NATCHEZ &045; In this type of contest, every hit matters.

Even the ones that don’t happen. The Adams Christian Rebels may have gotten a little fired up when slugger Timmy Foster was hit by pitch with two runners on in the fifth, and they came with retribution on the very next pitch in the form of a single back up the box courtesy of David New.

New’s buzzer drove in two runs in what turned out to the be the game-winning hit as the Rebels overcame a sluggish start to take a 6-5 win over Brookhaven Academy in Game 1 of the best-of-three playoff series between the two teams.

Game 2 is set for 6:30 p.m. today at Brookhaven with Game 3 Thursday at ACCS if necessary.

&uot;I was trying to get a RBI and get a lead,&uot; New said. &uot;It was a fastball right down the pipe. I wanted to kill it, but I had to knock some runs in. I just did what I had to do. We didn’t get fired up and get going until late. We were kind of slow coming out, being back on our heels on defense.&uot;

The rally was good enough late for the Rebels, who had to fight off a Brookhaven team that battled them for seven innings. Brookhaven led until New’s shot in the fifth, tacked on a run in the sixth and had runners on first and second with no outs in the seventh before coming up empty.

The Cougars (14-8) also out-hit AC, 10-8, but left eight runners on base.

&uot;We harped and harped on playing seven full innings, and we didn’t again tonight,&uot; Adams head coach Gill Morris said. &uot;We were flat. We made errors in the first inning, and Jamie (Morris) got the first hit for us in the third inning. We knew we couldn’t run because their pitcher is about one second to the plate out of the stretch.

&uot;We clawed back and clawed back, and David Alton comes up with a big hit. We played good defense, and we just hung on for the win &045; that’s all there is to it.&uot;

The shot from New was a tough one for BA hurler Corey Dickerson, who battled the entire game while walking just two and hitting Foster for his only hit batsman. Dickerson retired the side in order the next inning after the Cougars put a run on the board to keep his club in position to rally in the bottom half.

Yet when he plucked Foster with a pitch with Dustin Case and Cole Bradford on base, it sparked the Rebels (19-3). New drove in Foster and Case to break a 4-4 tie, but Dickerson got two putouts to get out of the jam.

&uot;It was just a great game between two good teams,&uot; Brookhaven head coach Steven Cooksey said. &uot;Corey missed about three or four spots the entire game. One was a big home run. It’s just a tough loss for our team. I think it was just a good job by a kid (New) having a real good night.

&uot;We tried some new things with Corey, and he hit Timmy with a pitch. He wasn’t trying to do it, and I think he loses focus when he hits someone.&uot;

The Cougars tacked on a run off Foster in the sixth when Dickerson singled in Chris Falvey to cut it to one and had a chance in the seventh to do further damage. Trey Allred and Jeremy Winborne led off with singles to bring up Ryan Vanderslice with a chance to move the runners over.

Vanderslice squared around for the bunt but put it in the air. Foster caught it for one out and caught Allred off second base for the second. Paul Davis then grounded into a fielder’s choice to the end the game.

&uot;I don’t think the pitch was high,&uot; Gill Morris said. &uot;I know he swings the bat, and I decided I was going to try one pitch. But I’m glad I didn’t. It’s the old wheel play, and if you run it, second base is uncovered. The whole purpose of it is to get the runner out at third on a force. But I didn’t do it, it worked out and we got the guy at second.&uot;

The play was a momentum-killer for the Cougars, who left two runners on base in the sixth after scoring that run. They touched Foster for all 10 hits and hit the ball hard while not making any errors on defense.

&uot;We didn’t execute the bunt when we needed to in a tough situation,&uot; Cooksey said. &uot;He’s just disappointed. He’s made several defensive plays to keep us in ball games. But I give credit to them. They’re a real good ball team.&uot;

Dickerson kept the Rebels quiet at the plate for almost the first three innings until Ray Simpson stuck a pitch over the wall in left for a two-run homer in his first dinger of the season that cut the lead to 3-2. Clay Floyd’s infield single in the fourth scored Foster to tie the score at three.

Brookhaven’s three runs in the first came on two AC errors, but Simpson’s shot turned the tide.

&uot;That was big because it made it a 3-2 ball game,&uot; Gill Morris said. &uot;That kind of got our confidence up. After that, we scored in the fourth and fifth. That kind of broke the ice for us. We came out a little tight, and you shouldn’t come out tight on your home field.&uot;

Said New: &uot;It kind of sparked everybody. They’re a lot better team than when we played them at the first of the year.&uot;