BY STAN CALDWELL/Sports Writer

HATTIESBURG — It’s not hard to figure out where Buddy Turnage is from, once he stars to speak.

The first-year Pearl River Central head baseball coach is south Louisiana through and through, specifically from St. Bernard Parish, the swampy suburbs just downriver from Orleans Parish, which is contiguous with the City of New Orleans.

“I’m originally from Chalmette,” said Turnage after a Region 3-6A contest at Hattiesburg on April 10.

“I’ve been at Chalmette High, Belle Chasse, Westminster Christian and Pearl River. Those are the high schools, and I did seven years at Loyola-New Orleans as the pitching coach.”

Turnage was hired last summer to replace Neil Walther, who resigned near the end of last season after 17 years on the job that included a Class 5A state championship in 2017.

Under Walther, the Blue Devils had 12 consecutive winning seasons, a streak that will continue this year under Turnage. It was that championship potential that drew Turnage to the job.

“I felt this was an opportunity here,” said Turnage. “Especially with the chance to develop the kids seventh through 12th graders, without having to wait until they get to the high school, I thought that was a big advantage to this job.”

PRC has posted a 17-11 record in 2025, including a 7-2 mark in Region 3-6A play, good for the region championship and the top seed going into the Class 6A playoffs.

“Having a winning culture does help,” said Turnage. “But, obviously, everybody has different ways of doing things. I have a different style than most people. So, it’s still a matter of I have to prove myself to the players as well, and get their belief in what we’re doing here.”

The Blue Devils showed some resiliency in region play against their two biggest region rivals, coming after a tough non-region schedule.

They bounced back from a loss at West Jones to take the next two games in the series, the second back at Laurel, then won the third game of the series at home against Hattiesburg, after the Tigers took the second game 9-2 at HHS.

Pearl River Central will open the playoffs against Pascagoula (10-17), with the first game scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday at Carriere. Game 2 is set for 7 p.m. Saturday at Pascagoula, with the third game, if needed, back at PRC at 7 p.m. Monday.

The Blue Devils are coming into the post season in a bit of a slump after losing three straight since clinching the region title, a home loss on April 14 to Mandeville (La.) and a pair to South Jones, a top contender in Class 5A, 9-8 at Ellisville and 11-2 at Carriere.

Nevertheless, Turnage sees his team right in the mix, along with George County, the defending state champs in 6A, West Jones, Picayune and Hattiesburg.

If the Blue Devils get past Pascagoula, they would face the winner of the opening-round series between Hattiesburg and Long Beach in the quarterfinal round, with PRC holding home-field advantage.

As for South State, PRC would have home-field advantage only if Region 4-6A champion George County gets knocked out in one of the first two rounds.

“We have to pitch consistently and play solid defense,” said Turnage. “That’s the whole thing. There is so much parity in the South right now, that I think anybody who gets hot at the right moment, and gets some pitching, can make a run at it, whether they’re a 4-seed or a 1-seed.”