Sports

The Braves wrapped up their 10 game road trip on Sunday and all this season has been up and down. After sweeping the horrible Marlins, the Dodgers handled the Braves in three straight. Then came the wild Arizona series. The D-Backs won the first game in extra innings and you have to be thinking oh no, a long losing streak.
Somehow the Braves won the last three and got through the road trip 6-4 and in pretty good shape. They are 21-20 and only (somehow) three games behind the Phillies. The rest of the month looks tough. They started a six game home stand on Tuesday against the Cardinals and then the Brewers came to Atlanta. They will next go to St. Louis and San Francisco. The rest of the month will be a monster.
We finally did see a batting order change on the road trip. Acuna did go back to the leadoff spot. Albies was moved to the sixth spot in the order. Acuna was the top leadoff man in the game in the second half of last season. The order as a whole has been pretty good from the top to bottom with the exception of one guy and it is Ender Inciarte. The gold gloved center fielder is hitting just .218. Changes could be on the way, but more on that later.
Now for everyone’s favorite discussion, the Braves bullpen. Who will be the closer this week? Do you buy Luke Jackson on being the full time closer? Sorry but I am not ready for that. Honestly I have no faith in anybody coming out of the pen.
The Braves will join about nine other teams in he chase for Kimbrel. He will be available without draft pick compensation. I know the Braves would love to have him but will the team win a bidding war? My short answer is no.
If you have kept up with the Braves, this week is the bat of Austin Riley. He is killing it at AAA Gwinnett. The problem is Riley is a third baseman and Donaldson isn’t going anywhere so what to do? The potential solution could be under way. Riley has started playing left field some in Gwinnett. Is he ready to move to the big club? Probably not yet but I think the process is speeding up. After all, the 22-year-old Riley is hitting .300 on the year with 14 homers and 35 RBI’s. His strike out rate is still a little high but it is getting better. In a month or so, I could see an outfield with Riley, Acuna and Markakis. That would make Inciarte the odd man out.
Maybe they could move him for some pitching help, perhaps to Cleveland who could really use an outfielder. That could certainly hurt the defense side of the outfield but it would put more runs on the board.
By now, we will all know the results of the NBA Lottery for the Draft. Lets hope by some miracle that the Hawks can get the top pick and grab Zion. He would help make the team one of the most exciting ones to watch.
I know there are a lot of “closet” wrestling fans out there. There is some huge news that is supposed to come out this week that could change the industry.
As you know, the WWE isn’t really good right now and things could soon get much worse!

Dancers and tumblers bring home
over 20 awards at competition
Members of the Georgia Peach Dance and Tumbling Competition Team competed in the Regional Dance Competition in Dublin on April 12 through April 14.
Competiting against teams with 20 plus members, the 12-member team brought home: four platinum elite awards, 11 platinum awards, four high gold awards, one judges award for most entertaining, one second place overall award out of 10 routines, one first place overall award out of nine routines, one fourth place overall award out of 23 routines, one eighth place overall award out of 23 routines, one 11th place overall award out of 27 routines, one fourth place overall award out of 27 routines, one third place overall award out of 27 routines, one second place overall award out of 10 routines, one first place overall award out of 10 routines, two second place break down awards, two first place break down awards and four top performer of the day awards.
Team members pictured above are Raegan Lancaster, Kynslie Reynolds, Azaria Huttoe, Adrianna Leschak, Tamiah Smith, Camille Orange, MJ Orange, Heaven Ibarra, Isabelle Burch, Kadee Walker, Ella Walker and Amarianna Johnson. The instructor for the group is Sarah Ashley Winans.

