The Magnolia State will have two representatives in the 2025 NJCAA Division II World Series. No. 2 nationally ranked Pearl River Community College will be the two-seed in the tournament, while No. 5 East Central Community College will compete as the sixth-seeded team.
East Central (42-14) earned their third straight trip to the world series by way of an at-large bid. Pearl River (50-8) punched their ticket to the 12-team tournament, along with a first-round bye, after winning the MACCC championship and the Region 23 title.
PRCC is one of the favorites to claim a national title, looking for the program’s first since 2022. The Wildcats rolled through the recent Region 23 Tournament, going 3-0 in regional play before knocking off East Central in a best-of-three series.
CROWN ‘EM! 👑👑
Pearl River baseball secures the Region 23 Championship and punches its ticket to the NJCAA Division II World Series with a 10-0 crushing of East Central! That’s our second Region 23 Championship since 2022!
The Wildcats now head to Enid, Oklahoma to compete for… pic.twitter.com/ZDPh0KwCfc
— PRCC Athletics (@PRCCAthletics) May 17, 2025
Michael Avalon’s high-powered club has placed themselves among the best offenses in the nation, ranking 19th in team batting average (.331), 23rd in on-base percentage (.449), 13th in slugging percentage (.533), 12th in extra-base hits (193), and eighth in home runs (71).
The Wildcats have complemented quality offense with even better production on the mound, topping NJCAA Division II with 11.12 strikeouts-per-innings-pitched, a team ERA of 2.49, and 147 runs allowed.
East Central hopes that the third consecutive time is the charm of bringing a national championship trophy back to Decatur. The Warriors also went 3-0 Region 23 Tournament regional play before dropping the title series to PRCC.
#DowntownDecatur is headed to Enid, Oklahoma!🍢🍢 pic.twitter.com/Wrt37glbSc
— ECCC Baseball (@ECCCBaseball) May 20, 2025
ECCC will also bring a potent lineup to Enid, Okla., ranking 29th nationally in total runs scored (455), 44th in on-base percentage (.435), and 41st in home runs (44).
But the Warriors’ strength is on the mound. Neal Holliman’s crew ranks 12th nationally in team ERA at 4.08, 15th nationally in total strikeouts at 445, and 32nd nationally with 9.26 strikeouts-per-nine-innings.
Pearl River will begin their world series run on Sunday at 1 p.m. against the winner of 7-seed Southeastern and 10-seed Kellog. East Central starts their third-straight year in Enid with a battle against 11-seed Catawba Valley at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
Click here to view a full breakdown of the NJCAA Division II World Series.
