Pearl River softball falls in Region 23 Championship round

Pearl River softball falls in Region 23 Championship round

ELLISVILLE, Miss. — The 6-seed Pearl River softball team needed one more win to force a winner-take-all Championship game in the Ellisville Regional against 2-seed Jones College but came up just short 6-4.

Pearl River finishes the year with a 36-17 record, marking four consecutive seasons with at least 30 wins and three consecutive with 35 or more.

The Wildcats now await the announcement of the NJCAA Division II Softball Championships bracket, seeking one of four at-large bids. The reveal will be May 13 at 2 p.m. on the NJCAA Network.

Jones College (46-8 overall) scored a run in each of the second, third and fourth innings to take a 3-0 advantage into the fifth. The Wildcats made some noise in the top half of the inning, scoring a pair of runs on a Peyton Hoffmayer (Ocean Springs) long ball, 3-2. Unfortunately, the Bobcats responded with a three-spot in the bottom half of the frame to take a 6-2 lead.

In the sixth, a leadoff Wildcat double by Natalee Eaves (Louisville; Choctaw Central) resulted in a run when Caroline Lindsey (Gulfport) put a ball in play that resulted in an error, 6-3.

Pearl River had everyone on the edges of their seats in the seventh inning as it tried to mount a comeback. Kai Goodman (New Orleans, La.; John Curtis) walked, Emmaleigh Theriot (Prairieville, La.; St. Amant) singled and Eaves was hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out. Cailey Pervel (Carriere; Pearl River Central) unloaded on a 1-1 pitch but got just under, flying out to the track for a sacrifice fly, 6-4. Jones College went on to get the strikeout that it needed to close out the game.

Ana-Grace Garcia (Baton Rouge, La. St. Joseph's) threw 4 1/3 innings, allowing six runs on five hits and two walks. She struck out five. Lizzie Meeks (Ripley; Pine Grove) threw 1 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing two walks and two strikeouts.

Theriot, Eaves, Lindsey, Maeli Ben (Conehatta; Newton County) and Hoffmayer each had a hit. Hoffmayer drove in two runs, while Pervel and Lindsey drove in one each.

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