Sports - Topics from October, 2017
Lady Indians clinch top seed going undefeated in region play
By Russ Ragan
It was a big conclusion to the regular season for the Dodge High Lady Indian Softball team. They defeated AAAA Veterans on the road 13-8 in extra innings on Monday.
The big game was Tuesday, as Dodge hosted Bleckley County with the first seed in the region tournament on the line. The game was played in front of a full house in Eastman. The Lady Indians scored a first inning run and then scored four big insurance runs late to clinch the 5-0 win. The win gave the Lady Indians the top seed in the region tournament that started last night in Dublin.
The week started with a tough road game against Veterans. Dodge dropped a tough 6-5 game in Eastman to Veterans earlier in the year.
Dodge claimed the early lead in the first. Sara Lann would drive in Sydney Powell, who was running for Jade Dowdy, who walked, and Dodge would take a 1-0 lead. Veterans rallied in the bottom of the first to take a 2-1 lead.
The game stayed 2-1 Veterans until the top of the fifth. Jade Dowdy settled in after the first inning on the mound, as she retired nine out of ten batters. The Dodge bats would come alive in the fifth. Jade Dowdy would walk, and then Aniyah Black would hit a long homer to give Dodge a 3-2 lead. Jacey Dowdy and Lann would follow with singles. Hailey Hickman would drive in Europe Brown, who was running for Jacey Dowdy, for a 4-2 game. Amber Maxwell would drive in Lann, and the Dodge lead reached 5-2. Jenna Hickman’s sacrifice fly would score Maxwell to cap off the six-run inning and a 7-2 Dodge lead.
Veterans came back in the bottom of the fifth with an unearned run to cut the lead to 7-3. Dodge would answer in the top of the sixth. Jade Dowdy would help herself with a solo homer and an 8-3 lead. It would be a rough bottom of the sixth for the Lady Indians. Veterans would take advantage of a pair of Dodge errors to tie the game at 8-8.
Dodge would threaten in the top of the seventh but fail to score. The Lady Indians would make a pitching change, and freshman Linzy Bowen would come into the game. She had no trouble in the seventh, as she struck out a pair. This would send the game into extra innings. It would be the third time this year that Dodge had extra innings, and all three were on the road. The Lady Indians were 0-2 in games with extra innings, but today would be different.
Abby Manning, Jacey Dowdy and Lann would lead off the eighth inning with singles. Dodge would get runs batted in (RBIs) from Hailey Hickman, Maxwell and Jenna Hickman to take an 11-8 lead. Julianna Bellflower and Bowen would add RBIs to give Dodge a 13-8 lead going into the bottom of the eighth.
Veterans tried to make one final rally in the bottom of the inning. They got a pair of singles and a hit-by pitch to load the bases with two out. Bowen would get the final out on a strikeout, and Dodge would get the 13-8 win.
The season finale would be the big one. Bleckley County would come to town for the Lady Indians’ Senior Night. A win for Dodge would clinch the top seed in the region tournament. A Bleckley win would force a tie. Dodge would throw in a wrinkle, as Bowen would get the start on the mound.
Bowen would work in and out of trouble in the first. She would allow a hit and a walk with one out. She would get out of the jam with a pair of strikeouts. Dodge would get on the board in the first. Black would reach on a two-base error with two out. Manning would drive her home with a single to right field and Dodge would have the 1-0 lead.
Bowen would continue to strand base runners in the second and third. She would allow three walks, but she would get three strikeouts and a pair of fly outs to senior Hailey Hickman to get out of both innings. The Dodge offense could get very little going in the middle innings, as they were held to singles by Bellflower and Jacey Dowdy. Bowen got through the fourth and fifth innings, due to strong defense, in just ten pitches. Hailey Hickman made a good sliding catch to end the fourth. A double play in the fifth started by Bellflower on a fine play who threw to Black at short and to Lann at first to finish the inning.
