STARKVILLE — Starkville High School baseball coach Travis Garner had been waiting for an inning like the first inning of his team’s 4-3 victory against New Hope on Monday night for quite some time.
He wasn’t alone.
“That hit felt great,” Starkville senior designated hitter Conner Reinike said. “It was like that hit lifted the pressure off this team. We really needed something good to happen. The first inning was huge from a confidence standpoint.”
Starkville (2-5) loaded the bases with no outs in the first. After a strikeout, Reinike delivered with a two-run single to the right-center gap on a 2-2 pitch. After a lineout, Griffin Little followed with a bloop RBI single.
The Yellow Jackets had been looking for a clean, hard-hit single or the lucky-bounce single all season. The hits gave the Yellow Jackets a 3-0 lead.
In its first six games, Starkville had four innings where it loaded the bases. The Yellow Jackets were scoreless in those situations.
“All year long, I have said we were going to be a good team,” Garner said. “We left some runners on after the first inning, but the first inning was really big. As sad as it sounds, we need something good to happen early in a game to give us some confidence. When you are working with a young team, that confidence level can be shaken. To get two first-inning hits with runners in scoring position was really big.”
Junior left-hander Austin Campbell allowed four hits and three runs (two earned) in 6 1/3 innings. He only had one strikeout and his defense made six errors. Nonetheless, after throwing 113 pitches, Campbell was happy to get the win.
“This was big for our team,” Campbell said. “New Hope has an excellent team. To go out and get a win against them really means a lot. Our motto is ‘fight for me and I will fight for you.’ I thought we showed a tremendous amount of fight.”
While Campbell had to overcome the errors, he received a lot of help from freshman Jack Perry. After an RBI double by Thomas Stevens brought New Hope within 4-2, Perry came on in relief and hit a batter, got a second out, and hit another batter. The game then appeared over after Bryce Braddock checked his swing on a 3-2 pitch. The Yellow Jackets celebrated with no clear call from the umpire. An appeal ruled Braddock didn’t swing and a walk forced in the Trojans’ third run. Perry bounced back by striking out Koby Harcrow on a 3-2 pitch to end the game.
“(Perry) is going to be a great one,” Garner said. “Even though he struggled early, his composure was great.”
Garner put together one of the most challenging schedules in the state for his team. Starkville already has faced Biloxi, Gulfport, and West Lauderdale.
“We have faced 88-90 (mph) on the mound three times this season,” Garner said, “and gotten the snot beat out of us three times because of it. That is why we played those games to get ready for nights like tonight. You could see some of the hard lessons from earlier paid off. We beat one of the elite teams in the state. This will help our team tons going forward.”
New Hope starter Noah Brock pitched the first three innings. Matt Mordecai and Parker Lane threw in relief.
After the tough first, Brock recovered to strike out the side in the third. New Hope escaped jams in the fourth and fifth with double plays. The Yellow Jackets scratched an insurance run in the fifth on two walks, a hit batter, and a hit by Campbell.
That would be a critical score as New Hope (5-2) touched a laboring Campbell in the seventh. New Hope was coming off a 5-1 loss to Gordo on Saturday.
“I just wanted to give my team all that I had,” Campbell said. “There is no doubt that playing so many good teams already this season helped this team out tonight. As a pitcher, I knew we had a chance after scoring three runs in the first inning. As a pitcher, you want to go back out there so you can feel what it is like to pitch with a lead.”
Starkville had eight hits and stranded 10 runners. Carter Bentley and Campbell had two hits.
New Hope played errorless ball and had four hits.
“It wasn’t the perfect game, but it was a really big win for this team,” Reinike said. “If we can start hitting better in clutch situations, we have a chance to have a good season. This (win) will certainly help.”
n Marengo Academy 9, Pickens Academy 1: Austin Goodman had two hits, but the Pirates lost Monday to slip to 3-3.
Hunter Wilber, Austin Pate, Will Jones, Jeff White, and Kris Cooper had hits for Pickens Academy.
Nyc Gann (0-2) allowed five hits in three innings. He walked two and struck out one.
Pickens Academy will play host to South Choctaw at 6 p.m. today.
n Choctaw County 9, West Point 5: the Green Wave slipped to 5-3 with their loss Monday.
On Saturday, West Point lost to Kosciusko 5-3. Gray Berry had two hits, scored a run, and an RBI to lead the attack. Ike Taylor, Marquez Carter, Seth Edwards, and Bobby Woodard had hits. Jake Chambless and Woodard had RBIs.
Roe Ketchum and Woodard split six innings on the mound. They combined to allow five hits and four walks. They struck out four.
On Friday, West Point defeated Columbus 11-3 and 14-4.
n Caledonia loses three games in tournament: At LaGrange, Georgia, the Confederates lost three games last weekend at the LaGrange (Ga.) tournament.
Caledonia lost to Central (Phenix City, Ala.) 10-0 on Friday and Locust Grove (Ga.) 9-1 and LaGrange (Ga.) 8-4 on Saturday.
Against Central, Beau Bates and Spencer Unruh had hits. Logan Suggs allowed four hits and three runs (one earned) in 3 1/3 innings. He walked one and struck out six. Cade Stacy, Will Burton, and Harrison Powell combined to give up five hits.
Against Locust Grove, Caide Woods had two hits, while Bates, Seth Brown (RBI), Stacy, Triston Gardner, and Suggs had hits. Hunter McMurphey allowed nine hits and five runs (three earned) in six innings. He walked two and struck out two. Burton pitched the seventh.
Against LaGrange, Bates had three hits, scored two runs, and had two RBIs, Unruh and Stacy had a hit and scored a run, Brown had two hits, Suggs had a hit and an RBI, and Sawyer Brown had an RBI. Westlee Honeycutt allowed four hits and one run in four innings. He struck out three. Stacy, Woods, and Brown also pitched.
n Starkville Academy 9, Philadelphia 3: Codie Futral, Nason Heflin, Howell Archer, and Carter Roach had two hits to help the Volunteers even their record at 2-2 with their victory Saturday.
Dillon Carrell led the way with three RBIs. Futral, Landen Rogers, Archer, Roach, and Kyle Faver had doubles. Will Holley hit a home run. Archer, Roach, and Faver scored two runs. Will Miller also had a hit.
Taylor Arnold, Heflin, and Holley combined on the victory. Arnold allowed three hits in 3 1/13 innings. Heflin struck out six in 2 2/3 innings.
n West Lowndes wins first game: Marquis Banks and Fred Clark had two hits Friday to lead the West Lowndes High baseball team to a 16-1 victory against Noxubee County on Friday.
Clark had a double and Banks had a triple to lead the attack.
Octavian Stallings, Jarquil Clark, Decamby Willis, Zac Williams, and Dalen Rogers also had hits for the Panthers.
Adolphus Brewer struck out three in two innings.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Scott Walters on Twitter @dispatchscott
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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