Van Reed (LSU-Eunice)

Eagles fall in regional championship

5/20/2012 8:05:00 PM

Beau Wallace (11) scored the winning run in Saturday's first game

The 2012 season came to an end for the Hinds Community College baseball team on Saturday night, but not before the Eagles reached the championship of the Region XXIII tournament for the second time in three seasons. Hinds fell, 17-0, to region champion LSU-Eunice, the host of the tournament and three-time national champion, who outscored their opponents, 44-2, over a three-day span.

The loss in the championship round ended the Hinds season at 36-18, which set a record for the most wins in the seven-year era under head coach Sam Temple. The previous high for wins was 35, set in 2009.

Temple now has two state championships and two Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) Coach of the Year awards, in 2010 and 2012. The Eagles also reached the regional championship in both years as well.

Hinds reached the final round by defeating Itawamba Community College earlier in the day, 3-2, by scoring two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to overcoming a one-run deficit.

Nathan Aultman (Mangham, La.) got the win on the mound by recording the final seven outs without allowing a run, and in the process, moved to 6-2 on the season. Tyler Akins (Madison) was remarkable in his first start of the season, going six and one-third innings and allowing only two runs before turning things over to the bullpen.

Pierson Waring (Vicksburg) got things started in the eighth inning with a leadoff single, and would score the tying run just a few hitters later. Beau Wallace (Vicksburg) would score the go-ahead and eventual winning run on a Justin Smith (Florence) groundout to put the Eagles ahead for good.

Waring reached base three times in the opener versus Itawamba to lead the Hinds offense.

The Hinds offense could never muster up anything in the nightcap versus Eunice, and finished with only five hits in the game.

Akins finished his Hinds career with a double that just missed clearing the fence in the bottom of the ninth inning. He had eight hits in the regional tournament to cap off a marvelous career in the maroon and white.

Kirk Thornton (Flora) got the loss on the mound to fall to 1-4 on the year. He, along with a host of other Eagles hurlers, failed to stop a potent Eunice offense that had 21 hits on Saturday night.

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Eagles fall in regional championship

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