HATTIESBURG – The Loyd Star Hornets defeated the North Forrest Eagles 16-2 Saturday to finish off the first round sweep in Class 2A baseball action.

In Friday’s contest, Loyd Star beat the Eagles 5-0 at Smith Field.

“We came out flat to start the game, but our offense responded really well in the second inning to capture the lead,” said Loyd Star coach Jared Britt. “Overall, I was pleased with our efforts and glad to get the win. Now we must get back to work on Monday to prepare for the next round.”

The Hornets (19-7) will resume action Friday when they advance to the second round. Game time and opponent have not been set.

Loyd Star 16, North Forrest 2 

Trailing 2-0 after the first inning, the Hornets caught fire in the second inning and pounded out five runs.

Loyd Star continued the offensive onslaught in the third, fourth and fifth, outscoring the Eagles 11-0 to secure an easy five-inning victory.

Levi Redd was the winning pitcher for the Hornets with five strikeouts and no walks.

Alex Thomas suffered the loss for the Eagles with one strikeout and three walks.

Konner Allen powered the Hornets with two doubles and two singles. Bradyn Brister contributed three singles. Cade Hodges provided a double and a single. Parker Flowers and Lamar Lang had a double each. Cole Smith and James Beard hit a single each.

Dawson Lowery paced the Eagles with a double. Reggie Conner had a single.

Loyd Star 5, North Forrest 0

In the bottom of the first, the Hornets punched in the game’s first run on a bases-loaded hit by pitch to Bradyn Brister.

The score remained the same until the bottom of the fourth, when Loyd Star’s bats came to life. The Hornets outscored the Eagles 4-0 in the next three innings to extend the lead to 5-0.

Levi Redd sparked Loyd Star’s offense with a RBI bunt in the fourth. James Beard’s RBI single to center in the fifth inning gave the Hornets a 3-0 lead.

In the sixth inning, Tucker Watts hit a RBI double and Parker Flowers had a RBI single.

“Felt like we came out playing a little uptight to start off, but was able to fight through it and pick up a pivotal win,” said Britt. “Hats off to North Forrest’s Reggie Conner. He did a great job keeping us off balanced at the plate.”

Cade Hodges was the winning pitcher for the Hornets with eight strikeouts and three walks.

Reggie Conner started for the Eagles and suffered the loss. Alex Thomas and Lane Hill also pitched in relief for North Forrest. All three pitchers combined to have seven strikeout and 13 walks

Tucker Watts and Cade Hodges were the leaders at the plate for Loyd Star with a double apiece. Parker Flowers, Levi Redd and James Beard each hit a single, and had one RBI each. Bradyn Brister and Watts provided an RBI each.

Daylyn Croom and Alex Thomas paced the Eagles’ offense with a single each.