CARRIERE —
Pearl River Central secured second place in Region 4-5A and a first round home playoff game Friday night.
The Blue Devils used a 21 point third quarter outburst to erase a 7-3 halftime deficit and pull out a 26-20 win over visiting Pascagoula. It was Pascagoula's first-ever trip to PRC.
The win pushed second ranked PRC to 9-1 on the season, and 6-1 in league play. The fourth-ranked Panthers drop to 8-2 overall and 6-2 in league play.
"This was exactly the type of game we needed going into the playoffs," PRC head coach Eric Collins said. "It was a playoff type atmosphere and we showed a lot of character in the second half. That's a credit to our seniors, they showed a lot of leadership."
The Panthers used a stout defense and a 35-yard touchdown toss from Stacey Warren to Breland Hoye to take a 7-3 lead at halftime. It marked the first time all season that the Blue Devils trailed at halftime, as Pascagoula limited PRC to 56 total yards and just a 26-yard field goal by Javon Detto with four seconds to go before intermission.
But the Blue Devils opened the second half quickly, as Dylan Spiers hit Desmond Michel on a 25 yard scoring strike to make it 13-10.
The Panthers countered with another touchdown pass from warren to Hoye, this one a 70-yard catch and run, but the extra point try failed and it was 13-10 with 8:38 to go in the third.
The Blue Devils, though, would take control of the game over the next four minutes with a pair of scoring drives.
Spiers scored on a 15-yard scramble with 5:30 to play, and fullback Steven Kubicki added a 13-yard scoring run one play after PRC's Lane Fazende recovered a Pascagoula fumble at the Panther 13.
The Panthers fought back, with Warren scoring on a 10-yard run with :41 seconds to play in the third frame.
The only scoring in the final period came on a safety in the Panther end zone that resulted in a safety for PRC to conclude the scoring.
After the safety, PRC got the ball and notched two first downs to run the clock out.
Warren accounted for almost 300 yards of total offense for the Panthers, while Kubicki ran for 101 yards for the Blue Devils. Detoo hit three extra points.
"We started slow, and you have to give coach Sims and his team a lot of credit for that," Collins concluded. "But we made a couple of adjustments at halftime and we were able to make some plays in the third quarter."
Pearl River Central will host Mcomb next week, while Pascagoula will travel to West Jones.
Sports
Devils take second
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Saints ready to practice with Payton again
Even as Sean Payton tried to make the best of his one-season bounty banishment from the NFL by spending time with his children, getting in shape and playing golf, he often compared his punishment to prison time.
He missed his work that much, his players say, adding that his return has infused Saints headquarters with a fresh intensity leading up to Tuesday’s opening of voluntary offseason practices. -
Wildcats honored for efforts
Ten Pearl River Community College baseball standouts have earned 2013 post-season honors with center fielder Braxton Lee and catcher-designated hitter Krisjon Wilkerson leading the way with All-Region 23 and All-MACJC first- team accolades.
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Season ends for Maroon Tide
Picayune’s magical playoff run came up just short of a spot in the state finals.
Homestanding Pascagoula, the defending Class 5A state champs, took a hard-fought 5-3 win over the Maroon Tidee in game three of the best of three South State finals here Saturday before a capacity crowd at Ingalls Field. -
Season ends for Maroon Tide
The season came to an end for the Picayune baseball team Saturday afternoon with a 5-3 loss to homestanding Pascagoula here at Ingalls Field in the third and deciding game of the Class 5A South State championship series.
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Tide stays alive
And it all comes down to this.
Picayune and Pascagoula will face off in a one game, winner take all
showdown today at 2 p.m., at Ingalls Field for the Class A South State
prep baseball championship and the right to play for the state title. -
Wildcats tring to win Region 23 title
Host Pearl River opened Region 23 Tournament play in dominating fashion here Thursday in Wildcat Stadium, demolishing top-seeded East Central 12-1 in eight innings and now faces second-seeded LSU-Eunice (La.) in Friday’s second round at 7 p.m.
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Panther pitcher shuts out Maroon Tide
Pascagoula’s Andrew Crane continued his dominance of Picayune Thursday night.
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Season ends for Lady Hornets
Poplarville's season came to and end in the Class 4A South state finals Tuesday night.
The visiting Lady Hornets fell to Newton County 10-2 in game two of the best-of-three series. -
Lady Hornets face Newton County
Two more wins, and Poplarville will be playing for the Class 4A state championship in fast-pitch softball.
The Lady Hornets have a chance at getting that first victory today. -
Polderman’s, Mitchell win titles
The Picayune Maroon Tide and the Pearl River Central Blue Devils both competed in the Class 5A South State track and field championships this past Saturday at Long Beach High School.
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