By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

D’IBERVILLE — Last season, Gulfport finished second in the first-ever Region 4-7A race in state history

Monday night, the Admirals stepped into sole possession of first place in that same league by beginning the new region race with a big win.

Visiting Gulfport rallied from 2-0 deficit with a four run rally in the top of the fifth frame to pull out a 5-2 win over D’Iberville in the region opener for both schools.

The win moved the Admirals to 9-4 overall while the Warriors dropped to 6-9 after losing their fourth game in the past five outings.

The home team took a quick 2-0 lead with a solo run in each of the first and fourth frames.

Jaylan Johnson led off the bottom of the first for DHS with a single, moved over to third base when Carter Naron followed that with a single to right, and then he scored on a passed ball to make it 1-0.

D’Iberville doubled that advantage up three frames later, when Caleb West doubled with two outs and Ayden Demoran followed with an RBI-double to make it 2-0.

But that would end the scoring for the Warriors. However, it was just about to start for Gulfport.

Dane Sullivan started the decisive rally for the Admirals with a one-out single in the top of the fifth. Mason Little’s run-scoring double two batters later made the score 2-1, and Brant Rounsaville followed with a two-run double to give Gulfport a lead it would never relinquish at 3-2. Rounsaville later scored on a run down to make it 4-2.

The Admirals added an insurance run in the top of the sixth stanza on Sullivan’s RBI-single.

Tolar Rayboirn started and worked almost five full frames to earn the pitching win for GHS, while Thomas Stennis finished up and earned a save.

Ayden Toncrey, the second of a trio of DHS hurlers, suffered the loss.

Rounsaville guided Gulfport at the plate with two hits and two RBIs, while Sullivan also had a pair of hits.

Naron had two hits for the Warriors.

Game two of the three game series is set for Friday in Gulfport.