PCA finishes first-round sweep of Kemper Academy
Published 11:41 pm Thursday, April 20, 2023
Porter’s Chapel Academy got rolling quickly after a slow start Thursday, and didn’t stop until it was on its way to the next round of the playoffs.
John Wyatt Massey and Zach Ashley combined for six RBIs and pitched six innings of scoreless baseball to lead PCA to a 10-0 win over Kemper Academy in Game 2 of their MAIS Class 3A playoff series.
PCA (15-8) won its ninth game in a row and swept the best-of-three series. Up next is a second-round match-up with Tunica Academy beginning Tuesday.
Porter’s Chapel won both games against Kemper via the run rule. After winning 11-0 in Game 1, the Eagles didn’t get on the board until the third inning in Game 2.
Brayden King hit a two-run single and then scored on a ground out, and Massey hit an RBI double to put PCA ahead 4-0. Massey added a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning, and then the Eagles finished it with five runs in the bottom of the sixth.
Six consecutive batters reached base before PCA recorded an out in the sixth inning. Massey was the last of those, hitting a two-run single that took the lead to 9-0. An error on a misplayed grounder two batters later allowed Ashley to score the final run.
Massey finished the game 2-for-3 with four RBIs, and pitched the final inning. Ashley did not have a hit, but walked twice and had two RBIs. Ashley also pitched the first five innings, allowed only one hit and struck out six batters.
Thomas Azlin was 3-for-3 with a triple, two doubles and two runs scored. King, Gavin Pugh and Gage Palmer also scored two runs apiece.