District 8 suffered a jersey malfunction following its State Games of Mississippi All-Star baseball opener loss to District 5 Tuesday that turned the team’s yellow jerseys a variation of lime green. District 8 players debuted a new look when they took the field Thursday morning in turquoise jerseys for their elimination game rematch against District 5. It’s a safe bet that District 8 players probably won’t be taking them off for the rest of the tournament. District 8 pitched and batted its way to an 11-0 run-rule shortened win against District 5 Thursday at Meridian Community College’s William F. Scaggs Field to remain alive in tournament play. “I think the yellow bled with the numbers, so it went from yellow to lime green — it was just messy,” District 8 coach Andy Davis said of the early week fashion mishap. “We threw those away. The turquoise is good.” After scoring just one run through four innings in Tuesday’s 9-5 loss, District 8 positioned itself early to not find itself in a similar situation Thursday. Starting pitcher Kasey Donaldson, of West Harrison High School, retired the first three District 5 batters in the top of the first inning before handing things over to his offense. Perhaps it was the new jerseys, but District 8’s offense erupted, as the team fired off 10 hits for 10 runs in the first inning. Fifteen District 8 batters saw at-bats in the bottom half of the first. District 8 out-hit District 5, 14-3 in the contest. “None of us wanted to go home,” Donaldson said. “We just came out here and swung it well, and won. We were expecting better than how we played the first time because we know we’re a really stacked team.” Donaldson, who played first base in Tuesday’s loss, went the distance and surrendered just three hits to pick up the win. Although he didn’t pitch Tuesday, he said he took note of what to expect should he face District 5 again. “I was watching their approach in the cages, and some of them were cutting themselves off,” Donaldson recalled. “And then our catcher, Tucker (Thomas), he was watching them, too. So he knew what pitches to call.” Colton Hipp, of Vancleave High School, gave District 8 its final run with a solo home run to left field in the bottom of the second inning to add the proverbial exclamation point on the performance. Newton County’s Eli Harrison and Northeast Lauderdale’s Landon Harper saw playing time for District 5. “They’re a pretty good team,” Harrison said. “They have a bunch of commitments to D-I and JuCo, and they’re pretty good. They can swing it. Kudos to them. I thought we were going to play a little better. They were hitting a lot better than I thought. They had a good pitcher going. We couldn’t do it this time; maybe we’ll get it next year.” Following his team’s shaky opening game performance, Davis, of Sumrall High School, said jitters were probably a factor Tuesday. “These guys are playing in front of these scouts and these college coaches, and honestly, I attribute Tuesday probably to a little nerves and a little butterflies they probably had,” he said. “The stands were packed with college coaches, and we’ve had two or three days to relax. I think that’s really what they did. They just relaxed and didn’t try to press too much on what they needed to do.” After the win, Donaldson commented on his team’s new digs. “We just got them, and we’re winning in them, so we’re just going to keep wearing them,” he said with a smile.