How the Class 5A baseball title series was decided between Pascagoula and Saltillo
Defense is one of the three pillars of baseball, along with hitting and pitching, and when a team falters in the field, bad things often happen.
That was the case for Pascagoula in the third and deciding game of the Class 5A state championship series.
The Panthers committed three costly errors and were unable to make several usually routine plays. The result was a 9-5 defeat to Saltillo Saturday at Trustmark Park. Pascagoula finished its season 22-18, while the Tigers (26-11) won their fifth state title, but the first since 1972.
“I just told the kids that I love them, and they’ve got a lot of things to be proud of,” Pascagoula coach Richie Tillman said. “They fought hard. I’m as proud of this team as any I’ve ever coached.”
The Panthers started off the right way against Saltillo senior right-hander Ian Dillon. Keilon Parnell led off the top of the first inning with a triple to the wall in center field and was balked home to give Pascagoula an early 1-0 lead.
Trouble starts for Pascagoula
But after retiring the Tigers in order in the bottom of the first, Panther sophomore Brayden Scott ran into trouble in the second.
With one out, Ethan Turner singled, and Drake Douglas drew a walk. The Panthers got a ground ball, but Turner just did beat the throw to third to load the bases.
Scott then got a ground ball to shortstop, but the Panthers were unable to get a relay for the double play that would have ended the inning. Instead, a run scored, and the Tigers made Pascagoula pay dearly.
Evan McCarthy, pinch-hitting early in the 9-hole, drove in two runs with a single, and Matthew Roncalli made it 4-1 with a single up the middle.
In the third, Turner reached on a one-out walk and should have been out when he was picked off first. However, the throw to second base was high, allowing Turner to steal the base, and he scored on an RBI single by Nolen Wright with two out.
“You can’t give a very good team extra at-bats, extra outs,” Tillman said. “Those things haunt you, and they came back to bite us in the butt today.”
Pascagoula got one run back in the third with two out. Houston Johnson was hit by a pitch and scored all the way from first on Sean Smith’s double off the left field fence.
And it was hit batters that paved the way for a three-run rally in the top of the fourth. Francisco Solivan and Warren Garry were each hit by pitches to open the inning, a single by Griffin Wells loaded the bases and two runs came in on Josh Forsman’s double.
“It was a really great game; everybody fought as hard as they could,” said Forsman, a junior. “They just got the best of us today. That hit felt really good, but a state championship would have been better.”
Saltillo goes to the bullpen
After watching his starter hit four batters, three of which scored, Saltillo coach Eric Reynolds went to the bullpen for his ace, Douglas.
The sophomore right-hander allowed the tying run to score on a wild pitch, but after that he was all but unhittable.
“He’s been our Game 1 guy all year,” Saltillo coach Eric Reynolds said. “He struggled in Game 1 here, so we got him out of there.
“We were going to go to him early today, and when he went out there, you could tell from his body language; it was different today than it was the other day. That’s the guy we’ve been used to seeing all year.”
Douglas (9-3) was rocked hard by the Panthers in Game 1, which Pascagoula won 12-1, but on Saturday, he retired 12 of the 13 batters he faced. The Panthers’ only hit after Douglas came on was a one-out single by Rhodes Randle.
Saltillo wasted little time regaining command, scoring three runs in the bottom of the fourth, helped by a pair of Panther errors.
Leading off, Mason Easterling reached on an error and Roncalli singled. Easterling stole third and the throw was high, allowing Easterling to score what would prove to be the winning run for Saltillo.
Luke Wood followed with an RBI single, Daniel Meeks double, putting runners at second and third, and that was all for Scott (5-2), who struck out three and walked two, but allowed eight hits and six unearned runs.
Solivan came out from behind the plate to pitch, and was effective, but the damage was done.
“He did a great job,” Tillman said. “He’s also great behind the plate. He’s a competitor, he has so much energy and heart, and he has the ability.”
Saltillo added an insurance run in the sixth, when Turner drew a two-out walk, stole second and scored on a pinch-hit single by Ben Webb.
Although there were tears in the Pascagoula dugout after the final out was recorded, the Panthers took some solace from their unexpected run to the state championship.
“Nobody expected us to get here, but we’re five rounds deep,” Tillman said. “We’re one of only two teams playing in 5A. How cool is that?
“You take out (Pearl River Central) and West Jones — even South Jones; they were No. 2 in their region. You can’t say enough about these guys. But we’re going to move on and get ready for next year. Look out for these guys.”
Pascagoula only loses four seniors, and that experience will help as the Panthers move up to Class 6A next season.
“I think we’re looking great for next year,” Forsman said. “We have a lot of guys coming back, so we’re just going to get back to work and get better.”