Matt Vines

SHREVEPORT – Rayne High needed a near-perfect game and an outstanding outing from starting pitching Peyton Daigle to win the first game of a best-of-three series Thursday.

On Friday, Rayne wasn’t anywhere near perfection as the North DeSoto bats came to life to win the doubleheader and the second-round series.

The No. 9 seed Griffins took advantage of No. 8 seed Rayne mistakes in a 7-2 win in the opening game Friday and knocked the ball around in a 12-0, five-inning win in the finale.

North DeSoto (24-8) will face No. 1 seed Lutcher in the quarterfinals of the Division II Non-Select playoffs. Lutcher disposed of No. 17 Jennings in 4-0 and 14-2 wins.

North DeSoto 7, Rayne 2

With their playoff lives on the line and needing two wins, North DeSoto set the tone early with three runs in the first inning on just two hits.

A Trysten Hopper single and two errors resulted in the first run as Blake McFerren scored on the second error.

Reni Mason sacrifice flied in the second run and a Braden Jones single drove home the third run.

Rayne committed six errors overall on the night.

The Griffins stretched the lead to 4-0 in the second inning on a Hopper ground out after McFerren was hit by a pitch and moved on a sacrifice bunt.

After Rayne managed to manufacture runs Thursday, it was North DeSoto moving runners in a manner of ways Friday.

Hopper dealt on the mound by going the distance with just two unearned runs allowed on five hits with five strikeouts. The senior retired nine batters he faced before an error to start the fourth inning that led to a Grant Simon RBI single to cut the Griffins’ edge to 4-1.

North DeSoto got that run back when Kaleb Carter led off with a double and eventually scored on an error, pushing the lead to 5-1 in the fourth inning.

The Griffins added a pair of tuns in the sixth inning on passed balls.

North DeSoto scored its seven runs on just four hits and four walks.

North DeSoto 12, Rayne 0 (5)

The North DeSoto bats feasted on four different Rayne pitchers as the Griffins scored 12 runs 15 hits.

Bryant LaCour started the scoring with an RBI double with Reni Mason (RBI single) and a Brayden Toothman sacrifice fly putting North DeSoto up 3-0 in the first inning.

The Griffins never looked back as pitcher Kaleb Carter worked around one hit and five walks to record a five-inning shutout.

Cole Cory led the offensive effort with a 3-for-4 day and three RBIs. He had an RBI double and a pair of RBI singles for the sixth, ninth and 12th runs, respectively.

LaCour and Blake McFerren (2-for-3) each had two RBIs.

Mason, Jones and Hopper each recorded a pair of hits with Jones scoring a team-high three runs.