Bulldogs beat No. 12 Jones, No. 5 Pearl River

PERKINSTON — Mississippi Gulf Coast knocked off a pair of top-15 teams Wednesday, posting one of the biggest days in recent history at Ken "Curly" Farris Field. They got two-out hits in the eighth of both games, and their pitching staff threw up a bunch of zeroes.

Dom Jackson (So, Gulf Breeze, Fla./Gulf Breeze) blasted a three-run homer to lift the Bulldogs to a 5-4 win over No. 12 Jones, and Brandon Coakley (Fr, Covington, La./Covington) hit an opposite-field single to beat No. 5 Pearl River 3-2.

"It's just a steppingstone," first-year Gulf Coast coach Zach Allen said. "This program is building every single day, and that's just two really good wins to get where we want to get when conference times comes."

Five Bulldog pitchers combined to allow just 14 hits over 18 innings, striking out 22. Eli Waters (So, Petal/Petal) struck out eight against his old team in the final game of the MACCC rivalry tripleheader, and James Vines (Fr, Clinton, La./Silliman Institute) struck out five of the six batters he faced to get the win against the Wildcats (12-4).

In the opener, Samuel Marsh (So, Monroe, La./Neville) went six innings, allowing three runs. Aiden Seymour (So, D'Iberville/D'Iberville) gave up one unearned run in two innings to get the win, and Walker Seaman (Fr, Grand Bay, Ala./Mobile Christian) stranded two baserunners in the ninth for his second save.

"The staff pitches with some intent," Allen said. "When they throw bullpens, there's intent. You see the results. Coach Stewart gets in the bullpen with those guys, and they work hard. They're seeing the fruit of their labor right now."

Jackson delivered a game-winning homer in the eighth for the second straight game, launching a no-doubter to right-center on a full-count fastball to cap a two-out rally. Colby Wilson (So, Saucier/D'Iberville) had reached on an error, and Kaden Irving (So, Gautier/Gautier) singled to set the table for the three-run bomb.

"I was just trying to get the barrel on the ball and make something happen for the guys," Jackson said. "This is huge. We've worked for this. Nobody should be surprised, and it's back to work now."

Jackson beat Baton Rouge earlier in the year with a three-homer game, the last a walk-off solo shot for an 11-10 win. He beat Delgado with a three-run shot in the 12^th to win 7-6.

Irving doubled in the Bulldogs' first run in the first, and Wilson made it 2-0 in the third with a two-out RBI single.

Against Pearl River, twice erased deficits. Wilson singled in a run in the third to make it 1-1. Jackson's second-inning single tied it at 2.

Irving led off the eighth with a walk, and Jackson was hit by a pitch with one out. After a groundout, Coakley lashed his base hit to right field.

"I just put the bat to the ball," he said. "I had to get the job done. I was just trying to put the ball in play, create something. Those two teams are the two biggest, two toughest teams we'll play all year. It's our rivals, and it's huge to get that win."

Gulf Coast has another doubleheader Friday in a busy four-day stretch. They'll travel to Chalmette, La., to play Nunez, with the first game starting at 5. The Bulldogs host No. 22 Lansing on Saturday. The first of two games starts at 2 p.m.

The Perkinston Bookstore will open at 1:30 for fans to shop the full inventory.

"These guys put the work in every single day," Allen said. "Every single one comes up, and you see the confidence. You see the guys hanging on the rail, and they're behind them. Confidence goes a long way."

For more information on MGCCC's 12 intercollegiate athletic teams, follow @MGCCCBulldogs on Twitter and MGCCCBulldogs on Facebook, and go to mgcccbulldogs.com.