The Lady Indians got some huge insurance runs in the home half of the fifth. Maxwell led off the inning with a single, and she advanced on an infield hit by Jenna Hickman. The Lady Royals tried to get Maxwell rounding second, but the throw was bad, as it went into deep left center that would score Maxwell, and Jenna Hickman would get all the way to third for a 2-0 game. Bellflower would drive in Jenna Hickman, and the lead would be 3-0 going into the sixth.
The Lady Royals would get a base runner in the sixth on a hit-by pitch, but Bowen’s seventh and eighth strikeouts of the game would strand the runner. Dodge would add to the lead in the bottom on the inning. With one out, Lann would single to left. Powell would come in and run for Lann. With one out, Hailey Hickman would lay down a bunt and Bleckley would throw it away, which put Powell at third and Hailey Hickman at second. Maxwell got another bunt down. Powell would score and Dodge would lead 4-0, and Maxwell would get all the way to second, as nobody was covering. The Lady Indians would try small ball one more time as Jenna Hickman got the bunt down, and Hailey Hickman scored for Dodge to take a 5-0 lead going into the seventh.
The Lady Royals tried to make one final rally against the freshman pitcher. They got a pair of singles around a fly ball to Jenna Hickman in center. The second hit was deep to left center, but a great throw by Hailey Hickman to third kept runners at first and second. A pop up to the first baseman Lann and a walk would load the bases with two out. Bowen would end the game with a bang, as she got her ninth strikeout on a called third strike to end the game. The win gave Dodge a 16-5 regular season record, and they are currently ranked number four in the Atlanta Journal & Constitution (AJC) AA top ten.
After the game, head coach Jennifer Bellflower said about the season so far, “It’s hard to believe the 2017-18 regular season is over. We are ready to begin preparing for postseason play. The team has come together over the course of this season, and we are excited to see what the coming weeks hold for us!”
It was a big conclusion to the regular season for the Dodge High Lady Indian Softball team. They defeated AAAA Veterans on the road 13-8 in extra innings on Monday.
The big game was Tuesday, as Dodge hosted Bleckley County with the first seed in the region tournament on the line. The game was played in front of a full house in Eastman. The Lady Indians scored a first inning run and then scored four big insurance runs late to clinch the 5-0 win. The win gave the Lady Indians the top seed in the region tournament that started last night in Dublin.
The week started with a tough road game against Veterans. Dodge dropped a tough 6-5 game in Eastman to Veterans earlier in the year.
Dodge claimed the early lead in the first. Sara Lann would drive in Sydney Powell, who was running for Jade Dowdy, who walked, and Dodge would take a 1-0 lead. Veterans rallied in the bottom of the first to take a 2-1 lead.
The game stayed 2-1 Veterans until the top of the fifth. Jade Dowdy settled in after the first inning on the mound, as she retired nine out of ten batters. The Dodge bats would come alive in the fifth. Jade Dowdy would walk, and then Aniyah Black would hit a long homer to give Dodge a 3-2 lead. Jacey Dowdy and Lann would follow with singles. Hailey Hickman would drive in Europe Brown, who was running for Jacey Dowdy, for a 4-2 game. Amber Maxwell would drive in Lann, and the Dodge lead reached 5-2. Jenna Hickman’s sacrifice fly would score Maxwell to cap off the six-run inning and a 7-2 Dodge lead.
Veterans came back in the bottom of the fifth with an unearned run to cut the lead to 7-3. Dodge would answer in the top of the sixth. Jade Dowdy would help herself with a solo homer and an 8-3 lead. It would be a rough bottom of the sixth for the Lady Indians. Veterans would take advantage of a pair of Dodge errors to tie the game at 8-8.
Dodge would threaten in the top of the seventh but fail to score. The Lady Indians would make a pitching change, and freshman Linzy Bowen would come into the game. She had no trouble in the seventh, as she struck out a pair. This would send the game into extra innings. It would be the third time this year that Dodge had extra innings, and all three were on the road. The Lady Indians were 0-2 in games with extra innings, but today would be different.
