HATTIESBURG, Miss. – A tightly contested pitchers' duel unfolded Thursday afternoon at Milton Wheeler Field, as William Carey edged Blue Mountain 2–1 in the opener before the Toppers claimed an 11–5 win in the nightcap.
Game One
Blue Mountain threatened early in the first inning when Jacob Bryant singled and Cody Presley worked a walk, but William Carey starter Matthew Davies navigated out of the jam with a pair of strikeouts to strand both runners.
The Crusaders also had an early opportunity in the bottom half of the inning after
Franklin Hernandez singled and a throwing error later in the inning allowed
Gage Hinnant to advance to third. Blue Mountain escaped unscathed, however, inducing a groundout to keep the scoreless tie intact.
The game's first run came in the third inning following a defensive miscue. Jake Meilstrup reached on an error and stole second before Presley drove him home with an RBI double to left, giving Blue Mountain a brief 1–0 advantage.
William Carey responded immediately in the bottom of the frame.
DeeJay Booth singled and later scored on Hernandez's two-out RBI single up the middle to even the score. Blue Mountain mounted another threat in the fourth by loading the bases with a pair of walks and a single, but Carey again worked out of trouble with a strikeout and a fielder's choice to preserve the tie.
The deciding run crossed in the fifth inning. After three Crusaders drew walks to load the bases with one out, Hernandez delivered once more with a sacrifice fly to center, bringing Booth home with what proved to be the game-winning run.
Davis took control from there, allowing just one baserunner over the final two innings. He retired the side in order in the seventh to secure the 2–1 victory.
Game Two
Blue Mountain jumped out in front again in the nightcap, plating two runs in the top of the first on Bryant's two-run home run to left field. William Carey answered in the bottom half as
Jayden Mark singled home Booth to trim the deficit to 2–1.
The Toppers seized momentum in the second inning, stringing together three consecutive hits to score three runs and build a 5–1 lead. The Crusaders put runners in scoring position in both the second and third innings but were unable to capitalize.
After a scoreless third, Blue Mountain extended its cushion in the fourth, pushing across three more runs on three hits to make it 8–1. Carey was held in check offensively until the seventh, when
Alan McClean lined a two-run double into left-center to cut the margin to 9–3.
Blue Mountain added runs in the later innings to stretch the lead to 11–3. William Carey mounted a final push in the ninth, scoring twice on RBI singles by Booth and
Taylor Walters, but the rally was cut short by a game-ending double play.
William Carey returns to action Friday to wrap up the series against Blue Mountain with a single game scheduled for 1 p.m. at Milton Wheeler Field.
