POPLARVILLE — Picayune’s baseball team finished its season with a 14-8 victory over county-rivals Poplarville Tuesday night.

In the first inning, the Hornets (9-13, 5-5 Region 7-4A) jumped to an early 2-0 lead. After scoring runs by Peytan Graham and Cade Johnson in the second inning, Poplarville held a 4-0 lead.

Garrett Sauls and Kyler Lauga scored for Picayune in the top of the third and cut the team’s deficit 4-2.

During the bottom of the third, with the bases loaded, Tyson Holston was walked to first, which allowed Joey Smith to score. One play later, Graham scored for the Hornets after an RBI by Blaise Breerwood.

Later in the game, in the top of the fifth inning, with Lauga and Shaun Anderson on base, Picayune’s Chad Stockstill batted a three-run homerun to centerfield.

The three RBIs by Stockstill cut Poplarville’s lead 6-5.

The Maroon Tide took a 10-6 lead after Dylan Ramsay, Jeremiah Stallings, Lauga, Anderson and Stockstill scored one run each in the top of the sixth inning.

In bottom of the sixth inning, Kyle Tynes and Brady Tynes scored for the Hornets off of a double to centerfield by Joey Smith. Through six innings of play, Picayune led 10-8.

A wild pitch by Poplarville’s Dartanyon Wilcox in the top of the seventh allowed Anderson to reach home plate and score Picayune’s 11th run of the game. Three batters later, a hit to left field by Kade Turnage allowed teammates Stockstill and Ramsay to score for the Maroon Tide. Picayune’s Stallings scored the last run of the game via an RBI by Sauls.

The Maroon Tide finished its season with an 11-11 record.

“During the last three weeks, with a playoff spot no longer possible, the guys made a pact that we were going to finish this season strong,” Picayune Head Baseball Coach Cody Stogner said. “This is the first team in the last four years to finish with a .500 record or better. The seniors have set an example and a stepping stone for the young players and I thank them so much for it. I can’t say enough about how much character these players have because of what they did during the last three weeks. To me, that says a lot about them and I know they’ll be great men one day.”

For Picayune, Stockstill batted 2-for-2 with a double, a homerun and three RBIs, Lauga went 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI and Ramsay was 3-for-4 with a double and three RBIs.

Peyton Esslinger, Luke Smith and Elisha Hickman saw action on the mound for the Maroon Tide.

Also for Poplarville, Smith went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs, Graham was 1-for-1 and Johnson batted 1-for-2. Johnson, Brady Tynes and Wilcox shared pitching duties for the Hornets.

Poplarville will face Florence in a best-two-out-of-three series in the first round of the Class 4A state playoffs.  The first game will take place at Florence on Friday, at 7 p.m. and the second game will be at Poplarville on Saturday, April 21 at 7 p.m. Should a third game be needed, it will take place at Florence on Monday, April 23.