DECATUR, Miss. – The ICC baseball team is heading back to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Region 23 Tournament for the first time since 2013 after winning their best-of-three series with East Central.
The Indians (32-15) scored five runs in the top of the seventh inning to pick up an 11-2 run-rule victory in Game 1. Hunter Nabors (Montevallo, Ala.) went 3-for-4 with a walk, a run scored, and a RBI. Jackson Lancaster (Corinth) and Justin Medlin (Ripley) each had a pair of RBI in the win. Houston Harding (Walls) got the win after giving up two runs on six hits and two walks while striking out seven in six innings of work.
The Warriors (31-18) forced Game 3 with a 9-1 win in seven innings in the first game of the day Friday. Connor Lewis (Corinth) and Drake Wallace (Amory) were both 2-for-3 in the loss.
A four-run top of the eighth inning proved to be the difference in Game 3 as the Indians punched their ticket to the region tournament with a 10-5 victory. Lancaster and Russell Bunch (Saltillo) both went 4-for-5 as the Indians pounded out 20 hits in the win. Lancaster scored a run while Bunch added two runs and three RBI. Kyle Crigger (Corinth) had a home run. Hunter Hughes (Saltillo) got the win after surrendering three runs on five hits and four walks while striking out two in 5.1 innings on the hill.
The region tournament will take place May 16-20 at Bengal Stadium in Eunice, Louisiana. The Indians will be joined by host and No. 1 ranked LSU-Eunice (50-5), as well as No. 6 Pearl River (37-9), No. 19 Meridian (36-11), Gulf Coast (34-14), and Hinds (28-19).
ICC will open the tournament on Wednesday at 12:00 p.m. against Meridian. A win will pit the Indians against the winner between LSU-Eunice and Hinds at 6:00 p.m. Thursday while a loss would force the Tribe into a must-win situation at 3:00 p.m. against the winner of the Pearl River and Gulf Coast game.
All ICC games will stream on LetsGoICCTV.com/RED. More information on the tournament is available on LSU-Eunice's Region 23 Baseball Tournament Central page.
For more information on ICC baseball, follow the Indians on Twitter (@LetsGoICC).