Wolves Split Weekend Series with Cardinals

WESSON – The Co-Lin Baseball team played host to Mineral Area for a four game set this weekend on Friday, February 13, and Saturday, February 14. The Wolves and Cardinals split each day with the Wolves taking game one, 2-1, and game three, 8-1, while the Cardinals earning wins in game two, 16-3, and game four, 6-3.

GAME ONE

After a scoreless top of the first, the Wolves looked to take an early lead in the bottom half as they loaded the bases with two outs, but a strikeout brought the inning to an end with no scoring done. The game remained scoreless until the top of the third when the Cardinals loaded the bases with no outs and then scored a run on a sacrifice fly to take a 1-0 lead.

The Wolves then took a lead with two runs in the bottom half of the inning as Avery Griffin (Brookhaven) hit a leadoff single to get the offense going. Trey Davidson (Brandon) then crushed the first pitch he saw over the left field fence for a two-run home run to take a 2-1 lead.

Neither team got a runner past second base for the remainder of the game as the Wolves also retired the last six straight batters for the Cardinals in the sixth and seventh innings to secure the 2-1 victory.

The Wolves totaled eight hits as a team with Avery Griffin having the only multi-hit game with two hits while Bryson Jones (Brandon), Trey Davidson, Bradley Hanlon (Monroe, LA) Donovan Moore (Roxie), Brady White (Ethel), and Evan Holifield (Stringer) had one hit each. Davidson led the Wolves in RBIs with two.

Cameron Patterson (Central, LA) improved to 2-0 on the season with the win while pitching six innings and allowing one earned run on four hits with three walks and six strikeouts. Nas Sturdivant (Brandon) picked up his first save of the season with one scoreless inning of relief with one strikeout.

GAME TWO

The Cardinals got the scoring started early as they played five runs in the top of the first behind the strength of a three-run home run to take the lead over the Wolves. The Wolves responded with two runs in the bottom half as back-to-back doubles by Avery Griffin and Trey Davidson cut the lead down to 5-1. Later in the inning, Davidson scored on a passed ball to make the score, 5-2.

The Cardinals then scored two in the second and four in the third to push their lead to 11-2 while the final run of the game for the Wolves came in the bottom of the fourth as Hayes Hebert (Lafayette, LA) reached base being hit-by-pitch with one out. Hebert advanced to second on a groundout and then scored on an RBI-single by Bryson Jones making the score, 11-3. The Cardinals then scored five runs in the top of the fifth and then got the Wolves to hit into a game-ending double play in the bottom of the fifth to get the 16-3 win.

The Wolves totaled six hits as a team with Bryson Jones and Trey Davidson having two hits each while Avery Griffin and Hayes Hebert had one hit each. Jones and Davidson had one RBI each.

Akavion Griffith got the start and took the loss on the mound for the Wolves while pitching 1.1 innings and allowing seven runs, all earned, on seven hits with three walks and one strikeout. Jacob Buffalo (Foxworth) pitched one inning of relief allowing two earned runs on one hit with three walks and two strikeouts while Caleb Flynn (Laurel) pitched 0.2 innings of relief allowing two earned runs on three hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Ty Blakeney (Taylorsville) pitched 1.1 innings of relief allowing five runs, all earned, on five hits with two walks while MT Breland (Columbia) pitched 0.2 innings of scoreless relief.

GAME THREE

The Wolves got on the board first in this game with three runs in the bottom of the first as Bryson Jones hit a leadoff single, but was then forced out as Avery Griffin reached on a fielder's choice. Griffin advanced to second on a single by Trey Davidson while both then scored on an error after a single by Bradley Hanlon making the score, 2-0, while Hanlon advanced to third on the play. Hanlon then scored on an RBI groundout by Donovan Moore to increase the lead to 3-0.

The lone run for the Cardinals came in the top of the fourth on a leadoff solo home run making the score, 3-1. That score held until the Wolves scored five runs in the bottom of the sixth as Jacob Chancelor (Brandon) drew a leadoff walk while Cam Murphy (Brandon) was then brought in as a pinch runner. Murphy advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Evan Holifield, took third on a single by Brady White, and then scored as Jones reached on an error making the score, 4-1. After Griffin drew a walk to load the bases with one out, Trey Davidson clobbered a 1-0 pitch over fence in left field for a grand slam increasing the Wolves lead to 8-1.

The Cardinals were then retired in order in the top of the seventh to secure the 8-1 victory for the Wolves.

The Wolves totaled nine hits as Trey Davidson, Bradley Hanlon, and Brady White had two hits apiece while Bryson Jones, Avery Griffin, and John Mark Grissom (Pearl) had one hit each. Davidson led the Wolves in RBIs with four while Jones and Moore had one RBI each.

Jennings Kimbrell (Flowood) improved to 2-0 on the season with arguably his best start of his career pitching six innings and allowing one earned run on two hits and 10 strikeouts, setting a new career high for strikeouts in an appearance and hitting double digit strikeouts for the first time, while Lucian Walker (Starkville) pitched one inning of scoreless relief with one strikeout.

GAME FOUR

The Cardinals got on the board first as they scored one run in the first and then hit a leadoff solo home run in the second to take a 2-0 lead over the Wolves.

The Wolves then cut the lead in half with one run in the bottom of the second as Bradley Hanlon starting the inning being hit-by-pitch, but was then thrown out trying to score after a double by Donovan Moore. After a single by John Mark Grissom and a walk drawn by Jacob Chancelor loaded the base, Moore then scored on a sacrifice fly by Hayes Hebert making the score, 2-1. The inning was then ended by a strikeout before the Wolves could push another run across.

The Wolves then tied the game with a single run in the bottom of the fourth as Hanlon hit a leadoff single and then scored on an RBI-double by Moore making the score, 2-2. The Cardinals then regained the lead with a single run in the top of the fifth. However, the Wolves responded with a run of their own as Avery Griffin hit a one-out single to get the offense going. Griffin advanced to third on a double by Trey Davidson and then scored on a sacrifice fly by Hanlon tying the game at 3-3.

The Cardinals once again scored a solo run in the sixth inning to retake the lead at 4-3. The Wolves looked to respond after a leadoff single by Grissom and a walk by Chancelor followed by a sacrifice bunt by Hebert put two runners in scoring position with one out, but a strikeout followed by a groundout ended the inning with no scoring done as the Cardinals held the lead.

The Cardinals then added two runs in the seventh and retired the Wolves in order in the bottom half to seal the 6-3 win and split of the four game series.

The Wolves totaled eight hits as John Mark Grissom and Donovan Moore had two hits apiece while Avery Griffin, Trey Davidson, Bradley Hanlon, and Jacob Chancelor had one hit each. Hanlon, Moore, and Hayes Hebert had one RBI each.

Wes White (Flowood) got the start and took the loss (1-1) with 5.2 innings pitched while allowing four runs, all earned, on six hits with one walk and eight strikeouts. Nash Sturdivant pitched 1.1 innings of relief allowing two runs, one earned, on four hits with three strikeouts.

Co-Lin is now 7-3 overall after the four game split.