The Kosciusko Whippets last won the Region 4-4A title in 2013, which came on the heels of their first region title since 2004 in 2012. The Whippets finished 2012 with a 9-1 region mark and were perfect in 2013 with a 10-0 record. The 2017 Whippets claimed the Region 4-4A crown once again with a perfect 10-0 region record and did it by sweeping out the defending MHSAA Class 4A State Champion Houston Hilltoppers last Tuesday and Thursday by scores of 5-3 and 2-1 respectively. The Whippets finished off the regular season with a 16-1 thumping of the Winona Tigers on Saturday to push their overall record to 22-4 on the year.
“We did a pretty good job this year and we didn’t know what to expect”, said Whippet head baseball coach Jonathan Jones. “We lost some seniors last year, had a couple of injuries and a couple of kids moved out and that type of stuff, but the guys really stepped up. A lot of people asked how we did it and sometimes I don’t even know, we just scored one more run than everybody else so far this year and hopefully we continue to do that. The younger guys have really stepped up and taken on their roles really well and a couple of pitchers have really stepped up for us and our relievers have done a good job. We just continue to make routine plays and get some clutch hits here and there to put some pressure on them and we’ve done a pretty good job of that so far.”
In Tuesday night’s home win over the Houston Hilltoppers, senior pitcher and Pearl River Community College signee Jerrod Meggs got the start and pitched seven complete to notch the win. Meggs surrendered only three runs on six hits and three walks while striking out five Hilltoppers. The offensive leaders for the Whippets were Jeremy Deason with two singles and one run scored; Clark Dean with a double and an RBI; Chase Morgan with a single and one run scored and Micah Parker with a double, single and three runs scored. This win gave the Whippets at least a tie for the Region 4-4A crown, forcing Houston to have to win Game 2 on Thursday night by at least three runs.
The Whippets traveled to Houston on Thursday night in control of their own playoff destiny and they did not disappoint, coming away with a 2-1 win and the Region 4-4A crown. Deason pitched a seven inning gem, yielding only one run (none earned) on four hits and a walk while striking out three Hilltoppers. Continued from page A9
The Whippets pushed two runs across in the top of the seventh and hung on for the 2-1 win. The offensive leaders for Kosy were Logan Fancher with a single; Brandon Black with a single and an RBI; Morgan with a single; Mississippi Valley State baseball signee Jatavious Herron with a single and Walker Yuille with an RBI.
The Whippets ended their regular season on Saturday with a 16-1 blowout win over the Winona Tigers. Bryce Oakes got the start and win for the Whippets and yielded one run on three hits and a walk while striking out one in three innings pitched. Ethan Gowan pitched an inning and surrendered no runs or hits and Parker pitched the final inning, giving up no runs on one hit while striking out two Tigers. The offensive leaders for the Whippets were Deason with a single, two runs scored and an RBI; Dean with a single; Fancher with two singles, two runs scored and three RBI; Morgan with two singles and two runs scored; Meggs with a single, one run scored and an RBI; Parker with a single, two runs scored and two RBI; Oakes with two RBI; Herron with a triple, double, single, two runs scored and an RBI and Yuille with two singles, a double and three RBI.
The Whippets will host Senatobia on Friday night at 7 p.m. in the first round of the MHSAA Class 4A Playoffs and will travel to Senatobia on Saturday for Game 2 of the best-of-three series at 7 p.m. as well. Game 3, if necessary, will be back in Kosciusko on Monday night at 7 p.m.