Abby Manning, Jacey Dowdy and Lann would lead off the eighth inning with singles. Dodge would get runs batted in (RBIs) from Hailey Hickman, Maxwell and Jenna Hickman to take an 11-8 lead. Julianna Bellflower and Bowen would add RBIs to give Dodge a 13-8 lead going into the bottom of the eighth.
Veterans tried to make one final rally in the bottom of the inning. They got a pair of singles and a hit-by pitch to load the bases with two out. Bowen would get the final out on a strikeout, and Dodge would get the 13-8 win.
The season finale would be the big one. Bleckley County would come to town for the Lady Indians’ Senior Night. A win for Dodge would clinch the top seed in the region tournament. A Bleckley win would force a tie. Dodge would throw in a wrinkle, as Bowen would get the start on the mound.
Bowen would work in and out of trouble in the first. She would allow a hit and a walk with one out. She would get out of the jam with a pair of strikeouts. Dodge would get on the board in the first. Black would reach on a two-base error with two out. Manning would drive her home with a single to right field and Dodge would have the 1-0 lead.
Bowen would continue to strand base runners in the second and third. She would allow three walks, but she would get three strikeouts and a pair of fly outs to senior Hailey Hickman to get out of both innings. The Dodge offense could get very little going in the middle innings, as they were held to singles by Bellflower and Jacey Dowdy. Bowen got through the fourth and fifth innings, due to strong defense, in just ten pitches. Hailey Hickman made a good sliding catch to end the fourth. A double play in the fifth started by Bellflower on a fine play who threw to Black at short and to Lann at first to finish the inning.
The Lady Indians got some huge insurance runs in the home half of the fifth. Maxwell led off the inning with a single, and she advanced on an infield hit by Jenna Hickman. The Lady Royals tried to get Maxwell rounding second, but the throw was bad, as it went into deep left center that would score Maxwell, and Jenna Hickman would get all the way to third for a 2-0 game. Bellflower would drive in Jenna Hickman, and the lead would be 3-0 going into the sixth.
The Lady Royals would get a base runner in the sixth on a hit-by pitch, but Bowen’s seventh and eighth strikeouts of the game would strand the runner. Dodge would add to the lead in the bottom on the inning. With one out, Lann would single to left. Powell would come in and run for Lann. With one out, Hailey Hickman would lay down a bunt and Bleckley would throw it away, which put Powell at third and Hailey Hickman at second. Maxwell got another bunt down. Powell would score and Dodge would lead 4-0, and Maxwell would get all the way to second, as nobody was covering. The Lady Indians would try small ball one more time as Jenna Hickman got the bunt down, and Hailey Hickman scored for Dodge to take a 5-0 lead going into the seventh.
The Lady Royals tried to make one final rally against the freshman pitcher. They got a pair of singles around a fly ball to Jenna Hickman in center. The second hit was deep to left center, but a great throw by Hailey Hickman to third kept runners at first and second. A pop up to the first baseman Lann and a walk would load the bases with two out. Bowen would end the game with a bang, as she got her ninth strikeout on a called third strike to end the game. The win gave Dodge a 16-5 regular season record, and they are currently ranked number four in the Atlanta Journal & Constitution (AJC) AA top ten.
After the game, head coach Jennifer Bellflower said about the season so far, “It’s hard to believe the 2017-18 regular season is over. We are ready to begin preparing for postseason play. The team has come together over the course of this season, and we are excited to see what the coming weeks hold for us!”
Dodge trounces Northeast for 36-13 victory
By David Bush
Last Friday night, the 4-0 Dodge County Indians rolled into Macon to face a scrappy region foe, the Northeast Raiders. The much-improved Raiders, 3-1 on the year, would be no pushover.
Dodge would win the toss and defer to the second half. The Indians kicked the ball off, and covered #19 Peyton Bush’s kick well. The Raiders ran the ball out to their own 20. The defense of Dodge wasted no time showing the Raiders who was going to dominate this game. In three plays, the Raiders managed to lose eight yards. #5 Tyler Montford stuffed a run for no gain, and #41 Cade Cranford sacked the quarterback for an eight-yard loss. The secondary would cover the Northeast receivers, resulting in an incomplete pass and forcing a punt. Northeast lined up to punt the ball, and the Indians blocked the kick; the ball bounced up into #18 Jamal Mahan’s arms, who trotted in for six points. #19 Bush’s point after was good, and the Indians were up 7-0 with only one minute, 45 seconds played in the first quarter.
