By Stan Caldwell
stanmansportsfan.com
PURVIS – Forrest County AHS gave Purvis all it wanted Tuesday night, but it wasn’t quite enough.
The defending Class 4A state champions did just enough at the plate, just enough on the mound and just enough in the field to hold off the Aggies 4-3 in the first of a two-game Region 7-4A series at Tony Farlow Field.
Junior Jo Jo Parker clubbed a two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth inning to provide the necessary margin for the Tornadoes to prevail.
Purvis improved to 14-5 overall and 3-0 in region, while FCAHS dropped to 6-9 and 0-3. The two teams will complete the series on Thursday at Brooklyn.
Although the Tornadoes were happy with the win, head coach Tony Farlow acknowledged that his team is nowhere near where it needs to be in they are to repeat as state champs.
“It’s been that way all year,” said Purvis head coach Tony Farlow. “It’s frustrating. We put up great numbers last year – a lot of home runs, a lot of doubles, balls off the wall – and this year, we’re just kind of getting by offensively.
“We’ve pitched well and really played good defense, and that’s really the only reason we’re winning ball games.”
Forrest County showed it wasn’t the least bit intimidated by the Purvis pedigree right from the get-go.
Senior C.J. Eade smacked the game’s first pitch from Tornado senior Eli Lowe into leftfield for a single, took second when junior Jarrod Dyson walked and went to third when junior Preston Anderson singled to right.
After a strikeout, senior Blaine Palmer got the run home for FCAHS on a sacrifice fly to centerfield, but Lowe alertly cut off the throw to the plate and caught Dyson trying to advance to third, getting an inning-ending putout after a rundown.
“I think I was too amped up and tried to do too much,” said Lowe. “I just needed to settle in and get a feel for the game.”
Purvis answered back with a run of its own in the bottom of the first off Eade. Parker blooped a leadoff double into rightfield, went to third on a groundout to the right side of the infield and scored on a wild pitch.
Both pitchers settled in for a fast-moving contest that took just 1:45 to play. Eade (1-3) went the distance for the Aggies, striking out five walking two while scattering six hits.
“He’s really come along as our leader,” said FCAHS coach Kyle Dolan. “He had a bad outing three weeks ago against Poplarville, so we had a long talk, and he’s started to figure things out.
“He’s finally grown up to the point where he’s got the confidence to go out there and throw strikes. When you’re a high school pitcher with two or more pitches and can stay in the zone, you’ve got a chance.”
Eade was touched for a run in the bottom of the third when senior Austin Lawler drew a leadoff walk and went to third on a single by Parker.
Junior Jacob Parker drove in the run with a groundball to shortstop, but Jo Jo Parker was thrown out at the plate trying take an extra base on the play.
“Our game this year has to be more aggressive than it was last year, just because we’re not hitting the way we did last year,” said Parker. “I just have to get into scoring position, so we can get runs in.
“But we’re nowhere near where we should be. Expect more from us.”
Forrest County got the run right back in the top of the fourth and could have had more.
With one out, freshman Parks Brock singled to left and was sacrificed to second by Palmer. A walk and a single by sophomore Landyn Anderson loaded the bases, and Parks trotted home with the tying run when senior Hayden Grice was hit by a pitch.
But the Aggies left the bases loaded when Lowe induced a groundball to shortstop. Lowe (2-0) went 6-1/3 innings, struck out eight, walked four and allowed five hits.
“I just had to relax and treat it like any other ball game,” said Lowe. “I just had to attack the strike zone and fill it up with curveballs, fastballs and sliders. My slider was really working well. I think I got seven strikeouts with it.”
Purvis got what proved to be the winning runs very quickly in the bottom of the fifth.
Lawler led off the inning with a triple to the wall in right-centerfield, and Parker followed by smoking the eighth pitch of the at-bat over the centerfield fence for a no-doubt-about-it home run.
“I was just trying to get a spark going,” said Parker. “We needed to get some energy going in the dugout, to get back to that team we were last year.
“Last year, C.J. was probably 78, 79 (mph), but he worked his butt off to get better in the offseason. We worked out a lot together and he was up in the 80s going into the season. He’s way better than he was last year.”
Lowe retired the Aggies in order in the sixth but ran into trouble with one out in the seventh.
Eade, trying to give himself a chance to pitch in the bottom of the inning, reached on an infield single into the hole between first and second base, then Dyson walked.
That brought Farlow out to make a change, bringing Jo Jo Parker in from shortstop in relief.
“He pitched pretty well,” said Farlow. “He hadn’t pitched in a while, so we needed to get him back out there and he gave us 6-1/3 good innings for us. So that was good to see.”
Preston Anderson greeted Parker with a single to right, loading the bases. Parker got the second out of the inning at the plate on a high chopper to the mound.
However, the throw to first for the potential game-ending double play went over the head of the Tornado first baseman, allowing Dyson to score, and putting runners at second and third.
But the big right-hander got a called third strike on Palmer to seal the victory and earn the save.
“We’ve bought into the mentality lately of just competing,” said Dolan. “Most of the teams we play are going to be more talented than us, but the past two or three weeks, the kids have really started competing.
“We’re close, so close, to turning the program around. We just need one thing to go our way, and the kids just have to keep competing.”
With a two-game series looming next week against archrival Sumrall, the Tornadoes are looking to up their game in Thursday’s series finale.
“I don’t want to say we’re not as hungry as we were last year,” Farlow said. “Obviously, we’ve got the pressure on us to repeat, because most of them back, and that’s all they’ve heard for six months is how good they’re going to be.
“But right now, we’re not hitting on all cylinders, by any means offensively. I still feel like we’re better than what we’re doing offensively. At some point in time, our offense has got to get going, or our season is going to end early.”
PREP BASEBALL LINESCORE
Tuesday at Purvis
Purvis 4, Forrest County AHS 3
FCAHS 100 100 1 – 3 6 0
Purvis 101 020 X – 4 6 2
FORREST COUNTY AHS (6-9, 0-3 in 7-4A): C.J. Eade 2 1B; Preston Anderson 2 1B; Parks Brock 1B; Landyn Anderson 1B. LP – C.J. Eade (1-3).
PURVIS (14-5, 3-0 in 7-4A): Jo Jo Parker HR (2-run), 2B, 1B; Drew Swan 1B; Ethan Walker 1B; Austin Lawler 3B. WP – Eli Lowe (2-0). Save – Jo Jo Parker.
Photos courtesy of Van Tyner
