SOUTH MISS 6 SPORTS

April 7, 2026

Prep Baseball: Vancleave hosts arch-rival East Central to open key Region 4-5A series Tuesday night

There were handshakes all around for Vancleave to end last week vs. Stone. (Photo by Steve Coleman)

By CURTIS ROCKWELL?Sports Director

VANCLEAVE — Either Vancleave or East Central has won the past four Region 4-5A baseball titles.
And if either of the two longtime arch-rivals are to have a chance at extending that streak, it’s a must that they play well against their opposing Jackson County foe this week.
The Bulldogs and the Hornets face off in a key three game league series this week, with the series opener set for Tuesday night in Vancleave.
Both Vancleave and East Central took big steps in securing berths in the upcoming Class 5A South State playoffs once again last week, as the Bulldogs won two-of-three from Stone and the Hornets swept a trio of contests from Wayne County.

First-year East Central head coach Stephen Garrard gets his first taste of the long-running Hornet-Bulldog rivalry this week as the top man. (Photo by Steve Coleman)

Vancleave head coach Zac Haarala leads his Bulldogs up against East Central this week. (Photo by Steve Coleman)

The Bulldogs are looking for their 13th straight postseason spot, as they took a pair of wins over Stone in Region 4-5A play to close out that series and move into a tie with arch-rival East Central at 5-4 in league play. The Tomcats, meanwhile, drop to 4-5 and out of the playoff seeding for the moment.
After knotting up the series at one game apiece with a 1-0 win in eight innings Thursday night at home, Vancleave carried that momentum over into the series finale on the road Saturday and broke out the big sticks collecting a season-high 15 hits in the winning attack.
Six of those hits came in a game-winning seven run top of the seventh that erased an 8-4 Stone lead in the process and secured the series win for the Bulldogs.
Dane McElroy tallied a game-high three hits to pace VHS at the plate, including a double, and he drove in two runs while Kyle Capers produced three RBIs as well. Harris Henry, Conner Mitchell, Wyatt Adams, Cam Sherrod and Chase Parker each also chipped in two hits apiece to the winning effort also. Mitchell had a double
Meanwhile, East Central had to deal with the weather and the War Eagles last week as rain delayed the start of that series by two days.

Vancleave’s Dane McElroy is expected to take the mound for the Bulldogs this week. (Photo by Steve Coleman)

East Central’s Christian McFaul is expected to take the mound vs. Vancleave this week. (Photo by Steve Coleman)

The Hornets ended the sweep with a 6-3 win Friday, as Christianan McFaul went the distance to earn the pitching win.
Gage Damazio posted a pair of doubles to lead ECHS offensively.
Vancleave enters the week at 12-9 overall, while East Central is 11-11. The two teams face off again in Hurley Friday night before reconvening again in Vancleave Saturday afternoon.

Northeast Jones leads Region 4-5A at 6-3, tied with Purvis with the same mark. Wayne County is 1-9 and has been eliminated from playoff contention.