No. 22 Bulldogs sweep into the playoffs

PERKINSTON — No. 22 Mississippi Gulf Coast put the finishing touches on an outstanding regular season Tuesday by sweeping Hinds at Ken "Curly" Farris Field.

The Bulldogs, who moved back into the NJCAA rankings on Monday, won 5-3 in the first game and 3-2 in the second to finish the MACCC schedule in fourth place, 20 games over .500 overall and 10 games over in conference play.

They've won 12 of the last 15.

"It's been a great season," first-year Gulf Coast coach Zach Allen said. "I love these guys to death. They play hard no matter what, through the ups and downs. This team's just played really hard all year, and they've earned everything they've gotten. They deserve what they've gotten, getting into these playoffs."

Gulf Coast (37-17, 19-9 MACCC) will play in the Region 23 Tournament at Poplarville, where No. 1 seed Pearl River hosts. The Bulldogs will face fifth-seed Northeast Mississippi in their first game, scheduled for May 6. Eighth-seeded Northwest Mississippi will face ninth-seeded Meridian in a play-in game on May 5, with the winner playing the Wildcats.

The Bulldogs did what they needed to do to have a shot at finishing third, but didn't get help elsewhere. They did it with their usual outstanding pitching, with late-inning offensive heroics in the first game and a couple of long balls in the second.

A five-run eighth flipped Game 1. They got the first three batters on, and Colby Wilson (So, Saucier/D'Iberville) delivered a two-run single to center. Pinch-hitter Tanner Ladner (So, Pass Christian/Hancock) hit a ground ball which forced an error, giving Gulf Coast a 4-3 lead. Landon Holliman (So, Hattiesburg/Sumrall) finished the scoring with a sacrifice fly.

The Gulf Coast tandem of Griffin Wells (Fr, Pascagoula/Pascagoula) and Trey McDonald (Fr, Moss Point/Faith Academy) didn't allow an earned run. Wells allowed one run in six innings, and McDonald gave up a couple runs in the final three to pick up the win.

Jacob Palazzo (So, Biloxi/Gulfport) went 3-for-3 with two doubles, and Kaden Irving (So, Gautier/Gautier) had two hits.

The result of the second game was meaningless after results already in the books, but the Bulldogs closed the season in style. Keilon Parnell (So., Pascagoula/Pascagoula) singled in the second to make it a 1-1 game. Dom Jackson (So, Gulf Breeze, Fla./Gulf Breeze) lined a homer to right field to lead off the third, but Hinds tied it with a solo blast in the fourth.

Irving crushed a ball to center field in the fifth to give Gulf Coast the lead for good.

Four different Bulldog pitchers split duties, with Aiden Seymour (So, D'Iberville/D'Iberville), Tyler West (Fr, Vancleave/Vancleave) and Walker Seaman (Fr, Grand Bay, Ala./Mobile Christian) pitching a scoreless inning apiece to close out the game. Seymour picked up the win, and Seaman got the save. The Bulldogs struck out nine Eagles.

Hinds finished the year 13-35, 7-21.

MGCCC returns to the playoffs for the first time since 2022.

"It's perfect," Allen said. "It's the foundation for where this program is trending to. We've got a lot of work left in this postseason, but this group is the foundation for where we're going and where we want to be at."

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