John Burson
Eunice High claimed a sweep of the Pine Prairie Panthers in District 5-3A baseball action played at Bobcat Field Thursday.
The game swung back and forth between the two teams for much of the game as the Bobcats earned an 8-7 victory.
With the win, Eunice improves to 20-6 on the season and 8-0 in District 5-3A.
The Panthers had taken a 7-5 lead by scoring three runs in the top of the seventh inning, but the Bobcats battled back in the bottom of the seventh to tie the game at 7-7, forcing the game into extra innings.
Ian George led off the inning with a walk, stole second base, and scored on a single by Luke Andrepont.
Austin Phillips advanced Andrepont to second on a sacrifice bunt. A wild pitch advanced Andrepont to third and he would later score the tying run.
In the eighth inning, Kyler Carson reached base after being hit by a pitch thrown by Eunice closer Jayden Brasseaux, but Brasseaux made the play of the game on a bunt attempt by J.J. Sims when he laid out to field a popup bunt attempt and turned it into a double play with a throw to first baseman Tyler Darbonne.
The play by Brasseaux was significant as Jordan Ardoin ripped a triple off the Eunice pitcher. Brasseaux recovered to strike out Franks to end the inning.
Grant Fontenot opened the Eunice eighth inning with a single before stealing second and third.
The game ended with Fontenot sliding safely into home as pitcher Gage Strother’s pitch got away far enough for Fontenot to score the winning run for an 8-7 victory.
Top hitters for the Bobcats were Andrepont, Youngblood, and Darbonne. Andrepont and Youngblood had two hits apiece and Darbonne drove in three runs.
Jordan Ardoin led the Panthers with three singles and a triple.
Eunice 6, PPHS 4
PINE PRAIRIE – The Bobcats claimed a 6-4 victory over the Panthers in the first game of a two-game series played Tuesday.
Eunice fell behind 1-0 to the Panthers after Kyler Carson singled to lead off the bottom of the first inning and scored on a double by Franks.
But Eunice starting pitcher Ian George kept the Panthers from scoring again through the fifth inning.
The Bobcats scored two runs in the third inning and two more in the fourth. In the third,
George singled to open the inning and stole second base. With two out, George scored on a double off the bat of Josh Youngblood. Tyler Darbonne tripled to score Youngblood to give the Cats a 2-1 lead.
The Cats increased its lead in the fourth. Grant Fontenot tripled and scored on a double by Seth Venable. Venable later scored on a single by John Lejeune for a 4-1 advantage.
Eunice increased its lead to 5-1 in the sixth inning after Lejeune singled, advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by George, and scored on a groundout by Luke Andrepont.
The Panthers cut into the Eunice lead in the bottom of the sixth on hits by Cole Thomas, Sims, and Ardoin to pull within one run of tying the game.
But the Bobcats extended their lead to 6-4 in the top of the seventh as Youngblood doubled and scored on a single by Jayden Brasseaux.
Brasseaux relieved George and retired four batters to earn the save. George earned his fourth win as he pitched 5.2 innings.