Beating a team a division higher is rarely seen in college athletics, but occasionally it happens. And even more occasionally, it involves a team from Mississippi playing spoiler.
That was the case on Saturday as the Pearl River Community College baseball team defeated Division I Tulane by a score of 20-15 in a 16-inning scrimmage. Even though the game will not go toward either team’s official record, it could be a sign of what’s to come in 2025 – at least for the Wildcats.
Final from Uptown (16 Innings)
PRCC – 20
Tulane – 15#RollWave 🌊 ⚾️
— Tulane Baseball (@GreenWaveBSB) October 26, 2024
Pearl River Community College, which won a conference title a season ago and a national title three seasons ago, is once again expected to be a top team on the junior college level. Saturday’s upset backs those expectations up. While the Wildcats do send multiple players up to Division I each offseason, beating the Green Wave is a testament to how talented this year’s team actually is.
Tulane, a historically stout program with 23 NCAA Tournament appearances, is coming off a big 2024 in which it went 36-26 and was crowned champion of the American Athletic Conference.
While no box score has been released from the scrimmage – which should be taken with a grain of salt, considering it was a fall-ball practice game – it was apparent that Pearl River Community College tore through Tulane’s bullpen. The Green Wave was up 9-4 through six innings before the bats got hot for the Wildcats, going up seven before closing the game out with a five-run win.
