Special to the Item

POPLARVILLE — Good Friday was definitely a good Friday for Pearl River Community College baseball.

The Wildcats are back in the MACJC post-season playoff hunt after sweeping Southwest Mississippi 9-2 and 10-9 in South Division doubleheader action here Friday and are now tied with Copiah-Lincoln for fourth place in the league.

The top four finishers in the North and South divisions cop berths in May 1-2’s MACJC playoff series with the top four finishers in that event entering the state tournament May 7-9.

Hinds currently holds down the top spot in the South with a 13-5 mark, followed by Mississippi Gulf Coast at 11-5, Jones County at 9-7, and Co-Lin and Pearl River at 8-10 and 7-9, respectively. Southwest Mississippi and East Central sport identical 6-12 records.

The Wildcats improved to 21-17 overall with Friday’s wins, while the visiting Bears dropped to 16-23.

In the first game of the twin bill, Wildcat starter Jared Ashford (2-2) got the win and Matt Discon paced PRCC’s 10-hit attack with two doubles and a single (one RBI), while Ethan Burt homered and singled, accounting for a season-high five RBIs. Jake Hawkins homered and singled (two RBIs) and Derek Tortorich doubled and singled in the winning cause.

In the nightcap, Sean Kelly of Pearl River Central (2-0) got the win despite facing only one batter in the seventh and Tortorich paced PRCC’s 13-hit effort with a double and two singles (two RBIs), while Hawkins had two doubles (two RBIs), Burt (one RBI) and Edwards (one RBI) both had doubles and singles, Ashley Graeter had two base hits (two RBIs), and Tristan Rogers had an RBI-single.

The Wildcats return to action Wednesday when they travel to MACJC South Division rival Copiah-Lincoln in Wesson for a 4 p.m. doubleheader, then division foe Jones County visits for a 1 p.m. twin bill Saturday

PRCC then visits Mississippi Gulf Coast Tuesday, April 21, for a 4 p.m. division twin bill, then wraps up the regular season Saturday, April 25, when it hosts East Central.