Wolves Season Ends with Loss to Eagles

MERIDIAN – The Co-Lin Baseball team faced off against Meridian in game two of their Best-of-Three Play-In Series on Sunday, May 5. The Eagles beat the Wolves, 15-8, to take the series and end the Wolves season.

Just like in game one, the Wolves scored first as they plated two runs in the top of the first inning with Brentley Berry (Magee) hitting a leadoff single to start the game. Jon David Weed (Terry) followed with a second straight single while Berry advanced to third on the play with Weed also taking second. Berry then scored on an RBI groundout by Hagan Coumbe (Utica) while later in the inning, Weed scored on a two-out, RBI single by Jordan McKenzie (Franklinton, LA) giving the Wolves a 2-0 lead.

The Eagles wasted no time with a response as they tied the game with two runs of their own in the bottom of the first making the score 2-2. The Wolves regained the lead in the top of the second with a pair of runs as Sawyer Dunn (Magee) hit a two-out single to get the offense going. Berry then drew a walk while Weed singled to load the bases for the Wolves. Coumbe then delivered a two-out, two-RBI single scoring Dunn and Berry to give the Wolves a 4-2 lead.

The Wolves held the lead until the bottom of the third when the Eagles scored five runs to take a 7-4 lead. However, the Wolves continued to fight their way back scoring two runs in the top of the fourth as Braydon Evans (Florence) reached on an error to start the inning. Later in the inning, Weed crushed a 1-1 pitch over the left field fence for a two-out, two-run home run cutting the lead down to one run at 7-6.

The Eagles added one run in the fourth and one in the sixth while holding the Wolves scoreless to increase their lead to 9-6. The Wolves looked to cut into the lead in the top of the seventh as Tucker Jones (Brandon) hit a leadoff double while McKenzie was hit-by-pitch to put two runners on with no outs. However, the Eagles then got the next three batters out to leave the runners stranded with no scoring done. The Eagles then added two runs in the bottom of the seventh to grow their lead to 11-6.

The Wolves did not back down though and continued to fight as they score two runs in the top of the eighth with Berry hitting a one-out single to get the offense going. Later in the inning, Coumbe hit a two-out RBI double scoring Berry while Coumbe then scored on an RBI single by Jones making the score, 11-8. Braden Freeman (Terry) was then brought in as a pinch runner and took second on a single by McKenzie. However, a flyout ended the inning with no more scoring taking place.

The Eagles then added four runs in the bottom half of the inning to extend their lead to 15-8. The Wolves then got a one-out double by Sam Cook (Shubuta) in the top of the ninth but a strikeout followed by a groundout ended the game sealing the win for the Eagles while ending the Wolves season.

The Wolves totaled 15 hits as a team as JD Weed led the way with four while Hagan Coumbe had three hits. Brentley Berry, Tucker Jones, and Jordan McKenzie had two hits apiece with Sam Cook and Sawyer Dunn adding one hit each. Coumbe led the Wolves in RBIs with four while Weed had two with Jones and McKenzie adding one RBI each.

Coby Gollot (Ocean Springs) got the start for the Wolves and finishes the year at 6-6 overall while pitching 3.2 innings and allowing eight runs, all earned, on 12 hits with one walk and one strikeout. Dee Morgan (Tallulah, LA) pitched 2.2 innings of relief allowing three runs, all earned, on three hits with two walks and one strikeout. Judson Griffin (Brookhaven) pitched 0.1 innings of relief with one hit and walk while Lucas Harrington (Youngsville, LA) pitched 0.2 innings of relief allowing three runs, all earned, on two hits with one walk. Caleb Flynn (Laurel) also had a relief appearance allowing one earned run on two hits with one walk while Jayden Duncan (Foxworth) pitched 0.2 innings of relief retiring both batters he faced.

Co-Lin finishes the season 27-27 overall, the most wins since the 2008 season, after making their first postseason trip since the 2021 season.