Diamond Devils are Crowned North Half Champions

Written By: Carter Smith

The road to the MHSAA 3A State Championship has been anything but easy for the Booneville Blue Devils, but Booneville continues to prove they are one of the hottest teams in the state at the right time.

After being swept earlier in the season by division rival Kossuth on March 19 and March 20 by scores of 4-1 and 10-1, the Blue Devils got their shot at redemption over a month later with much bigger stakes on the line — the MHSAA 3A North Half Championship.

This time, it was all Booneville.

The Blue Devils traveled to Kossuth on Friday night and opened the series with a dominant 5-0 victory before finishing off the sweep Saturday afternoon at Harold T. White Field with a 9-3 win to punch their ticket to the 3A State Championship Series at Trustmark Park in Pearl, Mississippi.

Kossuth entered the postseason as the #1 seed out of Region 1-3A, while Booneville came in as the #2 seed. Since postseason play began, Booneville has now won four consecutive playoff series and knocked off three #1 seeded teams along the way.

On Friday night, Booneville turned to ace Knox Houston on the mound, and the junior delivered one of the most dominant pitching performances of the season. Houston threw a complete-game one-hit shutout, allowing only two base runners all night — one hit and one walk.

The lone Aggie batter to record a hit was later erased from the bases after Houston picked him off at first base.

Houston also contributed at the plate as the Booneville nine-hole hitter, driving in the Blue Devils’ first run of the game with an RBI double. Houston finished the night 3-for-4 at the plate as Booneville totaled 10 hits in the Game 1 victory.

With momentum on their side entering Saturday’s Game 2 matchup, the Blue Devils once again leaned on John Greyson Pharr, who had already thrown a complete game earlier in the week in Booneville’s decisive Game 3 victory over Nettleton.

Pharr answered the call again.

The Booneville right-hander pitched 6 1/3 innings, allowing only five hits and three runs while striking out two and walking five as the Blue Devils completed the sweep.

Offensively, Booneville stayed aggressive throughout the afternoon, scoring runs in every inning except the first. The Blue Devils broke the game open with a massive five-run sixth inning that put the game out of reach.

Defensively, Booneville played clean baseball while the Aggies struggled in the field. Kossuth committed seven total errors in the two-game series, including six errors in Game 2 alone.

The numbers throughout the series showed complete dominance by Booneville. The Blue Devils out-hit the Aggies 16-6 across the two games while outscoring Kossuth 14-3.

The playoff run for Booneville has been one of the toughest paths imaginable through the 3A bracket. The Blue Devils have now defeated #3 North Panola, #1 Yazoo County, #1 Nettleton, and #1 Kossuth during their postseason run to the North Half Championship.

Now, Booneville turns its attention to the MHSAA 3A State Championship Series at Trustmark Park in Pearl, Mississippi, where the Blue Devils will face either Presbyterian Christian or West Marion. Dates and game times are expected to be announced by the MHSAA next week.

The “Voices of the Blue Devils,” Carter Smith and Jody Presley, will provide a free audio-only broadcast live from Trustmark Park as Booneville competes for a state championship.