Warren Central cashed its first check on the way back to Trustmark.

Hayes Loper and Lester Martin both went 2-for-4 with one RBI, while Ryan Steed and Caden Cole combined for four innings of outstanding relief pitching to lead the Vikings to an 8-3 victory over Ridgeland on Friday.

Warren Central (13-9, 6-0 MHSAA Region 2-6A) clinched its third consecutive baseball region championship. It’s the first time the program has achieved that feat since a run of five in a row from 1998-2002.

The Vikings will host St. Andrew’s on Monday, then play two region games against Vicksburg. WC and Vicksburg play at VHS Tuesday at 7 p.m., and at Warren Central at 7 p.m. on April 18. The playoffs begin April 22.

“We’re going to enjoy it the next couple of days, get ready for St. Andrew’s on Monday and then wrapping up district with Vicksburg,” Warren Central coach Randy Broome said.

Warren Central rallied from an early deficit to beat Ridgeland 8-3 last Tuesday, and then followed the same script to do it again on Friday. After falling behind 2-0, the Vikings took the lead for good by scoring five times in the top of the fourth inning.

Loper and Martin capped the rally with back-to-back RBI singles. Other runs scored on a steal of home, an error, and an RBI groundout by Steed.

“Ridgeland showed they were going to fight you. They’re a scrappy bunch and have a couple of ballplayers. I felt like tonight we walked out there going, ‘All right, we’re champs.’ That gets you beat. And next you know we’re down 2-0 and haven’t had a hit yet,” Broome said. “Moving forward, this time of year, you have to show up ready to play. It just is what it is. We can’t take that step backward.”

Kealhofer hit an RBI single in the fifth inning as the Vikings extended their lead to 7-2, and Blake Caruthers hit another RBI single for the final run in the top of the seventh.

Cole and Steed combined to allowed one run on three hits, with no walks, in four innings out of the bullpen. Beau Bradley started and went three innings to earn the win.

“We’ve got some depth on the mound. We feel like we have some guys we can bring in in some different situations. Steed did that for us tonight,” Broome said.

Rallying for the clinching win, Broome added, was a good sign for the postseason. Warren Central reached the Class 6A championship series in 2024 and will be a No. 1 seed in this year’s bracket.

“I think Tuesday night we faced a good arm. It took us a minute to figure him out,” Broome said. “That was a good feeling as a coach. In some years past, if we didn’t score first we didn’t win many games. We have shown signs this year we can get down two or three runs and scratch back, fight back, put up a crooked number in an inning and get back in the lead.”