RAYMOND &8212; Central Hinds seemed to have had their District 3-AA game with Adams Christian well in hand when they chased Rebels starting pitcher Matt Barnes after just one-third of an inning.

The Cougars scored five runs off Barnes in the bottom of the first and had a pair of nine-run leads later in the game. But with the district championship on the line for Adams Christian, the Rebels responded on offense and defense as they rallied for a 23-14 win Friday afternoon and the 3-AA championship.

&8220;They got the ball up in the air,&8221; Rebels head coach Ron Rushing said. &8220;It was a strange day for balls flying out of the park.&8221;

Barnes gave up a solo home run to Nick Bethany and a two-run home run to Jason Leist in the bottom of the first.

Which is why Rushing put in Brian Sanderson, a pitcher who gets hitters to hit into ground balls. And even though Sanderson, the winning pitcher, gave up eight runs on six hits, he didn&8217;t allow a run to score in the bottom of the fourth, fifth and sixth innings.

He did, however, give up a three-run home run to Jordan Stubbs in the bottom of the second.

Adams Christian (8-0, 16-2), ranked No. 4 in the MPSA, had a tough time scoring off Daniel Mills to begin the game. The Rebels did get a solo home run from Timmy Foster in the top of the first, a solo homer from Eric Perry in the top of the second and a solo homer from Cole Bradford and an RBI double from Perry in the top of the third.

Once the third inning was over, Central Hinds (5-3, 8-6) had what seemed to be a commanding 13-4 lead. That was until the top of the fourth inning, when one play changed the momentum of the game to the Rebels.

&8220;David New just had shoulder surgery. He hit a ground ball and they made an error,&8221; Rushing said. &8220;New went to second base head first. That set the tone for the rest of the game.&8221;

Led by a 2-run double by Perry and an RBI double by Bradford, Adams Christian scored eight runs off Mills in that frame to cut the lead to 13-12. After a scoreless fifth inning, the Rebels took the lead for good by scoring five runs in the top of the sixth. C.J. Wright had the big hit with a three-run double.

Mills, the losing pitcher, gave up 15 runs on 11 hits in 5 1/3 innings.

&8220;We were down 11-2 and 13-4 during the game,&8221; Rushing said. &8220;The wind was blowing out big time. We were down nine runs and there was no sense of urgency. The kids really pushed themselves.&8221;

The two teams combined to hit eight home runs, most, if not all of them wind-aided. They also combined to commit 13 errors, including a season-high six by the Rebels, who also had a season-high 21 hits.

The Rebels put the game away with by scoring six runs in the top of the seventh, which included a three-run homer by Perry and a two-run double by New.

Perry led ACCS by going 4-for-4 with seven runs batted in. Bethany also had a solo home run for Central Hinds in the bottom of the seventh off Timmy Foster and went 3-for-5 with three RBIS.

ACCS will host Wilkinson Christian today, starting with the seventh-grade game at 11 a.m., followed by the JV game at 1 p.m. and the varsity game at 3 p.m.

Franklin County 8, North Pike 6

SUMMIT &8212; It was a must-win situation for Franklin County to keep its playoffs hopes alive and Dann Griffin pitched a complete game to help the Bulldogs defeat the Jaguars in a key Region 7-3A game Friday night.

Not only did Franklin County (6-5, 8-12) pick up a huge win in 7-3A, but the Bulldogs also defeated North Pike (4-6, 6-8) for the first time since the 2002 season. And they did it with some small ball in the top of the seventh inning.

With the score tied at 6-6 after six innings, Franklin County&8217;s leadoff hitter was hit by a pitch. After a couple of bunts, the Bulldogs scored on a fielder&8217;s choice and a passed ball to give them an 8-6 lead.

Griffin then kept the Jaguars off the scoreboard in the bottom of the seventh to end the game.

Franklin County&8217;s other big inning was the top of the third when the Bulldogs scored four runs thanks to six hits in a row.

Franklin Academy 14, Tensas 2

ST. JOSEPH, La. &8212; The Cougars remained in the hunt for the District 7-A championship with a win over the Chiefs Friday afternoon. Franklin Academy improved to 7-1 in district play while Tensas dropped its district record to 1-7.