The LMS Tigers travelled to Chapel Hill on Tuesday night and jumped out to an early lead before riding starting pitcher Nathan Derryberry to the finish in an 8-1 win over the Rockets.

Derryberry scattered four hits and gave up zero earned runs in five innings of work, while striking out three and walking two FMS batters.

Jay Lyons came on for Derryberry in the sixth and pitched two scoreless innings for the Tigers.

Early LMS lead

LMS jumped on FMS starter Jarvis Lyttle, who could not find the strike zone early.

Lyons led off the outset with a base hit and was sacrificed to second by Hunter Cummings.

Lyttle walked Kamron Liggett and Lyons opened up the scoring when he came home on a pass ball, before Derryberry also drew a base on balls.

Liggett touched home on a fielder's choice by Jacob Autry and Derryberry made it a 3-0 ballgame when he was knocked home on sacrifice fly by Jackson Coward.

Lyttle would get the next three Tigers in order to stave off any further damage.

Loaded bases

Dustin Brashears singled with one out in the home half of the inning and was sacrificed to second by Lane LaPorte, but Derryberry got out of the early jam on a fly out to Hunter Haurez in left field.

A one out single by Cummings in the second and two bases on balls in the next three batters loaded the sacks full of Tigers with two outs.

Lefty Lane Allen came in from the bullpen for the Rockets and escaped the Tiger threat on a ground ball to Ethan Mealer at third base.

Ryan Moses worked a leadoff walk for the Rockets in the bottom of the inning and a balk on Derryberry put the Forrest catcher in scoring position at second base.

Drew Daughrity followed with a base hit to right field, putting Rockets on the corners.

After a pop-up to Derryberry for the second out, Josh Pate, who came in to run for Moses scored on a delayed steal, making it 3-1, but Derryberry got out of the inning on a ground ball to Colton Barber at shortstop.

Pitchers' battle

The pitchers settled in over the next four innings as neither squad was able to push another run across home plate.

The Tigers busted the game wide-open in the top of the seventh, plating five runs on four walks, one Forrest error and a lone hit, a double by Liggett.

Lyons walked a pair of Forrest batters in the bottom of the seventh before finishing off the Rockets on a ground ball to Barber at short.

Cummings (2-5, RS, SB) led the Tigers with a pair of hits, while Lyons (1-4, BB, SB), Liggett (1-4, 2RS, BB, SB), and Coward (1-3, RS, 2RBIs) and Nate Thomason (1-1, RS, 3BB) all had one hit apiece in the game.