POPLARVILLE, Miss. – As LSU Eunice's season hung in the balance, the Bengals turned to their ace reliever Jacob Hammond (Monroe, LA, Ouachita HS).  In a season filled with dominant performances on the hill, Hammond arguably saved his best for the final game of the Region 23 Tournament.
 
Hammond got out of a critical seventh inning jam and slammed the door shut as LSU Eunice (46-6) captured its 10th Region 23 Tournament Championship with a 7-5 victory over East Central CC on Saturday at Dub Herring Park on the campus of Pearl River CC.
 
Facing runners on the corners in the seventh inning, Hammond induced an inning ending 4-6-3 double play.  The Warriors would see just one base runner reach in the final two frames, including going down in order in the ninth.  Hammond grabbed his eighth save of the season, going 2.2 innings of scoreless relief off one hit and two punch outs.
 
The sophomore notched a save in all four of LSUE's Region 23 wins, giving up just one run and two hits in 5.2 innings of work.
 
The theme of early offense at the Region 23 Tournament continued for the Bengals, racing out to a 7-2 lead in the fourth inning.  LSUE would have to manufacture its runs, taking advantage of nine walks and an error.  Beau Kirsch (Lafayette, LA, Acadiana HS) put LSUE on the scoreboard in the second inning with a sacrifice fly before three-run frame in the third that came by way of two bases loaded walks and an error.
 
After ECCC scratched two across in the top half of the fourth, LSUE grabbed three more runs including a RBI single from Scott Jones (Sulphur, LA, Sulphur HS).  Jones went 3-for-3 on the afternoon and would combine with Brady Hebert (Baton Rouge, LA, Catholic-Baton Rouge HS) for seven of the team's eight hits.  Hebert logged a 4-for-5 outing, scoring twice.
 
Jerry Couch (Bossier City, LA, Airline HS) turned in another solid start on the hill, tossing five innings.  Couch (10-1) scattered four runs off seven hits and two walks with four strikeouts.  Luke McGibboney (Gonzales, LA, Catholic-Baton Rouge HS) bridged to Hammond with 1.1 innings of relief.
 
With the win, LSU Eunice has now won the tournament championship the last three times the site has been at Pearl River.  It was LSUE's first Region 23 crown in the state of Mississippi since a 2013 victory at PRCC.
 
LSUE will find out its seeding for the 10-team double elimination NJCAA Division II World Series on Monday.  The World Series will again be held at David Allen Memorial Ballpark in Enid, Oklahoma from May 29-June 5.