By Will Dickins
Batesville and North Delta Junior Highs played Friday night in the anticipated cross town rivalry game. The Tigers took both games over the Green Wave with scores of 4-3 and 10-3.  
Game one of the night was close from start to finish.  Batesville started off two runs in the top of the first on zero hits. Dawson Griffin and Bowen Williams scored after being walked and hit by a pitch.  North Delta answered back with one run of their own in the bottom half of the inning with Zach Dugger scoring from a Lige Simmerman single through the right side of the infield.  Caleb White (pitcher) then helped the Tigers get out of the inning with two strikeouts.
Ian Cole started the game pitching for North Delta and kept them scoreless in the second.  North Delta would take the lead in the second with Dugger scoring again and Drake Barton coming around after being walked.
Needing a score to tie it, Batesville had something going in the top of the third.  Williams was hit by a pitch and stole second before getting home on White’s RBI single to leftfield.  Time was winding down with North Delta not being able to score.  The Tigers came up to bat again in the top of the fourth to try and take the lead.  
Caleb Lantern walked and was followed by Gage Heath hitting a single and Keshawn Lantern walking to load the bases.  Nathan Walls tried his hardest to get out of the inning, but C. Lantern would eventually score on a passed ball.
No further damage would be done as Walls got a strikeout and popup to second base to end the half of the inning.  
North Delta had their chances to tie it up.  With two outs in the bottom of the fourth. Luke Noah reached third after hitting a single. A passed ball was thrown by Griffin, but Noah was thrown out at home.
They had another chance in the next and last innin. Lige Simmerman reached third after another single but could not make it home.
Bases were loaded with two outs, and Griffin got the strikeout to end the game with Batesville Junior High winning 4-3.  
The leader at the plate for each team was: Simmerman (two singles and one RBI) and White (one single and one RBI).  
White also struck out 7 batters in the three innings he pitched.
Game two of the double header was close until the last inning.  North Delta got two runs in the second after keeping the Tigers scoreless.  Caleb Tutor hit a two RBI single to score Noah and Eli Robb.
The Tigers would then strike back with two runs of their own in the second and third innings.  Wes Morgan scored after being walked in the third. Dre Moore also scored after hitting a single in the third inning.  
The game (2-2) was still with the Green Wave not being able to do anything in the second and third.  
The sky fell out in the top of the fourth.  Batesville scored eight runs to bring the score to 10-2.  Gunner Ward, Gage Heath, Kaleb Lantern (2), Dre Moore, and Brett Goss all had RBIs in the inning.
With one out, the Tigers got nine straight batters on base, four by hits. The new lead was unreachable. Time consumed in the scoring surge, caused the fourth inning to be the last inning.  
North Delta had one last shot to score.They did get one on a Dugger RBI single, but that is all they could scratch across. Batesville Junior High took the second game 10-3.  
Dre Moore led the Tigers in efficiency with his two runs, one single, and one RBI.  Wes Morgan pitched for BJH and got one strikeout and three runs given up.
North Delta was led by Tutor at the plate with two singles and two RBIs.
The teams played each other again Monday night at Batesville Jr. High but the score was not available at press time.
Batesville Jr. High will host Senatobia at 5 and 7 p.m. North Delta Jr. High is off until April 20.