By CURTIS ROCKWELL

Item Sports Editor

BAY. ST. LOUIS — Picayune remained unbeaten in Division 8-4A play with an exciting 5-4 win in 11 innings over homestanding St. Stanislaus on Saturday.

The win was the 11th straight for the Maroon Tide and head coach Cayne Stockstill’s team is 12-1 overall and a perfect 8-0 in league play.

Picayune is tied with Long Beach atop the league standings, and the two teams meet in a home and away series this week that will in all likelihood decide the division championship.

The Maroon Tide were able to do something Saturday that they hadn’t done before, and that was beat SSC standout pitcher Boomer Scarborough who had completely shut down Picayune the past two seasons.

Picayune’s Jared Bales would be the pitching star in this match-up though, going the distance and striking out 14 to move to 4-0. Scarborough struck out 16 but the Tide scored the winning run off him with two outs in the top of the 11th when Jay Dedeaux doubled down the right field line and scored on a game winning RBI-single by Evan Nichelson.

“It’s really a shame that either team had to lose,” Stockstill, whose team took a huge step towards hosting an opening round Class 4A South State series, said. “Both pitchers gave it everything they had.”

The Rocks took a 3-0 lead early, thanks in big part to a two run homer by Scarborough. But the Tide stormed back in the fifth to send eight batters to the plate and score four runs to take the lead as Jake Riser and Hunter Gill each recorded RBI-singles and both Bales and Nichelson drove in runs as well as Picayune took a 4-3 lead.

But SSC tied the game up in the sixth on a Scarborough double and sent the game into the climactic extra innings.

Gill and Riser had a pair of hits each for the Maroon Tide, which travels to Long Beach Tuesday.

PRC baseball

CARRIERE — Homestanding Pearl River Central swept a doubleheader from visiting Hancock on Saturday, winning the opener 14-1 before taking the nightcap 9-2.

In game one, the Blue Devils jumped out to a 13-1 lead after three innings and coasted to the five frame win. Blake Herrin struck out seven took the win, and got plenty of support from his teammates at the plate as PRC banged out 11 hits.

Aaron Lee had a big game at the plate, as he had four hits including a home run and a pair of doubles and drove in three runs, while Cody Dillard also homered and had two hits and drove in three runs as well. Brant Graham had two hits also.

In game two, Ramsey Graham took the win and went the distance as well as PRC collected 12 hits.

Dillard had three hits to pace PRC and drove in a run while Lee had two hits as well and Graham had two hits and drove in three runs and Brett Tortorich had an RBI-double.

PRC is 9-11 and will host Poplarville Tuesday and travel to Bay High Wednesday and then to Poplarville on Friday before wrapping up the season hosting Forrest County AHS in a twinbill Saturday.

“We are trying to finish above .500, and I think we should be able to do that,” second year PRC head coach Neil Walther, whose team has now won four straight games, said. “We lost some tough one run games earlier in the season, and winning is contagious just like losing is. I think we have gained some confidence lately and hopefully we can end the season on a positive note.”

Hancock stands 6-13 on the year.

Poplarville baseball

Poplarville was rained out Friday and Saturday and is set to host D’Iberville Monday night before traveling to PRC Tuesday.