By Russ Ragan
The Dodge County Middle School (DCMS) Lady Warriors hosted West Laurens in a game that would determine top-seed in the upcoming tournament. The game as expected was a tight one; as Dodge had to come from behind for a 4 to 2 win. The game also took a twirl into the twilight zone, more on that later in the Dodge fifth. Even though Dodge hosted either Swainsboro or Dublin on Tuesday it was expected that the Lady Warriors would win and host the semi-finals and finals this Saturday, September 26, at the Eastman-Dodge Recreation Department.
Lady Warrior Aniyah Black (c) is pictured with her parents, Tavarius and Rikina Black as she was recognized as the only eighth grader on the team this year.
Lady Warriors will host games this weekend at rec department
Dodge didn’t get out to the best of starts in the game. The Lady Raiders got on the board first in the first inning. They didn’t hit the ball overly hard, but they all counted and Dodge trailed 2 to 0 in the early going. The Lady Warrior bats were quiet in the first four innings as a double by Logan White and a single by Linzy Bowen was all Dodge had until the fifth. Bowen kept the Lady Raiders off the board despite no one, two, three innings. Then came the Dodge fifth. This one will be a little hard to explain, but here goes nothing!
The Lady Warriors played small ball to get the inning started as Annie Jones and Makyah Roberson beat out bunts to put the tying runs on the bases. Mattie Grace Hutcheson reached on an error to load the bases with no one out. It looked like Dodge may strand the runners as a pair of strikeouts had left the bases loaded. Aniyah Black would tie the game as she ripped a single to left center as Jones and Roberson scored for a 2 to 2 game and Black would advance to second on the throw. Black is the one and only eighth grader on this year’s team.
This brought up Bowen and this leads to one of the most bizarre plays I have ever witnessed so this stuck with me. Bowen tried to bunt a high first pitch; the ball went to the backstop. There was no indication of a foul tip by the umpire (I really thought I heard one from the booth) so Dodge tried to score the go ahead run, it was close at the plate and the call was…nothing! There was no call as everyone stared at the umpire as he said, “oh, she is out at the plate,” no signal or anything. Note: there was no possible way she was out. That brought coach Dana Lowery from third base and she was hot. She was not ugly in her argument, you will be glad to know, but she was boiling hot. Finally, out of the blue, the umpire proclaimed that it was indeed a foul tip!
So, the Dodge runners went back to second and third and of course that brought out the West Laurens coach to argue as well! So, do you have all of that? Okay, back to the game. With a zero and one count, Bowen would single to right and Hutcheson and Black would score and a 4 to 2 Dodge lead.
Bowen would pitch her only clean inning in the sixth as it included a pair of strikeouts. She had nine in the game. It was still 4 to 2 going to the Lady Raider seventh. Dodge made a pitching change after the leadoff batter reached second and Black came in the game. She was overpowering as she got a pair of strikeouts and a fly ball out that was handled in left field by Kaylee Mullis. The game was indeed a wild game. to say the least.
Lady Warriors photos are courtesy of Leigh Ann Hutcheson.
The Lady Warriors played small ball to get the inning started as Annie Jones and Makyah Roberson beat out bunts to put the tying runs on the bases. Mattie Grace Hutcheson reached on an error to load the bases with no one out. It looked like Dodge may strand the runners as a pair of strikeouts had left the bases loaded. Aniyah Black would tie the game as she ripped a single to left center as Jones and Roberson scored for a 2 to 2 game and Black would advance to second on the throw. Black is the one and only eighth grader on this year’s team.
This brought up Bowen and this leads to one of the most bizarre plays I have ever witnessed so this stuck with me. Bowen tried to bunt a high first pitch; the ball went to the backstop. There was no indication of a foul tip by the umpire (I really thought I heard one from the booth) so Dodge tried to score the go ahead run, it was close at the plate and the call was…nothing! There was no call as everyone stared at the umpire as he said, “oh, she is out at the plate,” no signal or anything. Note: there was no possible way she was out. That brought coach Dana Lowery from third base and she was hot. She was not ugly in her argument, you will be glad to know, but she was boiling hot. Finally, out of the blue, the umpire proclaimed that it was indeed a foul tip!
So, the Dodge runners went back to second and third and of course that brought out the West Laurens coach to argue as well! So, do you have all of that? Okay, back to the game. With a zero and one count, Bowen would single to right and Hutcheson and Black would score and a 4 to 2 Dodge lead.
Bowen would pitch her only clean inning in the sixth as it included a pair of strikeouts. She had nine in the game. It was still 4 to 2 going to the Lady Raider seventh. Dodge made a pitching change after the leadoff batter reached second and Black came in the game. She was overpowering as she got a pair of strikeouts and a fly ball out that was handled in left field by Kaylee Mullis. The game was indeed a wild game. to say the least.
Lady Warriors photos are courtesy of Leigh Ann Hutcheson.
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