May 20, 2021
East Central's Jeremy Martin (Slidell, La.) threw a stellar, nine-inning complete game Thursday night, May 20, to lead the No. 15 Warriors to a 6-2 win over the No. 20 Hinds Eagles in an elimination game in the NJCAA Region XXIII Tournament in Poplarville. With the win, ECCC (29-18) will face No. 2 LSU Eunice on Friday, May 21 at 3 p.m. in an NJCAA Region XXIII championship game. Eunice enters the game undefeated, meaning the Warriors will need to win two to claim the NJCAA Region XXIII title.
The Eagles were on the board in the top of the second after a double and an RBI single put Hinds on top, 1-0.
Roper Ball (Noxapater) and Coleton Smith (Gulfport) plated a pair of runs for the Warriors in the bottom of the fourth with a pair of singles to give ECCC the lead, but it was short-lived as Hinds hit a solo homer to lead off the fifth. The shot to left tied the game at 2-2.
The Warriors blew the game open in the bottom half of the fifth frame. A walk and single put Conner Hicks (Stringer) and Clayton Cook (Mize) aboard for ECCC and an error scored Hicks. Amani Larry (Bossier City, La.) followed with a double that plated Cook and Ball. Jesse Boydstun (Louisville) followed with a hard-hit single to score another, making it 6-2 Warriors.
Some solid defense and strong pitching from Martin down the stretch secured the ECCC victory.
Martin finished the game with 117 pitches thrown. The lefty allowed ten hits and two runs over nine innings, striking out two in a very impressive outing.
Austin Fugler took the loss for Hinds on the mound.
Offensively, Cook led the way for the Warriors with a single and a double, while Larry and Ball posted two RBIs each.
Up Next
The Warriors and LSU Eunice Bengals will be in action tomorrow, Friday, May 21, at 3 p.m. for a championship game. The Warriors must defeat the Bengals twice, while Eunice will only have to win one. Fans can watch the game live at www.prccmedia.com/gold.