After a Dodge kickoff, Northeast started their second possession at their own 26-yard line.
Again, the Dodge defense shut down the Raider offense, and Northeast would have to punt to Dodge. Dodge managed a short drive before having to punt the ball themselves.
#19 Bush pinned the Raiders down at their own 10-yard line with a 36-yard punt. The Indian defense came up big again, holding the Raiders to three and out forcing another punt.
Dodge got the ball back at the Northeast 40-yard line. The offense began a ten-play drive that included a nice 16-yard pass reception by #20 KeAnthony Woods at the one-yard line, and resulted in a #11 Nick Cummings touchdown from one yard out.
The point after by #19 Bush was good, and with 11 minutes, 21 seconds to go in the second quarter, Dodge led 14-0.
The Indians would kick the ball off to the Raiders, who would move the ball from their own 24-yard line to their own 45-yard line before having to punt back to Dodge.
The Indians, starting at their own 30-yard line, struggled on the possession, and on third down and 16, a fake punt was called. #27 Erin Pitts carried the ball around the left end, and sprinted untouched 76 yards for the third Dodge County touchdown. The extra point was good, and the score improved to 21-0 Dodge with six minutes, 33 seconds to go in the first half.
After the kickoff, Northeast would fumble the ball to Dodge on first down. Northeast didn’t give up and got the ball back by intercepting a Dodge County pass in the end zone. On second and ten, the Raiders attempted a pass, but #20 Woods came up with a beautiful interception for Dodge at the Northeast 44-yard line. Nine plays later, #2 RJ Carr found the end zone from three yards out. Dodge was successful on a two-point conversion, #16 Noah Cummings to #27 Pitts, and the score was now 29-0 with 31 seconds left in the half.
Northeast took the ensuing kickoff out to their own 30-yard line. The Raiders, desperate for points, ran a play around the end and got out of bounds to stop the clock. Then, on second and nine, they tried to throw a pass down the middle, but #3 Jared Cannon would come up with a big interception that not only stopped the Raiders from scoring, but also got the ball close enough to give the Indians one more chance to score before the half. After a screen pass to #2 Carr, #19 Bush was called on to attempt a 40-yard field goal. The kick was wide left, and the Indians would have to settle for a 29-0 lead at the half.
To start the second half, Northeast was to kick the ball off to Dodge.
The Raiders, however, attempted an onside kick and recovered it (even though it looked to me like it was touched by the kicking team before it went 10 yards). So, Northeast got the ball at midfield to start the second half.
The Raiders were pretty fired up about their little surprise kick and put together a ten play, 50-yard drive that resulted in their first touchdown of the night. The point after was good, and the lead was cut to 29-7 with six minutes, 12 seconds to go in the third quarter.
On the following kickoff, Northeast would try the onside kick again, but sure-handed #66 Ty Bellflower pounced on it to give Dodge first and ten at midfield.
On third and one from the 41-yard line, #2 Carr got loose and outran everyone to the end zone for a 41-yard touchdown run. #19 Bush’s point after was good, and the score was now 36-7 Dodge, with four minutes, 55 seconds still left in the third quarter.
#19 Bush kicked the ball back off to the Raiders, and they returned the ball back to their own 42-yard line. That would be as close as they got, as the Dodge defense bowed up and sent the Northeast offense backwards. On fourth and 18, the Raiders had to punt the ball back to the Indians.
Dodge got the ball back at their own 17-yard line and
Last Friday night, the 4-0 Dodge County Indians rolled into Macon to face a scrappy region foe, the Northeast Raiders. The much-improved Raiders, 3-1 on the year, would be no pushover.
