Jones stuns Co-Lin 11-9 for second straight NJCAA Region 23 Title

WESSON (JCBobcats.com) – It was a case of déjà vu.

A year ago, on the same field, Jones trailed Copiah-Lincoln 5-1 after two innings. They would score the next six runs to win the NJCAA Region 23 Championship, 7-5.

On Sunday, Jones trailed 5-1 after two innings and 8-2 after three but scored nine unanswered runs to stun the Lady Wolves, 11-9, to win a second straight region title.

"Just so proud," second-year head coach Tori Dew said. "Our kids had a belief in themselves and each other. They kept fighting and never let a moment get too big or too small. That's what postseason is all about."

A solo home run in the first and grand slam in the second put Co-Lin on top 5-1.

Meredith Fontenot's solo homer tied it at 1-1. 

Breelyn Cain would come on in the third in relief of Jayden Sawyer and immediately slow down the Lady Wolves' offense, allowing one earned run on one hit the next three frames.

Jones aided Co-Lin with seven free passes and two errors through three and fell behind by five. 

Trailing 8-3 entering the sixth, Laney Little's leadoff double, followed by back-to-back RBI-singles from Claire Andersen and Makynlie Jones, pulled Jones within 8-5.

Addy Shorter's leadoff hit-by-pitch in the top of the seventh started a string of six straight Bobcats to reach. Kaleigh Steverson followed with a pinch-hit single, Little an RBI-single and Andersen a fielder's choice-RBI to cut it to 8-7 with no outs and the bases still loaded. 

The fifth pitch Mak. Jones saw from reliever Keegan McCorkle was drilled to center for a grand slam to give Jones its first lead of the day, 11-8. It was Mak. Jones' first homer in a month and her team-leading 26th. 

Cain worked around a leadoff single in the bottom half and got a double play and groundout to end an improbable comeback for a second straight season in Wesson.

Co-Lin's lone two home losses (22-2) of the year came to Jones. Emily Richarde, who was 20-0 entering Sunday, was tagged for seven runs on nine hits and her first loss of the season. 

Cain scattered four hits, four strikeouts, two earned runs and two walks over five relief frames to improve to 16-4.

Jones out-hit Co-Lin 13-8. Little was 3-for-3, Jones was 3-for-5 with a homer and five RBIs.

An NJCAA World Series bracket and matchups will be announced on the NJCAA Network on Tuesday, May 13 at 2 p.m.