weekend wrap

Connor Powers was drafted in the 11th round last June by the Los Angeles Dodgers but elected to return to Mississippi State for his senior year. If he has serious pro aspirations, that might have been a risky decision. But State fans couldn't be happier to see Powers back at first base, especially after the show he put on in the BankFirst Challenge in Starkville over the weekend. In four games, Powers hit three homers and drove in 15 runs. Mississippi College's Bo Bell had a nice weekend, as well, going 6-for-15 with five RBIs and five runs scored as the Choctaws (11-1) swept three games at Schreiner. ... The best pitching performance likely came from a freshman at Jones County Junior College. Andrew Pierce, a 6-foot-2, 165-pound right-hander, threw a no-hitter at Mississippi Delta on Saturday in a 4-0, seven-inning victory. Pierce, from Stringer, was perfect threw six, hit a batter to start the seventh but got a double play behind him and ended up facing the minimum 21 batters. The Bobcats are 15-1. ... Belhaven honored Hill Denson for his 1,000th career coaching win on Saturday, then swept Spring Hill to move to 9-2 in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference, good for first place. ... The resiliency award goes to Delta State, which lost two games in the last inning against West Florida on Saturday but bounced back to win 7-3 on Sunday. A Chris Escobar grand slam was the highlight.