Jones College baseball team sweeps Northeast Mississippi, coach Thigpen earns 200th career win

ELLISVILLE — Fourth-ranked Jones College swept Northeast Mississippi in MACCC play Saturday at Community Bank Park. The Bobcats won game one, 12-5, and took the second game, 7-1. The second victory marked head coach Wes Thigpen’s 200th career win in the league, according to school officials.

Jones, now 33-12 overall and 16-6 in conference play, will host Hinds in a doubleheader Wednesday at 3 p.m. Northeast drops to 23-24 overall and 10-12 in league play. The Bobcats celebrated the 10th anniversary of their 2016 NJCAA Division II national championship team before Saturday’s first game.

In the opener, Brayson Graham went 4-for-5 with three RBIs, and Chase Russell hit a three-run homer while pitching 6.1 innings. Jones took an early 1-0 lead in the first inning. Dylan Champagne’s bunt scored Warren Hutchinson, who singled to start the game.

The Bobcats scored five runs in the second inning, highlighted by Russell’s 12th home run of the season and a two-run single from Hutchinson. Northeast scored twice in the third but Jones responded with two runs to push the lead to 8-2. Sanders Ainsworth doubled in an RBI, and Champagne added an RBI single.

Jones extended its lead in the sixth with an RBI double by Graham and a wild pitch that scored Reeves. The Bobcats added two more runs in the eighth, with Graham driving in two on a single. Russell earned the win, allowing three runs and striking out three. Caden Freeman pitched the final 2.2 innings.

In the nightcap, Drew Lambert allowed one run over 4.1 innings, and Trevor Hodges picked up his sixth save as Jones completed the sweep. Jones took a 3-1 lead in the first, with Ainsworth scoring on a wild pitch and Graham driving in a run with an RBI single. The Bobcats added three runs in the second, including a two-run double from Champagne, and finished scoring in the sixth with a sacrifice fly by Ainsworth.

Lambert improved to 4-2 with his performance, allowing one run on six hits. Hodges struck out four in relief. Champagne and Hutchinson each had two singles for Jones, while Russell, Ainsworth, Theriot, and Graham added singles. Northeast’s Conner McKnatt had three hits, and Brett Haas doubled. Starter Matthew Osteen took the loss, allowing six runs in 2.2 innings.

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