Bulldogs rally for split with No. 3 Bobcats

PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast got a stellar complete game from Riley Hall to rebound from what could have been a crushing Game 1 loss to earn a split with No. 3 Jones at Ken "Curly" Farris Field.

Hall scattered seven hits and struck out 10 in an 8-2 win which saw the Bulldogs score four times each in the fifth and sixth innings. The first game went to extra innings tied at 4, but Jones scored six in the 10^th for a 10-4 victory.

"That's a really good team over there," Gulf Coast coach Zach Allen said. "Coming out with a split is pretty good. You want the sweep, but getting that win after the way the first one ended was good."

The Bulldogs (21-14, 6-8 MACCC) got the offense going with two outs in the fifth. Jordan Davis (So., Neshoba/Neshoba Central) singled in Gulf Coast's first run, and Garrett Gardner (Fr., Madison/Madison-Ridgeland Academy) tied the game at 2 with an infield single. Brady Saxton (Fr., Brandon/Northwest Rankin) doubled in two more for the lead.

Anthony Tanner (Fr., Hurley/East Central) snuck a grand slam inside the right-field foul pole in the sixth for insurance.

"It was really just grinding it out," Allen said. "We had some decent at-bats, and I thought the zone was pretty big. We had to just stay with our plan, and we knew if we could get to their pen, we had a chance. Once we got there, our guys did damage when they needed to."

Hall's control was more than enough to get the Bulldogs across the finish line. He threw 68 percent of his pitches for strikes, walking two and hitting one batter.

"He could throw that two-seam, throw that four-seam, throw the slider, throw the changeup to the lefties," Allen said. "He just pounded the zone."

Brandon Coakley (So., Covington, La./Covington) had a two-run homer and a sacrifice fly in the opener. Garrett Gardner (Fr., Madison/Madison-Ridgeland Academy) drove in the other run with a double in the fourth for a 4-2 lead.

Jones scored twice in the sixth to tie, and the teams couldn't break the tie until extra innings.

Jones is 26-9, 9-3.

Gulf Coast plays again at Perk on Friday when Mississippi Delta visits. First pitch at Ken "Curly" Farris Field is at 1 p.m., and the games will be streamed at https://mgcccbulldogs.com/watch. Tickets are on sale at http://mgcccbulldogs.com/tickets.

For more information on MGCCC's 12 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.