Dodge would win the toss and defer to the second half. The Indians kicked the ball off, and covered #19 Peyton Bush’s kick well. The Raiders ran the ball out to their own 20. The defense of Dodge wasted no time showing the Raiders who was going to dominate this game. In three plays, the Raiders managed to lose eight yards. #5 Tyler Montford stuffed a run for no gain, and #41 Cade Cranford sacked the quarterback for an eight-yard loss. The secondary would cover the Northeast receivers, resulting in an incomplete pass and forcing a punt. Northeast lined up to punt the ball, and the Indians blocked the kick; the ball bounced up into #18 Jamal Mahan’s arms, who trotted in for six points. #19 Bush’s point after was good, and the Indians were up 7-0 with only one minute, 45 seconds played in the first quarter.
After a Dodge kickoff, Northeast started their second possession at their own 26-yard line.
Again, the Dodge defense shut down the Raider offense, and Northeast would have to punt to Dodge. Dodge managed a short drive before having to punt the ball themselves.
#19 Bush pinned the Raiders down at their own 10-yard line with a 36-yard punt. The Indian defense came up big again, holding the Raiders to three and out forcing another punt.
Dodge got the ball back at the Northeast 40-yard line. The offense began a ten-play drive that included a nice 16-yard pass reception by #20 KeAnthony Woods at the one-yard line, and resulted in a #11 Nick Cummings touchdown from one yard out.
The point after by #19 Bush was good, and with 11 minutes, 21 seconds to go in the second quarter, Dodge led 14-0.
The Indians would kick the ball off to the Raiders, who would move the ball from their own 24-yard line to their own 45-yard line before having to punt back to Dodge.
The Indians, starting at their own 30-yard line, struggled on the possession, and on third down and 16, a fake punt was called. #27 Erin Pitts carried the ball around the left end, and sprinted untouched 76 yards for the third Dodge County touchdown. The extra point was good, and the score improved to 21-0 Dodge with six minutes, 33 seconds to go in the first half.
After the kickoff, Northeast would fumble the ball to Dodge on first down. Northeast didn’t give up and got the ball back by intercepting a Dodge County pass in the end zone. On second and ten, the Raiders attempted a pass, but #20 Woods came up with a beautiful interception for Dodge at the Northeast 44-yard line. Nine plays later, #2 RJ Carr found the end zone from three yards out. Dodge was successful on a two-point conversion, #16 Noah Cummings to #27 Pitts, and the score was now 29-0 with 31 seconds left in the half.
Northeast took the ensuing kickoff out to their own 30-yard line. The Raiders, desperate for points, ran a play around the end and got out of bounds to stop the clock. Then, on second and nine, they tried to throw a pass down the middle, but #3 Jared Cannon would come up with a big interception that not only stopped the Raiders from scoring, but also got the ball close enough to give the Indians one more chance to score before the half. After a screen pass to #2 Carr, #19 Bush was called on to attempt a 40-yard field goal. The kick was wide left, and the Indians would have to settle for a 29-0 lead at the half.
To start the second half, Northeast was to kick the ball off to Dodge.
The Raiders, however, attempted an onside kick and recovered it (even though it looked to me like it was touched by the kicking team before it went 10 yards). So, Northeast got the ball at midfield to start the second half.
The Raiders were pretty fired up about their little surprise kick and put together a ten play, 50-yard drive that resulted in their first touchdown of the night. The point after was good, and the lead was cut to 29-7 with six minutes, 12 seconds to go in the third quarter.
On the following kickoff, Northeast would try the onside kick again, but sure-handed #66 Ty Bellflower pounced on it to give Dodge first and ten at midfield.
On third and one from the 41-yard line, #2 Carr got loose and outran everyone to the end zone for a 41-yard touchdown run. #19 Bush’s point after was good, and the score was now 36-7 Dodge, with four minutes, 55 seconds still left in the third quarter.
#19 Bush kicked the ball back off to the Raiders, and they returned the ball back to their own 42-yard line. That would be as close as they got, as the Dodge defense bowed up and sent the Northeast offense backwards. On fourth and 18, the Raiders had to punt the ball back to the Indians.
Dodge got the ball back at their own 17-yard line and
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