ELLISVILLE – No. 14 Jones kicked off the day with a 12-2 run-rule over Holmes but fell in the nightcap, 14-7, to Itawamba in an MACCC round robin Tuesday afternoon at The Bank.
The Bobcats moved to 16-6 and will play one more non-conference game at Nunez on Friday, March 6 before opening conference play March 11 at East Central.
Jones 12, Holmes 2 (6 inn.)
Jones jumped on Holmes early, plating three in the first and three in the third to take a 6-0 lead.
Chase Russell's RBI-triple started the scoring and
Chesley Rhodes' first collegiate home run in the third extended the lead to six.
Holmes got two back in the fourth on an RBI-single from Chase Peeples and he'd score on a wild pitch to make it 6-2.
Kelan Guidry's first of two triples scored
Gage Reeves in the fifth and
Talan Theriot and Russell added RBI-singles to push it out to 9-2.
A Guidry sac fly scored a 10th run in the bottom of the sixth and Theriot followed with a fielder's choice and Russell singled to end the game in six.
Guidry was 3-for-3 with two triples, a double, sac fly and two RBIs and both G. Reeves and Russell added three hits.
Brayson Graham (2-1) went 4.1 allowing two runs with five strikeouts and four walks for the win and
Caden Freeman got the save (2), coming in with the tying run in the on-deck circle when the game was still 6-2.
Itawamba 14, Jones 7
The Bobcats led 5-1 after three thanks to a
Sanders Ainsworth three-run homer but Itawamba came storming back with 13 unanswered to win going away.
Leading 5-2 through four, that's when the wheels fell off for Jones.
Itawamba plated seven runs off just three hits and two Bobcat errors to take a 9-5 lead in the fifth.
Brady Thompson's three-run shot to left-center extended the lead to 14-5 in the top of the seventh before Jones got two back to end the game.
Dylan Champagne was 2-for-4 and both Russell and Ainsworth had three RBIs each.
Drew Lambert (1-2) took the loss, scattering three earned runs over 4.1 innings with six strikeouts and three walks.
