For Paige Howell, believing the old adage that good pitching beats good hitting is no easy task.
After all, Howell has watched as his 10-year-old McComb All-Stars dissected some of the area’s best pitching staffs this season.
That trend continued Thursday night.
McComb collected nine hits, including home runs from Dalton East and Marquis McNeil, to beat the Franklin County All-Stars 8-4 in Game 1 of the best-of-three Mississippi Dixie Youth Baseball District 6 finals series Thursday night at Edgewood Park.
The series will continue with Game 2 at 7 tonight at Franklin County.
McComb overcame an early 1-0 lead with four-run third and fifth innings, then held in the late innings to claim the victory.
“Good hitters like strikes. When these guys get a pitch down the middle, they tattoo it,” Howell said. “We prove that good hitters beat good pitchers.”
The big damage came in the fifth inning. After a one-out walk to Maguire Givens, East blasted an 0-1 pitch from Franklin County reliever Dalivan Hunt over the left-center field fence to stretch McComb’s lead to 6-1.
One out later, Austin Fortinberry laced a single to left and scored on McNeil’s line-drive two-run shot that easily cleared the center-field fence to make it 8-1.
“People try to pitch around him, and he still does that,” Howell said of McNeil’s round-tripper.
McNeil’s power exhibition even impressed Franklin County head coach Braxton Whitehead.
“Just to see a 10-year-old kid, to see him swing the bat that way, is very impressive,” Whitehead said.
The shot capped McNeil’s 3-for-3 night. He also singled in his first two at-bats.
Franklin County broke on top in the second inning. Kevie Buie led off with a single to center field, Gavin Burris walked and Josh Guice reached on a McComb fielding error to load the bases with nobody out. Buie then scored on a wild pitch to put Franklin County ahead 1-0.
East, McComb’s starting pitcher, escaped further damage by getting Wyatt Johnson and Preston Temple on infield pop flies and retiring Ashton Arnold on a line drive to second baseman Kran Howell for the third out.
McComb appeared ready to grab the lead in the second when Gage Harbour walked, Ian Stephens singled and a passed ball advanced them to second and third with nobody out.
But Franklin County starter Jace Watts struck out Chaz Lenard, retired Eric Cothern on a pop fly to the mound and got Cody Scott on a grounder to second baseman Arnold to conclude the frame.
McComb finally broke on top with a four-run third inning highlighted by timely hitting.
With one out, Andrew Kelly walked and went to second on a wild pitch. Givens’ long single off the left-center-field fence put runners at the corners. Both runners came home on East’s double to deep center field. East advanced to third when the relay throw from center sailed over third base.
East scored when Kran Howell dropped a bunt down a third-base line and reached on a throwing error for a 3-1 lead. Guice, the Franklin County first baseman, retrieved the ball and threw to third in an attempt to catch Howell moving to third. But the throw sailed wide of third base, allowing Howell to trot home for a 4-1 advantage.
After McComb had built its lead to 8-1, Franklin County began a dramatic final-inning comeback.
Jett Watts reached base when his line drive to right field was dropped. He then advanced to second on a wild pitch.
One out later, Jacob Clanton legged out an infield single to put runners at first and third. Hunt’s single to left plated Watts, trimming the deficit to 8-2. Clanton went to third on the single and Hunt moved up to second on the throw to third. Both scored on Isaac Harris’s single to left, cutting the margin to 8-4.
Harris moved to second on the throw home, then to third on Buie’s infield single. A McComb throwing error put runners at second and third. But Howell, who came on to pitch the sixth inning, retired Burris on an infield groundout to end the game.
“We did the same thing in sub-district,” Whitehead said. “We came out slow with the bats. Tonight, we didn’t execute when we had the opportunities.”
Whitehead also announced that either Hunt or Jace Watts would take the mound for Franklin County in tonight’s Game 2.
Paige Howell said McNeil would toe the rubber for McComb with the chance to close out the series. With their wins in their respective sub-district tournaments, both teams have already qualified for the South State Tournament slated to begin July 27 in Hattiesburg.
