BYRAM &8212; How could this happen? How could the runner-up out of Class A be on the verge of knocking off the Class AAA Division I state champion on the road?

Huntington had its chance. But up against powerhouse Hillcrest, the Hounds couldn&8217;t knock off the giant before dropping a 7-6 decision Tuesday in the opening round of the first MPSA Overall baseball tournament.

The Hounds (20-13) led 5-3 at one point and were tied at 6-6 heading into the last of the sixth inning before the Cougars took the lead for good. Hillcrest moves on to play Simpson Academy in a semifinal game Thursday at Smith-Wills Stadium.

&8220;We played really hard,&8221; Huntington head coach Mitch Ashmore said. &8220;I was proud of our kids for coming up there and playing hard against a pretty good ball club. We had our chances to go ahead and maybe win the ball game. I think they have a little respect for a little school like us. We&8217;re a small school, but we play pretty good baseball.&8221;

Never did the magnitude of the David-versus-Goliath matchup hit home as much as when game officials came over and asked Ashmore if the team&8217;s three bats were the only ones they had. That was it, the coach said, and the Hounds did the best they could with them.

Hillcrest took the lead in the sixth when Moncrief tripled off Huston Eliser just before a power outage that lasted a good 10 minutes. After the lights came back on, Eliser got an out and a strikeout before Justin Reed doubled in Moncrief to take the lead.

In the seventh, Moncrief got a strikeout before Ples Arthur and Eliser were retired on line-drive outs to end the game.

&8220;We just seemed to shoot ourselves in the foot a lot of times in important situations mentally and physically,&8221; Ashmore said. &8220;But overall, we&8217;re proud of our guys and hopefully we can bounce back having had this opportunity. Hustin Eliser pitched a whale of a ball game. It never feels good to lose, but we&8217;ve played four one-run ball games that were big games. I think our kids competed well, and I&8217;m proud of that.&8221;

Hillcrest picked up three in the first off Eliser for a 3-1 lead before the Hounds got one in the second when Eliser doubled and later scored on a Zach Brown fielder&8217;s choice. Trey Corbett then hit a two-run homer in the third to give the Hounds a 4-3 lead.

Huntington added another in the fourth before Hillcrest tacked on three in the bottom half for a 6-5 lead. The Hounds tied it in the sixth when Eliser singled and later scored on a fielder&8217;s choice off the bat of Phillip Washington.

Central Private 13, Adams Christian 3

CENTRAL, La. &8212; Things were going about as good as they could in the third inning when Adams Christian tied the game at 3-3, but then the bottom fell out.

And it fell out in the form of seven runs in the fourth and three more in the fifth as Central Private took the game in five innings to advance in the Overall tournament. Central Private will face Jackson Academy Thursday in the other semifinal.

&8220;It&8217;s hard losing three games to end the season,&8221; Adams head coach Ron Rushing said. &8220;But it&8217;s like I told the kids &8212; they worked hard all season and never gave up. It puts a little damper on it, but I think they&8217;re proud of what they accomplished.

&8220;Central Private is solid all the way around, made plays and swung the bat. They were the better team.&8221;

The fourth was when things went awry, and it started with an error before Matt Creel came up with the bases loaded and delivered a double that scored all three. The homestanding Rebels ended the inning with a 10-3 lead on starter Brian Sanderson. Timmy Foster came in with one out in the fifth and faced five batters before Matt Barnes pitched to one batter &8212; a Nick Sweezy single that scored two runs to end the game.

&8220;(Sanderson) threw well, but he got a little tired,&8221; Rushing said. &8220;He&8217;s done a great job, and this was his first year to pitch, especially pitch submarine. He&8217;s one of the reasons we made it this far. Timmy has thrown so much at the end, and I think his arm was a little tired.&8221;

Adams Christian put together a rally in the third off Creel with three runs to tie the game. Three singles loaded the bases, and C.J. Wright&8217;s fielder&8217;s choice scored Luke Brumfield before David New singled in Cole Bradford and Foster.

Central Private, however, turned a doble play to get out of the inning.