POPLARVILLE – Jones out-hit LSU Eunice 13-6 in Tuesday's NJCAA Region 23 Tournament opener at Dub Herring Park but gave up three-run home runs in the fifth and seventh as the Bengals knocked off the Bobcats, 7-5.

Jones will face the winner of East Central and Meridian Wednesday at 7 p.m. in a win-or-go-home game. LSUE will play Pearl River at 3:30 in a winner's bracket contest.

The Bengals got a leadoff double in the bottom of the first by Dawson Willis and he'd come around to score on a wild pitch to make it 1-0 LSUE after one.

Four straight singles in the third, including an RBI-single from Evan Rogers, tied the game at 1-1. But Jones was left wishing for more after grounding into an inning-ending double play and only scoring one. 

Bobcat starter Trent Hillen retired 11 straight before a one-out walk and hit-by-pitch in the fifth. Those free passes led to a three-run homer by Bennett Clement to make it 4-1 Bengals.

Still the same score in the seventh with Brandon Rhodes on the mound, two more free baserunners led to the eventual game-winning hit. A walk and fielding error setup a Tyson LeBlanc three-run inside-the-park home run to extend the lead to 7-1 LSUE. 

Cole Manuel's two-out, RBI-double in the eighth scored Colton Hegwood after a single to pull Jones a run closer.

Connor Brooks was able to escape a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the eighth to keep it a five-run game.

Rogers' three-run homer to left-center gave Jones a chance in the ninth and made it 7-5 before a strikeout ended it. 

Eight of Jones' nine hitters registered a combined 13 hits while LSUE was held to six. 

Hillen worked six innings, allowing five hits and four runs with six strikeouts to fall to 6-3.

Blake Lobell improved to 13-0 for LSUE, allowing one run on 10 hits with 10 strikeouts.