By SAM STAFF/Sports Writer

BILOXI — Concerns about incoming weather issues cause a slight change in the first day of play at the ninth annual Battle at the Beach on Thursday afternoon.
The adjustment involved a trio of “Southern Six” squads as well as two of the many out-of-state teams competing in the event.
St. Martin wasn’t supposed to see any action until day two on Friday, and neither was the host Biloxi or Long Beach. However, with the schedule change the Yellow Jackets kicked off the Battle at the Beach Thursday afternoon taking on perennial Alabama state power Mountain Brook at The Biloxi Sports Complex.
The Spartans moved to a solid 8-1 overall on the young season with a 4-1 win over St. Martin, dropping the Yellow Jackets back below the .500 mark at 4-5.

The loss snapped a three-game win streak for St.Martin, which started the current campaign off a bit slow at 1-4 before reeling off the three-game win streak to move above the even mark at 4-3.
Will Roebuck accounted for the lone Yellow Jacket run on the day.
In the past two years, Mountain Brook has had the unfortunate luck of facing the eventual Class 6A state champions in the early rounds of the state playoffs falling to Hartselle last season and Oxford the year before that.
The Spartans, who are off to their best start on the diamond in four years, are competing in the BATB for the third straight season and also knocked off St. Martin last year in the event 14-2.

Thursday’s game marked the second straight contest in two days for the Yellow Jackets against an opponent from neighboring Alabama, as on Wednesday night the Yellow Jackets earned a 6-5 home win over Alma Bryant from just outside of Mobile.

In that game, Gavin Nitcavic had a game-high two hits and drove in two runs for SMHS, while both Lake Fincher and Noah Jenner each had two hits and drove in a run a piece in the winning effort.
Lincoln Hust, one of five Yellow Jacket pitchers on the night, picked up the win.
Prior to that, on Saturday St. Martin used a big five-run rally in the sixth stanza to pull out a close 9-8 win over West Harrison.

St. Martin got seven singles in the winning effort with each coming from a different batter. Sean Stiglets posted a game-high four RBIs in the game for the Yellow Jackets.
The Yellow Jackets now won’t play on Friday, but Mountain Brook will clash with in-state rival Orange Beach at SMHS Friday afternoon at 5 p.m.
In other rescheduled action from the opening day of The Battle at the Beach, Mountain Brook took on Booker T. Washington of Pensacola, Fla., following its event-opening win over St. Martin and the host Biloxi Indians were set to take on Long Beach in the final game of the first day tripleheader Thursday night.