ST. CATHARINE, Ky. &045; No offense to the awfully talented Copiah-Lincoln Wolves of 2000, but this spring’s bunch may have them talking for quite some time.

For a team that carried just 16 players into the South regional tournament earlier this month, the Wolves proved again to be the unlikeliest of winners again Saturday at the NJCAA Southeast Super Regional tournament with a 8-7 win over St. Catharine in their last at-bat in Game 2 of the championship.

The win put the Wolves in the Division II World Series next week in Millington, Tenn., for the first time since that 2000 squad that featured former Natchez High standout and current Detroit Tigers center fielder Nook Logan.

&uot;In 2000, we were the favorites,&uot; Co-Lin head coach Keith Case said. &uot;I guess this is what makes this so fulfilling. We were the rag-tag group. 2000 was fun, but this is fun. This is very fulfilling.&uot;

The Wolves had to do it after taking one on the chin in the first game 11-0 to force the second game against the host Patriots. Both teams traded punches in the first seven innings before St. Catharine scored two in the eight for a 7-5 lead heading into the ninth.

But former Cathedral standout Garrett Jones came up with a huge hit right back up the middle off ace Josh Luecke to score two with two outs to spark the rally.

&uot;Tons of adrenaline flowing &045; tons,&uot; Jones said. &uot;I just tried to get up there, battle and do something. He came with nothing but fastballs. He was trying to blow it by me, and I got my bat back and hit one up the middle. It was going to be the last game, and we had nothing else to do but come back.&uot;

Jones came through in the clutch with two strikes on him &045; but he wasn’t the only one. The Wolves had their first two batters retired before Patrick Williams got two strikes, fouled a couple of pitches off and was hit by a pitch. Jody Britt got two strikes in the hole, fouled off a couple more and walked.

Jones then followed with the base hit to score Williams and Britt. Luecke &045; a big 6-4 guy throwing in the low 90s &045; then balked Jones over to second before giving up a single to Matthew Schexnayder to score Jones and give Co-Lin the lead.

Ryan Belanger then worked a scoreless ninth and retired the final batter on a strikeout to end the game.

&uot;Everybody commented on it, even St. Catharine’s coach,&uot; Case said. &uot;It’s like our on-deck hitter, our dugout &045; it was if we were going to win the ball game. They were intense, they were up and you’re one strike away on three different occasions from losing the ball game, and they come through.

&uot;That situation &045; to go to the World Series, I’ve been here 21 years, and it’s never happened (like that). And probably in another 21 it won’t happen. It’ll be a while before those guys realize what they’ve done.&uot;

The Wolves were able to bring Belanger, a USM signee, back for one inning a day after he threw a complete game against Itawamba. Both he and Derek Thompson worked an inning &045; Thompson got the win after going the distance Thursday in the opener &045; with Thompson getting the win.

Scotty Smith went seven after Lance Deville got rocked in Game 1.

&uot;We had talked with Derek and Ryan,&uot; Case said. &uot;They had stretched before the first game, and they felt great. There was no question &045; you would have had to fight (Belanger) to keep him from getting the ball in his hands.&uot;

The Wolves had to keep fighting in a game where almost no score went unanswered. The Wolves got two in the first thanks to a Britt homer with Xavier Qualls on, but the Patriots tacked on three in the second to take the lead.

Co-Lin tied it up with a run in the third when Britt singled in Patrick Williams, and both teams scored a run in the fourth and sixth innings to keep the score tied.

&uot;We just weren’t hitting the ball well as a team,&uot; Jones said. &uot;We weren’t hitting it. But everything we did &045; whether it was good or bad &045; it paid off. It’s an unbelievable feeling. Not many people thought we’d get this far, but these past few weeks we’ve come together as a team and played real well.&uot;

The Wolves open the World Series at 3 p.m. Saturday.