Monday, March 08, 2010

Wildcats bomb Cards
River sweeps Hibbing with lopsided 18-0, 10-0 wins

    POPLARVILLE — Pearl River’s Wildcats bombarded Hibbing (Minn.) with a pair of lopsided, five-inning losses in the Cardinals season opening games here Sunday in Wildcat Stadium.
    PRCC won the first game of the doubleheader 18-0, then took the nightcap 10-0 to improve to 6-11 overall. Hibbing, out of Hibbing, Minn., is now 0-2.
    The Cardinals managed only a single hit in each of the contests, while the Wildcats bashed 15 in the first game and nine in the second.
    In the opening game, the Cards left runners at first and third in the first inning off a hit batter and a walk before The River scored a whopping 11 in the bottom of the frame. Sixteen Wildcats batted in the inning.
    After Bryn Whitehead of Sumrall High led off the first with a strikeout, Jake Hawkins of Sumrall High walked, stole second, and scored off a double by Ashley Graeter of Poplarville High. Matthew Magee of Petal High followed with an RBI double, then Temple Harvey of Brandon High was hit by a pitch and Matt Linton of East Central High walked to load the bases. Magee scored when Zach Farrar of Brandon High was hit by a pitch, then B.J. Smith of Sumrall High smacked a two-run double to right to make it 5-0.
    Luke Rowan of Clinton High followed with another two-RBI double before Whitehead returned to the plate for his second appearance in the inning and singled. Hawkins’ second at bat saw an RBI single to make it 8-0 which prompted the mound exit for Cardinal starter Matt Erickson for Chris Novotony, who immediately gave up a three-run homer to Graeter for the 11th PRCC run.
    Magee flew out to left for the second out before Harvey walked. Linton grounded out to short for the final out of the first.
    Wildcat starter Taylor Martin out of St. Michael’s High in Baton Rouge, La., gave up the only Card hit of the game when lead off man Nick Moran singled in the second.
    Farrar was belted by a pitch to lead off the bottom of the frame, then Rowan singled to center an out later. After a Novotony strikeout, his only of the game, Hawkins singled in Farrar, then pinch runner Jarrod Smith of Forrest County AHS scored on an error to make it 13-0.
    Harvey led off the bottom of the third with a double to left and scored off Linton’s ensuing single to make it 14-0 before Farrar hit into a double play and B.J. Smith popped out to short center.
    In the bottom of the fourth, Ethan Ewoldt of Oak Grove High drew a one-out walk, then Grae Orman of Clinton High singled to left, setting the stage for and RBI-single by Jarrod Smith. Layton Lott of Seminary High followed with a three-run homer to make it as it ended — 18-0.
    Martin (1-3) got the win in his two innings on the mound, striking out two, walking one, and hitting a batter; while Beau Underwood out of St. Patrick High in Biloxi relieved in the third. He struck out one and walked on in his two innings of action before Ryan Knight of Sumrall High took over in the fifth, recording a walk.
    Erickson (0-1) got the loss in his one-third inning of action, striking out one, walking two, a hitting two batters; while Novotony struck out one, walked two, and hit a batter in relief.
    Graeter paced the Wildcats’ 15-hit barrage with a homer, a double, and a single (five RBIs), while Rowan doubled and singled (two RBIs), Hawkins had two singles (two RBIs), Lott homered (three RBIs), Harvey, Magee (one RBI), and Jarrod Smith (one RBI) all doubled; and Linton (one RBI), Orman, B.J. Smith (two RBIs), and Whitehead all had base hits.
    Hibbing committed one error in the game to Pearl River’s none.
    In the second game, PRCC went up 1-0 in the bottom of the first off a lead-off solo home run by Hawkins, then loaded the bases off a Magee single, an error, and a walk before Ewoldt grounded out to short to end the inning.
    In the bottom of the second, the Wildcats unleashed a six-run effort. Orman led off with a double to left and scored off a single to right by Josh McGoey of Long Beach High. Hawkins then walked, setting the stage for Harvey’s two-run single to center to make it 4-0.
    After Magee was belted by a pitch, Farrar reached on an error before Ewoldt smacked a three-run double an out later before Orman popped out to left field to end the frame.
    After a scoreless third inning, Hibbing’s Dustin Pleshe cracked a two-out double to left center for the Cards’ only hit of the game before Evan Hauta was fanned for the final out.
    In the bottom of the frame, Lott led off with a walk, Farrar singled, then Ewoldt smacked an RBI double to left for PRCC’s eight run. Orman followed with a two-RBI single to end the scoring before McGoey popped out to short and Cody Bielstein of Purvis High flew out to center to end the inning.
    Wildcat starter Robert Marzoni (1-0) got the win in his collegiate debut. The freshman out of Purvis High gave up one hit, struck out seven, and walked three before Jared Bond out of Denham Springs High in Denham Springs, La., relieved in the fifth. Bond struck out two and hit one batter in his one inning of action.
    Card starter Aaron Kritz (0-1) got the loss in his three innings on the mound, walking three and hitting a batter; while Pleshe relieved in the fourth and walked one.
    HCC committed two errors, while PRCC played an error free game.
    Pearl River returns to action Tuesday when it travels to Faulkner State in Bay Minette, Ala., for a 1 p.m. doubleheader, then hits the road for Baton Rouge CC in Baton Rouge Saturday to play St. Louis Merrimac (Mo.) at 2 p.m., then host BRCC at 5 p.m.
    The Wildcats will open their MACJC South Division schedule Tuesday, March 16, with a 4 p.m. doubleheader against Copiah-Lincoln in Wesson.