RUSTON — Ruston High is moving on in the Division I Non-select playoffs — and only needed two games in the series to advance.
After the Bearcats built a commanding early lead Saturday, they then held off a determined rally from New Iberia for a 13-8 victory and clinched the first-round series to advancing to next week’s matchup at No. 4 seed Zachary.
Ruston (24-12) appeared to be in complete control after scoring eight runs in the first two innings, but New Iberia refused to go quietly and forced the Bearcats to battle deep into the afternoon.
“Sometimes baseball gives you a game that’s not pretty, or it is ugly, and there’s no such thing as an ugly win,” Ruston head coach Bryan Beck said. “We’ll take it any way we can get it.”
The Bearcats wasted little time grabbing momentum — led by senior Jackson Lee getting a triple to lead off on the first pitch he saw.
Ruston scored first in the top of the opening inning when junior Sam Hartwell singled to right field to bring home a run. Senior Jackson Burroughs later reached on catcher’s interference to force in another score, and senior Kenden Freeman capped the inning with an RBI single to make it 3-0.
The Bearcats added five more runs in the second inning to stretch the advantage to 8-0. Hartwell drew a bases-loaded walk, senior Nolan Parnell ripped a two-run double, a wild pitch plated another run and Ruston added one more on a steal of home.
That quick start had the Bearcats eyeing an early finish, but Beck said his team learned quickly that playoff games have a way of changing.
“As soon as we scored eight in the first two innings, really our dugout and everybody just thought this is over,” Beck said. “This thing’s going to be over in three innings. And it’s not. Those guys continued to fight.”
New Iberia answered with steady offensive pressure, collecting 10 hits and drawing seven walks to keep chipping away at the deficit.
Ruston also had to navigate a staff day on the mound.
Sophomore starter Max Pyles worked one and two-thirds innings, allowing four hits and two runs while striking out two. The Bearcats then turned to the bullpen, where Lee delivered one of the key outings of the game with one and two-thirds scoreless innings, allowing no hits while striking out two.
“We fought on the mound all day,” Beck said. “It was not our best performance on the mound. Max Pyles got the start and was fighting his tail off.
“We had an entire bullpen ready to go. In a playoff setting, you don’t have the luxury of being patient like you might in a regular-season game.”
Beck said the constant pitching changes were also part of preparing for the next challenge.
“We need to see young guys getting matchups because we’re fixing to play a really good Zachary team,” Beck said. “Those guys got experience and got some work, and that can help us moving forward.”
Offensively, Ruston again showed the lineup depth that has made the Bearcats dangerous throughout the season.
Parnell led the way with three RBIs while going 2-for-3. Hartwell and Lander Smith each added two hits, while Hudson Wood worked three walks.
Ruston also stayed aggressive on the bases, stealing eight bases in the game. Parnell and Wood each had multiple steals.
“When we are seeing the ball in our lineup, we can put a lot of pressure on you,” Beck said. “Lander Smith is a really critical piece for our lineup in the bottom because he flips it over with his on-base percentage.
“(Senior) Kenden Freeman’s down there hiding in the eight-hole getting a lot of fastballs. Then you put speed and athleticism on top of that, and it creates pressure.”
The Bearcats also flashed their versatility defensively and throughout the roster when a pair of Bearcat brothers put together a web gem for the third out in the bottom of the sixth. As the Yellowjackets appeared to be stringing together a rally, brothers George and Lander Smith combined at home plate to pick off a runner stealing home in an acrobatic play where big brother Lander tossed the ball back to his little brother George for the put out following senior Yellowjacket Coy Peltier narrowly advoiding a tag en route to home plate.
Beck pointed to players moving around the diamond and younger contributors gaining valuable postseason reps.
“We played musical chairs on the infield,” Beck said. “We feel good about our depth. We feel good about our pitching depth. We just have to stay focused and have really good intent when it comes to finishing games.”
Saturday’s win also likely marked the final home game for a senior class Beck praised for helping elevate expectations inside the program. The seniors include Lander Smith, Lee, Burroughs, Parnell, Freeman, Michael Brisco and Hudson Wood.
“Man, I just can’t say enough about them,” Beck said. “They’re an incredibly veteran-led group who are really close.
“They know how to handle being loose and relaxed and still handle their business. This year’s group expects to go down to Zachary and win a series. They know it’s going to be tough, but they expect that.”
Now the Bearcats will head south with that confidence — and with their season still very much alive.
Game 1 is scheduled for Thursday, April 23, at 6:30 p.m. at Zachary High School.
