CLARKSDALE—Tiger Baseball couldn't overcome strong pitching performances from Mississippi Delta Tuesday, dropping a doubleheader to the Trojans by finals of 8-1 and 5-2 in Clarksdale.
The Tigers fell behind early in Game 1 after the Trojan attack tagged starter Dustin Allen for 2 in the first frame. But CCC battled back. After being held down by MDCC starter Kyle Wilson in their first 2 turns, the Tigers capitalized in the third on a base hit by Wesley Dew that brought in TJ Knowles.
Playing in a one-run contest, head coach Lee Hodge elected to go to reliever Michael Allen one hitter into the 4th. MDCC managed to bring in a run against Allen to make it a 3-1 contest. They would add 3 in the 6th off Hunter Collins and 2 in the 9th off Brooks Lott to open up some breathing room.
Braxton Wall and Zach Morris each finished with 2 hits for the Tigers, and Caleb Lindsey and Dew were each able to reach twice against tough Trojan pitching. The MDCC arms, though, thwarted Tiger comeback attempts for the most part, holding down the home offense in the later innings to earn the win. The Tigers left 10 on base in the game, including 5 over the last 3 frames.
Wilson, who went 6 innings and surrendered 6 hits, got the win. Dustin Allen got the loss.
Tre Hobbs took the hill for the Trojans in Game 2 and proved virtually untouchable. The Delta State commit put down the first 15 hitters he faced and did not allow a baserunner until Corey O'Brien drew a walk in the 6th.
Garrett Short kept the Tigers in the game, scattering 5 runs over 7 innings. It was the 3rd time that Short has taken a start into the 7th inning this year, the top mark on the squad.
The offense came alive behind him after Hobbs lost the perfect game in the 6th. After walking O'Brien, the Trojan starter allowed a bunt single to TJ Knowles and then a big RBI double to Hudson Ross. The Tigers would score 2 in the frame and board 2 runners in the 7th, but Hobbs was still able to notch a complete game win.
CCC returns to action at home Saturday vs. Southwest MS CC. First pitch against the Bears will be thrown at noon.
Look for a live stream on coahomasports.com/watch and/or mixlr.com/jzanaboni.