Peyton Lacy and Pass Christian Pirates pushing for first district title in school history
Pass Christian baseball coach Ricky Smith found his team in a tight race for the district two seasons ago and had to turn to a sophomore battling a nagging back injury in a key game against St. Stanislaus.
That pitcher was Peyton Lacy and he promptly shut down an explosive Rock-a-Chaw lineup with a complete game shutout and 12 strikeouts to boot. The Pirates didn’t claim the district that year, but Lacy, now a senior, has his team in the thick of the race again in search of the first district title in program history.
The Southern Miss signee is a two-way star that has hit six home runs with a .362 batting average and is working a 1.37 ERA with 75 strikeouts in 41.1 innings on the mound this season.
“Peyton was an eighth grader when I first got here,” Smith told the Sun Herald. “We knew he had the potential to be a really good player. Wasn’t sure exactly how good he would turn out to be honestly, but he just grinded out throughout his high school career and this past year and a half, he’s really taken off and becoming an elite high school baseball player.”
“Elite” is an apt way to describe Lacy’s impact on the diamond. Those that have run into the Pirates lately know of his skill set and game-changing abilities while playing both shortstop and pitcher.
In a 3-2 win over Greene County in March, Lacy hit a two-run home run at the plate and struck out 13 batters from the mound. A week before that, he tossed a complete game one-hitter with 16 K’s in a 10-0 win against Moss Point.
The list of head-turning performances are seemingly endless. You’ll find a complete-game pitched with 11 strikeouts and a two-run home run against Harrison Central in February, a three-hit day at the plate accompanied by a 14-K day on the mound against Bay High as a junior and a complete game two-hitter against a vaunted Stone County team that year, as well.
Through it all, Lacy credits his support staff for the player he’s grown into.
“My coaches, my friends, they’re always there to keep me level,” Lacy said. “They’re always there to tell me if I get too big or too low. I think I do a pretty good job of having a level head, but it can get big sometimes when I do something good. They’re there to tell me I suck. That’s what friends do.”
Chasing history
Lacy and the Pirates are in the final stages of a district race with historic implications. Pass Christian has consistently found itself just short of the top spot in its region and is hoping this is the year it finally breaks through.
A two-game series with Stone next week will likely be the ultimate decider for both clubs.
“That means a lot to me,” Lacy said on the possibility of winning district. “Not only to bring a district championship here, but to get home field advantage the whole way. Pitching here is a big deal to me.”
Pass Christian’s senior-heavy roster knows all too well what coming up short feels like and is using that feeling to fuel itself this season.
The last two years featured early playoff exits in the first and second rounds, producing memories of heartbreak Lacy doesn’t want to relive again.
“Just watching the seniors, know it was their last games, it’s probably the worst feeling in the world,” Lacy said. “They’ve talked to me and they’re telling me how much they miss it. So I try to take every moment and try not to take it for granted, because you never know when your last game is going to be. I just try to play like it’s my last.”
Lacy points to a tight-knit group in the dugout as why he believes this year’s team is different. Beyond the dugout, the star is surrounded by experienced talent.
Senior and Millsaps College commit Dylan Welter has been another two-way impact player for Smith’s club, outfielder and dual-sport star Terry Patton combines speed and contact ability and Evan Anderson and Brendan Necaise have provided solid pitching for the 13-6 Pirates.
“This team is resilient,” Smith said. “We’re senior-driven in our leadership... our seniors drive us and pull us in the right direction. Our kids stay locked in. They compete hard.”
Lacy is a part of that senior leadership core and a player that Smith says others look up to, including young campers and JV players on their way into the program.
Building a Lacy dynasty in Hattiesburg
Lacy won’t be the first in his family to suit up in Black and Gold. His older cousin, Gabe Lacy, plays second base for the Golden Eagles as a grad transfer from Tennessee Tech who played his high school ball in Gulfport.
When the younger Lacy was still just a kid, his grandmother would bring him to Gabe’s games at GHS. That’s where his Peyton’s love for the game began to spark.
“When I was probably 9, I used to go to all of his games,” Peyton said. “My grandma would bring me to his Gulfport games back then. It was awesome. He was a stud back in high school, still is... I wanted to be just like him. I used to mimic my stance after him because he hit homers and I kind of started getting too big and I was like, ‘I need to start being myself.’ I love him to death. He’s definitely my role model.”
Peyton says he and Gabe talk with each other every day. Though Gabe is in his one and only season at USM, the Lacy name will continue to don the back of a Golden Eagle jersey.
When Peyton does arrive, he’ll have the opportunity to work from both the mound and the infield. The younger Lacy has a fastball that currently tops out at 93 miles per hour, a slider, a slurve and a changeup that has improved over the last year.
“(Southern Miss) is so close,” Lacy said on why he chose USM. “Having my parents at every game, grandparents and all that. That’s a big decision for me, but what really made it was the program and how successful they are. They’ll let me play both ways, I enjoy both sides of the game.”
Lacy says his goal is to get his fastball up to 95 before arriving in Hattiesburg and letting pitching coach Christian Ostrander take over from there.
His arm and powerful bat still have one high school season to wrap up. The Pirates will travel to Stone next Tuesday where Lacy is scheduled to pitch in a high-stakes matchup ahead of the district finale next Friday against the Tomcats at home.
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This story was originally published April 6, 2023 at 5:50 AM.
