Brookhaven High doesn’t look like a four seed.

That was the opinion of one Lincoln County native who lives on the coast and went to Vancleave High on Monday to see Brookhaven High and the homestanding Bulldogs sort out their MHSAA 5A baseball playoff series with a winner-take-all game three.

The Panthers gave Vancleave all they could handle, falling 10-9 in a game that went to an extra 8th inning.

It’s true though, the squad trotted out by longtime BHS coach Matt White during this series is the one that Brookhaven High fans had hoped to see during the season, but injuries piled up before the year even started and the Panthers did not get their full arsenal of players until the very end of the campaign.

Vancleave (26-6), considered to be one of the top contenders in 5A, won 5-1 on Friday in game one of the series.

Brookhaven High (12-15) bounced back to win 3-1 on Saturday in a series extending victory that was highlighted by a seven-strikeout performance from senior hurler Brayden Wilson. Facing one of the best lineups in 5A baseball, Wilson gave up just three hits and one unearned run while throwing 112 pitches. Senior Mason White then came on to get the final two outs to preserve the win.

BHS started hot on Monday, scoring four runs in the top of the second and then three more in the top of the third to go ahead 7-2.

Vancleave pulled even at 9-9 in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Junior pitcher Dreamus Harron Jr., one of those Panthers who missed time with injury, started on the mound and batted leadoff. At the plate, Harron Jr. slugged a double and drove in three runs.

Senior outfielder Drew Nelson hit a home run for the Panthers while Wilson, White and senior catcher Griffin Smith all hit doubles too. Nelson, a Southwest Mississippi Community College signee, is another player who’s had to work back from injury.

Freshman Landon Newman, junior EJ Ratliff and senior Trent Owens all hit safely for a BHS offensive attack that put up 12 hits in the loss.

Vancleave moves on to face South Jones (24-6) in the 5A quarterfinals. Florence High (20-6) and East Central (18-13) will also play in a quarterfinal pairing as will Corinth (21-9) and Pontotoc (19-10) and New Hope (19-11) and Lafayette High (21-8).