WESSON &045; Garrett Jones found out all too quickly that baseball at the next level takes some getting used to.

But it wasn’t just the start of the season. Here it was in the regional championship against the top-ranked team in the nation, and the Co-Lin freshman got a signal to do something he’d never done in his entire life &045; not even in Dixie Youth.

The coach said to steal home.

&uot;I think it was kind of a misunderstanding,&uot; the 6-1 Cathedral product said of his swipe of the plate against Pearl River. &uot;The man at first was supposed to steal. Coach told me to go as soon as the catcher released the ball, but the guy at first never stole. As soon as he threw the ball to the pitcher, I took off.&uot;

That was part of a crowning weekend for the upstart Wolves, who knocked off Pearl River twice on the road to take the Region 23 South title and advance to a NJCAA Division II super regional at St. Catherine, Ky., Thursday. The winner of the four-team field will advance to the World Series in Millington, Tenn.

That’s another unlikely scenario for a young Co-Lin squad that’s been battered by injuries. That was the case at the South tournament against Pearl River, but the Wolves persevered even after losing to Pearl River in the first game of the championship.

But like Jones stealing home, they just found a way to do it.

&uot;I thought that was a big play against Pearl River,&uot; Co-Lin head coach Keith Case said. &uot;You could tell &045; they were the No. 1 team in the nation, and this little band of guys here were leading by four. They just weren’t paying a lot of attention. I told Garrett we could get a big secondary lead and ‘If the catcher checks you, you’re dead. But as soon as the catcher’s arm breaks (throwing back to the mound), you go.’

&uot;The left-hander &045; it surprised him so much he fumbled with it in his glove and Garrett slid in without a tag on him. It was like taking a stake and driving it in.&uot;

Surprise. Not only had someone not known for his speed did his best impression of former Co-Lin standout Nook Logan, but the Wolves took two from the heavily favored Wildcats to advance to the Super Regional.

The Wolves will play at 11 a.m. Thursday against Lenoir, N.C., Community College in a four-team field that also includes St. Catherine and Region 23 North champ Itawamba. The last time they were this far in the postseason, Logan was batting leadoff and setting stolen base records.

That was 2000, a time folks sort of expected Co-Lin to make some noise. Jones and Trinity Episcopal standout Gregory Ketchings are two who responded despite a number of injuries the team has gone through.

&uot;We’ve had some good teams here, and we’ve won the region in the past,&uot; Case said. &uot;We played two extra-inning games (against PRCC) at our place, and over at their place they beat us by two and we led up until the sixth inning. We knew we would be able to play with them, but at the same time being in the postseason and being at their place &045; I thought our guys responded really well.&uot;

Jones, Ketchings step up

The injuries could have weighed down this young team &045; of record, injuries have ran the gamut of an ankle, knees, a shoulder and an elbow &045; and it might have midway through the season.

Yet if there’s been a turning point this season, Case points to a game against Delgado when Ketchings came in for the then-injured Xavier Qualls as the DH and had a chance to do some damage.

In the second game of a doubleheader with the Dolphins, the Wolves trailed by one with runners on second and third. Ketchings drilled a 3-2 pitch into right center to score both to give his club the win in walk-off fashion.

&uot;It was the right time,&uot; Ketchings said. &uot;I finally hit the ball. It was a good opportunity. I had an all-right day that day.&uot;

The shot was big for Ketchings, who has struggled at the plate in his first season. He’s played second base or DH this season while hitting .140 with seven hits in 50 at-bats but has come up big off the bench in spots and as a courtesy runner.

&uot;His numbers aren’t great, but he’s worked hard all year,&uot; Case said. &uot;He had the big hit against Delgado, and that was kind of a turning point for us. They’ve got a guy out there throwing 92 or 93, and Gregory hits a hard slider and drills it to right center. That kind of ignited us right there, and we’ve been on a little run ever since.&uot;

Jones, meanwhile, has been steady at the plate and at third base as the Wolves’ regular at the position. He’s started all 53 games and has picked his numbers up significantly since the start of the season.

He’s just shy of .300 at .287, but he’s second on the team in runs batted in with 40.

&uot;It took me a while to see this different level of pitching,&uot; Jones said. &uot;It’s just seeing better pitching. They try to work me outside a lot. Once the scouting report gets out, pitchers start pitching you different later in the year. After (about 10 games), I started seeing the ball real well and kind of got in a groove.&uot;

Jones has spent most of the season in the five hole in the lineup, and the adjustment period for him to third base has been minimal at best since sophomore Delta State signee Patrick Williams has the position.

What the Wolves really like is his bat and ability to hit in clutch situations. His strikeout total is second on the team with 30, but that is starting to taper off here lately, too.

&uot;The first half was a big adjustment, and he’s done that,&uot; Case said. &uot;Now he’s doing really well. He played real well (in the tournament). It seemed like he came up was a situation to score runs. He’ll hit a deep fly ball to score a run, and he does a great job of situational hitting.&uot;

Riley goes down

That second half surge, the whole excitement of knocking off Pearl River and the preparation for the super regional has all but escpaped Te Riley. The former Cathedral standout started off strong for the Wolves this spring as DH, pitcher and first baseman until something strange happened.

It was the Tuesday after a Saturday doubleheader at Southwest when the team came out to practice and started warming up with defensive drills and starting their hitting stations. That’s when the left-hander knew something was wrong.

&uot;Te came up to me and pulled his left sleeve up and said something wasn’t right,&uot; Case said. &uot;(His arm) was a dark maroon. The trainer got him, and he never said a word &045; they were gone.&uot;

Tests revealed a blood clot in his arm that wasn’t allowing blood to leave his arm and circulate back to the heart. He underwent surgery to have the clot removed, but worst of all it signaled the end of his career.

&uot;Te’s career is over, but I’ll let him come back and help me as a coach,&uot; Case said. &uot;He’s a great person, and I hate it for him.&uot;

Riley can’t come to practice, Case said, because he’s still on blood thinners following the surgery and the risk of getting hit by a ball is too big. But he’ll make the trip to Kentucky for the super regional now that school is out and still be a part of everything.

Riley is on that list of injuries the team has experienced this season, but Case did what he could to keep them focused and playing hard. The team is down to 16 players and is sure to be the underdog no matter how far they go in this thing.

But no one made excuses then, and no one is starting now.

&uot;Beating Pearl River was huge,&uot; Ketchings said. &uot;It was a good atmosphere, and we played really well. It was a fun experience. Our pitchers were pitching really well, and we played really well on defense. It’s going to come down to pitching and defense.&uot;