Bulldogs split at EMCC
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 16 | 17 | 2 |
|
East Mississippi Community College | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 0 |
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 |
|
East Mississippi Community College | 4 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 16 | 13 | 0 |
PHOTO BY STEPHEN DENNIS
Mississippi Gulf Coast couldn't keep the bats going Sunday in a doubleheader at East Mississippi and had to settle for a split.
The Bulldogs could have jumped into a tie for ninth going into the final day of the regular season. They won the opener 16-5 in seven innings, but lost the second in five innings by the identical score.
Gulf Coast is 27-21 overall and 11-15 in the MACCC. The Bulldogs will need to beat third-place Itawamba twice in Perkinston on Wednesday and get help to make it to the postseason.
In the opener, Griffin Wells (So., Pascagoula/Pascagoula), making his first appearance since April 3, threw five innings without a walk. He struck out two and kept the Bulldogs in it while allowing seven hits, giving the bullpen light work to close things out. Kaleb Dillon (Fr., Petal/Petal) allowed one hit in two scoreless innings.
Gardner had the big hit in the sixth, a three-run homer. The Bulldogs sent 15 batters to the plate, and there was only one early walk and one hit batsman. The damage was done with 11 hits.
Anthony Tanner (Fr., Hurley/East Central) also homered, with two hits and four RBI. Jordan Davis (So., Neshoba/Neshoba Central) had two hits and three RBI. Erimel Rosado (So., Dorado, Puerto Rico/Centennial) had two hits, including a triple.
All nine Gulf Coast starters had base hits, including doubles by Brady Saxton (Fr., Brandon/Northwest Rankin) and Brandon Coakley (So., Covington, La./Covington).
The Bulldogs scored four times in the first inning of Game 2, but gave up four in the bottom. Coakley had a three-run homer in that inning, and Gardner hit his second of the day in the top of the second for a 5-4 lead, but the Lions (20-29, 14-12) scored nine times in the third to pull away.
After Gardner's home run, the Bulldogs managed only two walks.
Gulf Coast will need two wins on Wednesday and needs either Southwest Mississippi or Northeast Mississippi to lose twice. Southwest entertains last-place Mississippi Delta, and Northeast travels to 12th-place Meridian.
For more information on MGCCC's 12 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.
