DECATUR, Miss. — Postseason baseball returns to East Central Community College this week as the Warriors play host to the 2026 NJCAA Region 23 Tournament, a five-team bracket that begins Monday, May 4, and runs through Friday, May 8, on campus in downtown Decatur.
ECCC enters the tournament as the No. 2 seed at 43-11 overall and 20-8 in MACCC play, and earned hosting rights for what should be one of the most competitive regional fields in the state. The Warriors will be joined by No. 3 Itawamba, No. 6 Northwest Mississippi, No. 7 East Mississippi and No. 10 Northeast Mississippi — a lineup loaded with familiar Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference rivals.
Head coach Neal Holliman's program brings as much postseason pedigree as any in the state. The Warriors are coming off back-to-back third-place finishes at the NJCAA Division II World Series in Enid, Oklahoma, and a 46-16 campaign in 2025 that ended in the MACCC Championship Series. Holliman, who picked up career win No. 600 earlier this spring, has won three MACCC state championships at ECCC and has produced a long list of professional players.
A Warrior offense that doesn't stop
This year's ECCC team has hit at a level few in the country can match. The Warriors are batting .369 as a team with 88 home runs and 608 runs scored — numbers that have helped fuel a 43-11 overall mark and a 20-8 record in MACCC play. Four regular contributors are hitting better than .400, and ECCC has out-homered its opponents 88 to 54 while drawing 235 walks against just 310 strikeouts.
Freshman Mason Hickman has been the engine. The infielder leads the team in nearly every counting category, hitting .441 with 14 home runs, 23 doubles, 6 triples and 73 RBI. Sophomore Pablo Roque (.437, 8 HR, 48 RBI) has been right behind him, with freshman Jackson White (.419) and freshman Davin Lowery (.406, 7 HR) rounding out the .400 club. Sophomore Briceton Johnson adds another bat that travels: .381 with 8 home runs, 41 RBI and a team-leading 21 stolen bases at the top of the order.
Sophomore Ryan Nelson (.377, 8 HR, 40 RBI) and freshman Jacob Wooten (.384, 9 HR, 51 RBI) anchor the middle of the lineup, and freshman Xavier Myles (.378) gives Holliman yet another option. Top to bottom, ECCC has rolled out one of the deepest lineups in the country, and the Warriors' collective .474 on-base percentage means visiting pitchers don't get easy innings.
Pitching depth to match
Holliman has a stable of arms to choose from, headlined by sophomore Trae Winn (8-1, 5.44 ERA in 49.2 innings) and freshman Jackson Clark (6-2 with a team-best 74 strikeouts in 53.2 innings). Freshman Luke Williams (3-0, 4.46) and sophomore Brant Melancon (4-3, 5.57) give Holliman length, and freshman Ryder White has been one of the most efficient arms on the staff with a 4-0 record, a 4.05 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP across 20 innings of mixed starting and relief work. As a staff, ECCC has struck out 442 hitters and held opponents to a .268 batting average.
Five teams, no easy nights
Itawamba arrives as the No. 3 seed and a perennial Region 23 contender. The Indians have been one of the toughest outs in the MACCC for years and bring the kind of pitching depth that can wear a bracket down.
Northwest Mississippi, the No. 6 seed, has been one of the most explosive offensive teams in the conference. The Rangers entered late April hitting better than .300 as a team with nearly 70 home runs, paced by sophomore South McCoy — a .378 hitter with 14 home runs and 53 RBI who has also worked as the team's closer with a 2.45 ERA and seven saves. Add Mason McMillin (.314, 13 HR), Barrett McKenney (.333, 11 HR) and Preston Johnson (.419 in limited at-bats) and Northwest can change a game in one swing.
East Mississippi, the No. 7 seed, has shown flashes of the program that has long been a state and regional power. The Lions are dangerous when their pitching staff is in rhythm, and a single hot arm can flip a regional bracket. Northeast Mississippi, the No. 10 seed, will arrive as the bracket's lowest seed but has already shown it can take a series from anyone in the field.
What's at stake
The Region 23 postseason is split between two host sites this year, with ECCC running one half of the bracket in Decatur and Pearl River Community College hosting the other half in Poplarville. The winner of each tournament advances to face off in a best-of-three series for the Region 23 championship and a berth in the NJCAA Division II World Series — the same stage where ECCC has finished third in each of the last two seasons. For the Warriors, the chance to play deep into the postseason at home, in front of their own crowd, is the reward for a season's worth of work. For the four visiting teams, Decatur is the place to crash the party.
The format favors teams that can stay out of the loser's bracket and protect their pitching deep into the week. Five days, double-elimination baseball, mid-May Mississippi weather — the kind of setting where bullpens get tested and the third or fourth arm on a staff often decides who plays Friday.
More than a baseball tournament
What's easy to put on paper is the bracket. What's harder to capture is what a week like this means to a small town. Decatur, the Newton County seat that anchors ECCC's campus, will see its population swell with visiting teams, families, scouts and fans for five straight days. Local restaurants, hotels and businesses traditionally see a noticeable bump when the college brings a regional event to town.
First-pitch times, the full bracket, ticket information and parking details will be released by ECCC Athletics in the days leading up to Monday's opener. Fans are encouraged to follow the college's official athletics channels for updates throughout the week.
For ECCC, the goal is simple: protect home field, take care of the baseball, and play deep into the weekend. The Warriors will get their chance starting Monday. Fans can visit www.ecccathletics.com/region23 for more info!