Maybe it was the full moon that rose above the left field fence. Or maybe it was a hangover from Wednesday night’s win over rival Warren Central.

But whatever it was, Vicksburg was in the funk of funks on Thursday night at Bazinsky Field, down 11-2 to Division 3-6A bottom-feeder Greenville-Weston. Starting pitcher Jekori Reed and the Gator offense, which was masterful on Wednesday, struggled mightily.

The Gators refused to let their division title aspirations slip away into the moonlight, rallying for a 16-12 victory behind a late offensive explosion and five strong innings of relief by freshman Tyler Smith.

To Vicksburg coach Ryan Grey, the rally from a nine-run deficit showed more to him about the character of his club than Wednesday’s win over WC. In two games, the Gators have put 34 runs on the board.

“We stayed positive and I told our guys to keep fighting,” Grey said. “Tyler Smith came out, put up a couple of zeroes for us and that was the turning point of the game. That put the belief in our heads that we could come back. We were able to get ahead and then put a boot on their throats and shut them on down.”

The games get bigger from here. Vicksburg (9-6, 4-2) hosts first-place Clinton tonight at 6 with ace Clyde Kendrick to the hill. The Gators will get another shot at the Arrows on Tuesday in Clinton.