PERKINSTON – Jones and Gulf Coast split a makeup doubleheader on Thursday at Curly Farris Field, with the Bobcats rallying from a 7-5 deficit in the seventh to take the opener 10-8 before the Bulldogs used a pair of two-run homers in the bottom of the seventh to walk-off Game 2 by a 4-2 final.
Jones moved to 16-14 overall, 9-7 in the MACCC while Gulf Coast is now 13-11 and 10-6 in the conference.
The Bobcats will return to The Bank on Wednesday, April 7 against Copiah-Lincoln to open a six-game homestand.
Game 1 – Jones 10, Gulf Coast 8
Garrett Clendenning's first home run of the season – a three-run blast in the first – gave Jones an early 4-0 lead, but they would need a couple of Bulldog errors in the latter innings to win the opener.
The 4-0 Bobcat lead was quickly erased as Gulf Coast used a pair of double steals and RBI-single from Luke Welborn to tie it after one.
Zach Flaskamp relieved
Wyatt Blalock after one frame and tossed the next 4.2 innings, allowing six hits and three runs to keep Jones in striking distance.
Welborn struck again in the second to make it 6-4 Bulldogs after two.
Clendenning's sac fly made it 6-5 before Alex McWhorter's RBI-double extended the lead back to 7-5 for MGCCC.
The Bulldogs committed seven errors in the opener and Jones was able to tie the game and then take a 9-7 lead in the seventh thanks to four runs. Jones took advantage of two errors in the seventh, a passed ball and another RBI from Clendenning – his fifth of the game.
Welborn's solo homer in the ninth off
Garrett Langrell pulled the final to 10-8.
Langrell scattered three hits, just the one run and four strikeouts in 3.1 innings to improve to 3-1 on the year.
Game 2 – Gulf Coast 4, Jones 2
Shut down by
Dalton Rogers for 6.1 innings, Gulf Coast took advantage of two untimely walks in the bottom of the seventh and turned them into a pair of two-run home runs to stun Jones in the nightcap.
Jones led 2-0 in the fifth on
DeeJay Booth's sac fly and a passed ball that allowed
Preston Ratliff to score.
Rogers had struck out eight and allowed only a first inning single before the seventh inning.
A leadoff walk, followed two batters later by a two-run shot from Noah Blythe, tied the game at 2-2. Another walk issued to pinch hitter Jared Tribet then setup Dawson Walters' two-run homer to right on a 1-2 pitch for the walk-off winner.
Rogers has been the hard-luck loser his last three starts, allowing nine runs on just seven hits with 32 strikeouts in 17.2 innings.
