Decatur,MS--The East Central Community College baseball team split a conference doubleheader against Northeast Mississippi on Friday, winning game one in commanding fashion before dropping a tightly contested nightcap at the Clark/Gay Baseball Complex in Decatur.

In game one, the Warriors exploded offensively to earn a 15-9 victory. East Central pounded out 17 hits, highlighted by home runs from Ryan Nelson, Nic Arender, and Chris Bilingsley. Nelson led the way with a 3-for-5 performance, driving in four runs and scoring twice. Barret Rodgers added four hits and an RBI, while Bilingsley contributed a two-run homer as part of his three-RBI effort. On the mound, Bilingsley also earned the win, tossing six strong innings with five strikeouts and just two earned runs allowed.

Northeast rallied late with seven runs in the final three innings, including home runs from Kody Gilmore, Drake Douglas, and Cooper Davis, but it wasn't enough to overcome the early deficit.

In game two, East Central's offense was held in check as the Warriors fell 3-2. Despite outhitting Northeast 8-5, ECCC couldn't capitalize on several opportunities, leaving 11 runners on base. Arender went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles and an RBI, while Nelson scored both of East Central's runs. Marbin Lezcano struck out nine over 5.1 innings but took the loss.

With the split, East Central moved to 35-9 overall and 17-5 in MACCC play, remaining in the hunt for a top conference finish.