By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

OCEAN SPRINGS — Home-standing Ocean Springs hosted three straight games in the Battle at the Beach on three straight nights against three teams from the Jackson area.
But after a big win over powerful Jackson Prep in their first game in the ninth annual affair, the rest of the stretch didn’t go so well for the Greyhounds.
Northwest Rankin knocked off Ocean Springs 5-1 Wednesday night in the final game of the event for the Greyhounds. That, along with a 1-0 loss to Hartfield Academy on Tuesday night, dropped first-year head coach Ryne Long’s crew to 4-6 overall so far as OSHS gets ready to begin the first-ever Region 4-7A play next week.

On Tuesday night, Hartfield Academy pushed across the lone run in the game in the top of the fifth on an RBI-single from Payne Jeffcoat to give the Hawks the lead for good.
Will Blevins started and worked almost five frames on the mound in taking the loss, and Griffin Frye finished up for OSHS.
The Greyhounds managed just four singles off of a pair of Hartfield hurlers, as Cole Stumph started and went the first five frames to pick up the win and Taylor Latham held OSHS hitless over the final two innings to earn a save.
J.P. Abt and Sam Sheffield each had two hits apiece to pace the Hawks at the plate. Hartfield, a perennial private school power, is now 15-2 overall after a 4-0 win over Pillow Academy Wednesday afternoon in Vancleave.

Unfortunately for the Greyhounds, the offensive woes carried over to Wednesday night as OSHS got only three hits in the 5-1 loss to Northwest Rankin.
The Cougars wasted no time in jumping out to a quick 2-0 lead in the top of the first frame and never looked back, adding two more runs in the third inning to make it 4-0 as Northwest Rankin moved to 7-3 overall with the win.
Chris Fox had a double for Ocean Springs and A.J. Rossi drove in the only run for the Greyhounds.
Cannon Hensarling, one of a trio of OSHS pitchers, started and took the loss. The Greyhounds have lost four out of their last five games.
Wes White went the distance for the Cougars on the hill, scattering the three hits while striking out five and walking just one in picking u the win.

Ocean Springs opened the week on an impressive note, as Greyhound junior pitcher Jack Jordan hurled a complete game five-hit shutout over against Jackson Prep in a 3-0 whitewashing of the visitors at “The Tom”.