By By Austin Bishop/EMG Regional Sports Director
May 11, 2002
Mississippi Delta's Dustin Griggs struck out 12 and allowed just three hits as the Trojans defeated Jones Junior College 9-1 in the second round of the NJCAA Region 23 Division I Baseball Tournament on Friday night.
With the win Delta moves into today's 4 p.m. undefeated game against Delgado Community College.
Jones takes on Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College in an elimination game at 1 p.m. The winner of that game plays the loser of the 4 p.m. game in an elimination game at 7 p.m.
The Trojans, now 25-16 on the year, jumped on Jones starter Justin Henington for two runs in the first and three more in the third to take a quick 5-0 lead.
Mississippi Delta used a two-run single by Juan Ortiz to get the first-inning runs and then scored three in the third on Keith Fitzgerald's three-run homer.
The Trojans loaded the bases with two singles and a fielder's choice in the top of the fourth with nobody out. Jones reliever Jared White then walked MDCC lead-off man Norwood Taylor to force in a run. After a strike out, Brett Cerda made it 7-0 with a sacrifice fly. That jumped to 9-0 on a two-run single by Fitzgerald.
Jones finally got on the board in the bottom of the inning when Ricky Breazeale reached on an error and scored on a ground out by Chad McIlwain.
Neither team could scored for the next three innings, giving Delta the win by the run-rule after seven innings of play.
Mississippi Delta had 10 hits on the game, with Fitzgerald, Ortiz, Johnny Phillips and Josh Mosley picking up two each. Josh Sullivan had two of Jones' three hits.
Thompson knows his Trojans have a tough task in Delgado this afternoon.