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With the odds stacked, Opp overcame eight errors and erased a six-run deficit for a dramatic 11-10 win against Pike Liberal Arts in varsity baseball action on Monday, March 10.

The walk-off victory lifted the Bobcats to 10-1 for the season, while the Patriots dropped to 6-8.

Jackson Bowen earned a one-out single in the visiting first before Luke Barron reached on an error. Jack Baggett singled as another miscue brought Bowen home. Garrett Whitaker scored Barron off an RBI groundout. Kade Brookins and Dawson Bradford pushed the lead to four with consecutive RBI hits. Braden Shirley struck out Cash Harrell and Grady Patterson and kept the score 4-0 after an inning.

Nolan Brown retired Cole Garrott and Pruitt Vaughan on five pitches in the top of the second. Bowen doubled and came home on an RBI single by Barron as Pike Lib took a 5-0 lead. Baylor Turman drew a leadoff walk in the home half and advanced to third when Brown doubled. Turman then scored on a wild pitch and put Opp on the board. Porter Nelson grounded out but sent Brown to the plate and sliced the deficit to 5-2 after two innings.

The Patriots took advantage of three straight miscues in the third as Brookins scored. Riley Day was hit by a pitch and went to second on a sacrifice bunt by Harrell. Patterson walked and set up a scoring opportunity for the Bobcats, but Shirley induced two straight groundouts as the score remained 6-2 after three innings.

Pike Lib upped the lead to 8-2 with an RBI double by Barron and an RBI single from Brookins in the fourth. Nelson came on and struck out Wilson Cotton for the third out. Dawson Peacock began the home half with a free pass as a Nelson single put runners at the corners with nobody out. A defensive blunder sent Peacock to the plate, while Landon Langley drove home courtesy runner Dawson Cox on an RBI groundout and pulled Opp within 8-4 after four innings.

Both teams put a runner aboard in the fifth inning to no avail. Vaughan hit a single in the top half but was erased when Patterson threw him out attempting to steal second. Brown kept the home portion going with an infield single and was stranded at first.

Back-to-back errors with two outs in the top of the sixth led to the Patriots extending the lead to 10-4. Whitaker scored on a mistake, and Brookins crossed home after a failed pickoff attempt. Nelson led off the bottom half with a single and moved into scoring position on a balk before courtesy runner Matthew Morgan entered at second base. Garrott recorded the next two outs before hits started falling. Patterson had an RBI single and brought in Morgan, while Turman unloaded the bases with a three-run double. Brown reached on an error and cashed in Turman as the Bobcats clawed back to 10-9 after six innings.

Vaughan and Bowen had one-out hits in the seventh with hopes they would result in insurance runs. Langley, who took the mound at the start of the frame, held Pike Lib in check with a line out and a fly out that set the stage for a wild finish.

Nelson took first on a miscue and moved to second. Morgan tagged up and advanced to third when Langley flew out. Will Jackson lined out as Morgan hustled home with the tying run. Day then appeared to foul a ball off his bat, but the umpires conferred and overturned the call to be a hit by pitch. Day advanced to second on a passed ball and scored the game-winner when Harrell ripped an RBI single and capped the Opp comeback.

Day went 2-for-3 with two runs scored, while Brown and Nelson were both 2-for-4. Harrell was 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored. Turman also finished 1-for-3 with three RBIs and a run scored. Brown gave up eight runs (three earned) on eight hits and struck out one in three innings. Nelson allowed two unearned runs on three hits and struck out three in three innings. Langley earned the win with a scoreless inning for the Bobcats.

Opp will travel to Faith Academy on Friday, March 14, at 5 p.m. and visit Citronelle for a doubleheader on Saturday, March 15, with first pitch at 10 a.m.