Eighth-ranked Jones College split its final regular season doubleheader with No. 9 East Central.
But the Bobcats needed a sweep to host a regional.
Jones used an eight-run, seventh inning and beat the Warriors, 10-1 in game one. But the Bobcats could only muster five hits in game two and lost, 4-1, at Community Bank Park.
The Bobcats end the regular season at 34-13 and tied East Central for second in the conference at 20-8. But the Warriors (38-12, 20-8) earned the tiebreaker by virtue of winning a game vs. league champion Pearl River, while the Bobcats went 0-2.
Jones, the No. 3 seed in the conference, will now travel to No. 2 East Central for an NJCAA Region 23 semifinal pod May 5-9. The Bobcats will meet No. 6 seed Copiah-Lincoln at 2 p.m. on May 6 in their opening game.
Jones 10, East Central 1
The Bobcats sent 14 players to the plate in the seventh and broke it open in the opener.
With the Bobcats leading 2-1 going into the bottom of the seventh, Talan Theriot’s sacrifice bunt that was erred scored Brice Ainsworth, who had earlier singled. That loaded the bases and TJ Dunsford’s double into the right field corner cleared them and gave Jones a 6-1 lead. Dunsford would eventually score on a passed ball.
Ainsworth later got his second single of the inning and drove in a pair of runs to make it 9-1. Braden Smith would later come home on the front end of a double steal to end the scoring.
Starter Andrew Marble went 7.0 innings and got the win, improving to 4-1. He allowed one run, five hits, walked none and struck out seven. Colton Smith went the final 2.0 innings, gave up a hit and struck out one.
Evan Rogers doubled, singled and drove in a pair of runs for the Bobcats. Ainsworth had a pair of singles and two RBIs and Dunsford had the three-run double. Chase Russell and Dominick Regira added singles.
Jayden Adcox homered and singled for the Warriors.
Bryson Goff, the first of four ECCC pitchers, went 6.1 innings and got the loss. He allowed six runs (four earned), five hits, walked three and struck out three.
East Central 4, Jones 1
The Warriors took advantage of two Bobcat errors which led to three runs in game two.
ECCC took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first with the Bobcats scoring in the third on an RBI single by Russell.
Briceton Johnson’s two-run double in the sixth gave the Warriors a three-run cushion.
The Bobcats got the first two batters on in the bottom of the sixth, but were unable to score. Jones had a runner throw out at home when a wild pitch richoted off the backstop right back to the catcher, who tagged the runner out.
Russell went 5.1 innings and got the loss, falling to 5-2. He gave up four runs (one earned), six hits, walked one and struck out two. Caden Freeman went the final 1.2 innings, did not allow a hit and struck out one.
ECCC’s Chris Billingsley went 5.0 innings and got the win. He allowed an unearned run, five hits, walked four and struck out six. Marbin Lezcano went the final 2.0 innings and got the save. He allowed no hits and struck out one.
Adcox and Johnson each doubled for East Central.
