Green Wave holds off late FC baseball rally, 13-12

Despite finding itself in an early hole against Natchez Cathedral on Tuesday, Feb. 21, Franklin County’s varsity baseball team rallied before ultimately coming up a run short in a 13-12 final decision to the Green Wave.

It marked the second loss in as many days by the Bulldogs to Cathedral after an 11-9 final on Monday, Feb. 20 with FC’s season mark settling at 3-2 overall on the 2023 diamond campaign.
Franklin County started the top of the first with Donovan Moore drawing a lead-off walk, but was picked off advancing to home plate following a double by Larry Pernell.
From there, Dalton Meadows grounded out prior to Ridge Clanton stroking a grounder and reaching on an error in the process. Pernell came home for the 1-0 advantage.
The Green Wave answered with six runs in the bottom of the first and FC’s offense was able to cut into that five-run lead with some key runs and hits in the second.

Quez Rancifer started off the frame with a single, with Terrance Fields striking out swinging and Dakota Chisholm clubbing a single to right to put runners at second and first bases. The two runners advanced to scoring position on a ground out by Jamari Tolliver. Moore hit a line drive and reached on an error that allowed both Ranicer and Chisholm to score, and a similar scenario where Pernell connected with the ball and reached on an error allowed Moore to plate FC’s fourth run of the game.

Cathedral was scoreless in the bottom of the second and so was Franklin in the top of the third, but the Green Wave got some breathing room in the bottom of the third thanks to two runs for an 8-4 advantage.

The top of the fourth changed the dynamics of the game for the Bulldogs as Tolliver started the stanza with a one-out single and made his way to third on a follow-up line drive by Moore that was mishandled by Cathedral.
A two-out single to center by Meadows that scored Moore combined with Tolliver coming home pulled FC to within two runs of the lead, 8-6.
Clanton then singled to left and Noah McCormick blasted a fly ball that was mishandled by the Green Wave with both Meadows and Clanton scoring as a result to knot the game at 8-all.
Rancifer lobbed a single to right that scored McCormick and gave Franklin County its first lead of the game, 9-8. A subsequent single from Fields scored Rancifer for a two-run bulge for the Diamond Dawgs headed into the bottom of the fourth.

Cathedral pulled to within a run, 10-9, in the bottom of the fifth before FC was able to extend its lead with a pair of scores in the top of the seventh inning.

The Bulldogs’ Pernell hit a one-out single and Meadows was hit by a pitch before Clanton struck out.
McCormick reached on a Cathedral error that green-lighted the two baserunners to come home for a 12-9 lead.

The Green Wave, who finished the contest with a total of six hits and nine errors, answered with four runs in the bottom of the seventh for the come-from-behind, 13-12 win over the Dawgs.

Franklin County had 10 hits in the contest and committed only two errors.

Rancifer had a 3-of-5 plate performance with a pair of runs and an RBI to pace the Bulldogs’ batting.

Pernell finished 2-of-5 with a double and two runs scored while Meadows and Tolliver were both 1-of-3 with the former plating twice and the latter cross home once.
Fields and Chisholm went 1-of-4 with Fields having an RBI and two strikeouts and Chisholm finishing with a run and a strikeout.

Clanton was 1-of-5 with a run and two strike outs while Moore and McCormick were both hitless with two runs for the former and one for the latter.

Moore also had a stolen base.

Three pitchers climbed the hill for the Bulldogs with Tolliver working three-and-two-thirds innings where he was tagged for five runs (three earned) on two hits with eight strikeouts and six walks.

Pernell, in a two-and-two-thirds innings effort, scattered three runs (one earned) on three hits while striking out two and walking one.

Moore threw 21 pitches and gave up five runs (four earned) on a hit and four walks.