BACK IN TIME—Slidell’s Randall Meyers slides back safely into second as Hammond’s Justin Billiot attempts to pick him off. Meyers and the Tigers hold a 3-2 lead in the second inning, which will resume today at 4 p.m.

For just a moment, Hammond had a little spark Tuesday, trying to start a fire that might lead to that elusive first District 7-5A victory of the season.

But then Mother Nature came along and doused the flame.

The Tors had a rally going against Slidell, having scored twice in the bottom of the second to pull within 3-2 with runners at second and third and nobody out. But then the rain came — just enough to convince the coaches and umpires that it was unsafe to continue.

And so the two teams will be back at it on Wednesday at 4 p.m., with the Tors’ Steven Tannis batting with a 1-1 count and a chance to tie the game or put Hammond ahead.

Ponchatoula and St. Thomas Aquinas suffered similar circumstances. The Falcons weren't able to start against Pope John Paul and the Green Wave managed to get through just a half an inning at Fontainebleau. Ponchatoula will return to Mandeville with a 1-0 lead today at 4:30 p.m. and STA will head to PJP for a 5 p.m. tilt.

"I would have (preferred to keep playing), but still, we don't want to get any kids hurt and we're still here for the kids," Tors coach Steve Labbe said. "We had the nine-hole hitter, Steven, who can hit a little, and then we've got the top of the order. But — we've got it still coming tomorrow.

"Hey, Mother Nature calls, and there's not much you can do. You win some, you lose some, and sometimes it rains."

Meanwhile, in Loranger, the Wolves (15-10, 5-0) stayed perfect in District 10-3A with a 12-2 win over Independence (1-16, 0-5) in five innings. Loranger's Taylor Abdalla and Tyler Kendrick each homered for the Wolves as they finished the first half of the district schedule unblemished.

Staying in 10-3A, Amite (8-7, 4-1) stayed within striking distance of Loranger with a 6-3 win over Sumner. The Warriors rallied from an early 3-1 deficit to get past the Cowboys (4-8, 2-3) and stay one game behind the first-place Wolves.

"Finally, we settled down and started hitting some good pitches and Steven (Mercier) came in and threw a big game for us," Amite head coach Jasper Bryant said.

The forecast wasn't as bright for Albany as its game with Bogalusa was postponed due to rain. The Hornets will return to Bogalusa today at 6 p.m.

DISTRICT 7-5A

Slidell 3, Hammond 2, susp., 2 in.

The Tors gave the Tigers (10-6, 4-1) three second-inning runs, all unearned, all coming after two out and nobody on. Randall Meyers singled, Blake Forbis walked, and Nathan Reis hit a routine grounder that was booted to allow Meyers to score. Shad de St. Germain then cranked a double down the first-base line before Tors starter Zach Cefalu got the final out.

But Hammond was making noise as the rain began falling in the second. Koty Miller coaxed a walk, then Jack Jacobson hit a roller to short that the shortstop belivered too late to second for a force and an error. Jeremy Skinner then bunted on 3-and-2 and it went for a base hit to load the bases.

With the rain getting heavier, Slidell starter Sean Nelson hit Hammond catcher Jon-Mike Williams in the back of the helmet to force in a run and prompt a time out to try to dry the mound. When play resumed, Nelson threw a strike to Tanis, then uncorked a wild pitch to score Jacobson and make it 3-2.

Play was halted at the point and will be resumed today at 4 p.m. from that point.

—Reported by John Lenz

DISTRICT 10-3A

Amite 6, Sumner 3

AMITE — The Warriors struck the first blow in the bottom of the first inning. Chris Petitto singled with two outs off of Sumner starter Clint McDaniel and reached second when McDaniel plunked Josh Gant. Anthony Smith ripped a single to right, scoring Petitto and giving Amite a 1-0 lead.

The Cowboys began to get to Amite starter Eric Sevin in the top of the second. Russ Bonner led off with a walk and reached second when Cody McDaniel reached first on a fielder's choice. Bonner scored as Ethan Givens singled to left and advanced to second on the throw home.

Colton Newman followed up with a double down the right field line, scoring Cody McDaniel and Givens to give Sumner a 3-1 lead and prompting Amite to make a pitching change — putting Steven Mercier on the mound. Mercier closed out the Cowboys to end the inning.

Mercier allowed one hit in six innings after Sumner chased Sevin with no outs in the top of the second.

I've been looking at him (Mercier) since he was a freshman, and he's still capable of having dominant performances like that," Sumner head coach Mike Cassel said. "I thought we would be able to hold them off, but we just ran out of gas."

Sumner held on to its lead until the bottom of the third inning. Mercier led off by reaching base on an error and reached second as Kyle Bracey laid down a bunt single. Petitto loaded the bases when he was hit by a pitch.

Smith stepped up to the plate with one out and ripped another single to right, driving in Mercier and Bracey to tie the game at 3-3 at the end of three innings.

"Anthony Smith had four RBIs," Bryant said. "He was big for us. We got the hits when we needed them."

The Warriors took the lead in the bottom of the fourth. Rodriguez Sibley led off with a single to center and scored on Gant's sac fly to center, giving Amite a 4-3 lead. The Warriors padded their lead with two more runs in the sixth inning to ice the game.

—Reported by Fred Batiste