Bulldogs bite Bears twice

PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast had been in a funk at home, so coach Rodney Batts traded dugouts for Tuesday's doubleheader against Baton Rouge.

The change of scenery suited the Bulldogs, who powered past Baton Rouge 14-2 and 10-3 at Ken "Curly" Farris Field.

"It's good to get two wins at home where we haven't been our best," Batts said. "We were able to throw a bunch of different pitchers in a non-conference game, and they all threw good. We didn't extend anybody."

The Bulldogs improved to 21-11 overall and got back to 8-10 at Perk. Do the math, and you'll see the squad has an eye-popping 13-1 record on the road.

Gulf Coast exploded for 10 runs in the fifth inning of Game 1 to put that game away.

Alden Davis (So., Pascagoula/Pascagoula) and Cullan O'Shea (So., Mary G. Montgomery/Mobile Ala.) had two hits and three RBI each. Bryce Braddock (Fr., New Hope/New Hope) drove in three runs, and Louis Morgan (Fr., East Central/Hurley) had a double and two RBI.

"I thought we swung the bats where, particularly with runners in scoring position," Batts said. "We had three two-out hits in that one inning, which was the difference in the game."

Dawson Hall (Fr., East Central/Hurley) pitched two hitless innings to earn the win and improve to 7-1. Four Bulldogs pitchers combined to allow five hits and strike out four.

In the second game, Jacob Roberts (So., Gulfport/Gulfport) picked up the victory by striking out three in two hitless innings of relief. The four pitchers combined to strike out nine and allow five hits.

Parker went 3-for-4 with his 10th home run, and he drove in four runs. Dee Hawthorne (Fr., Harrison Central/Gulfport) also went 3-for-4 with a double and a triple and three RBI. Davis had three hits and drove in two.

Gulf Coast returns to MACJC action Friday when East Mississippi visits Perkinston. First pitch in the doubleheader is scheduled for 3 p.m. The games will be streamed at https://livestream.com/MGCCCBulldogs/events/8641215.

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