By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

OCEAN SPRINGS — Ryne Long is in his second season as head baseball coach at Ocean Springs.

And, for the second straight season, the Greyhounds are headed to the Class 7A South State semifinals.

Long’s crew broke open a 4-4 tie with a solo run in each of the fifth and sixth stanzas to pull out a 6-5 win over visiting Northwest Rankin Monday night. The win, in the rubber match of the opening round series, sends OSHS up against Brandon later this week.

A.J. Rossi’s RBI-double broke the 4-4 tie in the fifth, and A.J. Arguello’s run-scoring single in the next inning added a much-needed insurance run for the Greyhounds. The Cougars scratched across a run in the top of the seventh before OSHS pitcher and Nicholls State signee Cannon Hensarling ended the game with a strike out to seal the win.

The Greyhounds overcame an early 1-0 deficit with a four-run second inning to seemingly take a pretty comfortable lead. Justin San Miguel and Arguello drove in runs in that frame, and two more runs scored an error and a run-scoring ground out by Jeremy Korn.

But the Cougars responded with a three-run fourth frame to knot things up and set up the climactic last few innings.

Meanwhile, Hensaring went the distance to pick up the pitching win as he struck out six and walked three while allowing eight hits.

Arguello’s two hits and two RBIs led OSHS offensively, while Adam Clower and San Miguel also had two hits apiece. Rossi and San Miguel had those key doubles.

Gavin Phillips had two hits and two RBIs for NWR. Brady Saxton had a pair of doubles and drove in two runs also.