threw an inning and struck out one. Gollott allowed one hit and struck out one in an inning. Magee struck out three and walked one in his lone inning.

Montz went 2-for-5 with five RBIs in the game. Broadus was the only other Wildcat with multiple hits, collecting two. Fletcher had two RBIs in the game.

CEREMONIAL FIRST PITCH

Prior to the beginning of Saturday’s doubleheader, Pearl River was honored to have the Riser family back on campus to throw out the ceremonial first pitch.
“What a special family. They bleed maroon and gold for sure,” Avalon said. “They love Pearl River. They’ve always been first to jump and help. They’re special people and we’re very, very thankful for them and all that they do.”

UP NEXT

Pearl River remains home on Tuesday for a 3 p.m. doubleheader against Copiah-Lincoln.

TICKETING

Season and single-game tickets for Pearl River baseball are available now and can be purchased at PRCCAthletics.com/Tickets.

CASHLESS BOX OFFICE

To help improve traffic flow and fan experience, PRCC athletics box offices are cashless in 2022-23. Only credit and debit cards will be accepted at the box office. Fans are encouraged to beat the lines and purchase their tickets in advance.

TUNE IN

Pearl River livestreams all home games for free at PRCCMedia.com. Fans who have Roku, Amazon Fire or Apple TV devices can also watch the Wildcat broadcasts by downloading the “Pearl River CC” channel from their app stores.

Games can also be heard at WRJW 1320-AM, 106.9 FM and WRJWRadio.com.

For the latest on Pearl River Community College athletics, follow us on Twitter (@PRCCAthletics) and Facebook (PRCCAthletics)