HATTIESBURG, Miss. – William Carey came alive late Friday afternoon at Milton Wheeler Field, erupting for eight runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to rally past Blue Mountain, 12–8.
 
Blue Mountain seized early momentum, breaking the game open in the second inning with a grand slam to grab a 4–0 lead and put William Carey in chase mode for much of the contest.
 
After missing opportunities early, the Crusaders finally broke through in the fifth. A wild pitch brought home Carey's first run, and Jayden Mark followed with an RBI single to center field. Tyler Ducksworth added an RBI on a fielder's choice, cutting into the deficit and injecting energy into the lineup. Carey continued to chip away in the sixth inning when DeeJay Booth lifted a sacrifice fly to score Weston Wales, trimming the gap to three.
 
The Toppers briefly swung the momentum back in their favor, plating runs in both the sixth and seventh innings to extend the lead to 8–4. But the Crusaders had their biggest surge still ahead.
 
William Carey's decisive rally came in the bottom of the eighth, sending 13 batters to the plate and scoring eight runs on eight hits. Booth ignited the comeback with an RBI single, and Mark was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in another run. A bases-loaded walk by Franklin Hernandez pulled Carey within one and set the stage for the decisive blows.
 
Ducksworth drove in the tying run with a single to right field, before back-to-back RBI hits from Roth John and Alan McClean gave the Crusaders the lead. Booth capped the outburst with his second RBI hit of the inning as Carey flipped a four-run deficit into a commanding advantage.
 
The bullpen closed the door from there. Jimmie Johnson was dominant in relief, retiring six straight batters and striking out the side in the ninth to seal the comeback victory.
 
William Carey now turns its attention to the SSAC Conference Tournament, scheduled for April 29-May 2 at Rockabillys Stadium in Jackson, Tennessee.