This past week was a very big one for the future of the Falcons. The annual NFL draft was held in Nashville, Tennessee. This was the draft that the team was hoping would fix the defensive line. The key word here is “hoping”. Things really looked good as major targets Ed Oliver and Christian Wilkins actually fell down a little. Oliver fell to ninth and was picked up by Buffalo. I cannot imagine what it would have required to move just five spots.
No big deal I thought as Wilkins was still on the board at 13. I don’t know if the Falcons brass thought the Dolphins were looking quarterback but they weren’t and Wilkins is off to South Beach. I would think a third round or maybe a fourth would have gotten the Birds the 13th pick. My hopes for a trade down were dashed as the Falcons decided to go for guard Chris Lindstrom out of Boston College. After going “who is this guy”, I started to check my mock drafts and yes, this guy was a huge reach. He was mostly viewed as a second or even third round pic. I guess the pair of free agent guards that they signed aren’t projected to be very good.
My last hope was maybe the Falcons would grade back into the bottom of the first round. Sure enough, they dealt their second and third round pick to the Rams for the 31st pick. After wasting little time, they picked another offensive lineman. You have got to be kidding me! Kaleb McGary from Washington. I think he will do fine but is he actually the team’s biggest need? So much for improving the defensive line. I hope no one gets hurt!
That takes us to day three. The Birds traded up six spots to take Kendall Sheffield, a corner back out of Ohio State. Reports are he is real fast and has decent size as he is right at 6 feet tall. Why did he fall to the fourth round? Of course he is hurt! He tore his pectoral muscle at the combine. They worked out the draft from the powerhouse programs of Charleston, Louisiana-Monroe and okay Washington and Pittsburgh. There was an NFL record 64 players out of the SEC. Guess how many the Falcons got? You guessed it, zero! For the record, the six true Super Bowl Champion Patriots grabbed five SEC players out of the ten players they drafted. Listen, I hope the pair of offensive linemen are Falcons starters for 15 years but they don’t address their biggest need this year. Things could be worse. It might be the Braves bullpen! Yes, it was another rough week for the boys of summer. They went 2-4 on the week and they were fortunate to win one of the games they did win.
It took a three run homer in the 8th by Donaldson on Sunday to win 8-7 over the Rockies. The offense isn’t the problem. The heart of the order, Donaldson, Freeman, Markakis, Albies and Acuna has all been good. The pitching is not so good. Gausman allowed ten runs in two starts and Teheran hit the wall after five innings. A positive thing is that Soroka-Fried and Foltynewicz all pitched good but they also had a win and a loss to show for it.
The problem is this staff has no ace and no closer. We all knew this when the season started and yet ownership has done nothing. The bullpen allowed nine earned runs in six innings against the Rockies over the weekend. I think AJ Minter will be a solid pitcher in the game but he is not ready to be a closer for a contender. If only there was a seasoned closer out there that could be had for say a second round pick. The Kimbrel story has gotten out of hand. If you want a silver lining to the 13-14 Braves, it is that they are only two and a half games out of first place going into Monday night’s play. The problem is the rest of the east will continue to get better. Will the Braves?

Indian baseball team advances to playoffs
By Joey Marchant
Dodge was fortunate to overcome a ton of mistakes against Telfair back on March 25th. This time Dodge was not that lucky as Telfair squeaked out an 11-10 come from behind victory on April 15th.
Parker Gay started on the mound for Dodge and pitched well. Dodge appeared to have a strategy of allowing its pitchers to throw around forty pitches. Dodge was in the midst of seven games scheduled over a nine-day period, so managing pitch counts was important.
Dodge came out swinging in the first. Brendan O’Connor led off with a walk and stole second base. Brodie Woodard drove in O’Connor with a base hit. The ball was mishandled by the centerfielder allowing Woodard to take second. Kaden Burse hit a grounder up the middle that struck second base and caromed into the outfield driving in Woodard to give Dodge a 2-0 lead.
Telfair took advantage of two Dodge errors to score one run in the bottom of the first in what proved a foreshadowing of things to come. Dodge came right back in the second. Parker Hardin led off with a walk, and Timmy Johnson came in as a courtesy runner for Hardin. Johnson moved to second on a wild pitch. Cole Cranford hit a ground ball, and Johnson got caught between second and third. However, Johnson was able to elude the Telfair defenders. DJ Bursch hit a long sacrifice fly to score Johnson. O’Connor walked. Garrett Durden singled to score Cranford. The right fielder elected to throw behind O’Connor who was rounding second. The throw scooted through the infield and into leftfield allowing O’Connor to score and Durden to reach second. Woodard reached on catcher’s interference. Noah Mincey singled driving in Durden and Woodard, but Mincey was thrown out trying to make second base. Dodge led 7-1.
Telfair went quietly in the second, and Dodge added to its lead in the third. Hardin singled, and Johnson entered as a courtesy runner for Hardin. Cranford drove Hardin in with a double, but Cranford was thrown out trying to go to third. Dodge led 8-1.
Dodge’s offense then stalled for several innings as Telfair mounted a comeback. Andrew Lowery relieved Gay with two on base and one out in the third. He struck out the next batter. Then he induced a ground ball on which Woodard made a nice play ranging to his left for the third out. Telfair scored three runs in the fourth on a bases loaded double by Ramsey Hancock cutting the Dodge lead to 8-5. A two-run double by Cameo Blankenship and an RBI single by Hancock tied it 8-8 with no outs in the bottom of the sixth. Landin Crummey entered in relief of Lowery and retired the next three batters in order.
Dodge rallied in the seventh without recording a hit. Woodard reached on an error. Burse walked. The runners moved to second and third on a wild pitch. Mincey had a sacrifice fly to score Woodard. Crummey walked. Hardin had a sacrifice fly to score Burse giving Dodge a 10-8 lead. Telfair took advantage of a couple of Dodge errors in the bottom of the seventh. Crummey struck out Landin Connell on a breaking ball in the dirt. Because the pitch was in the dirt, the runner was allowed to attempt to reach first base safely. Dodge threw the ball into right field allowing Connell to trot into second rather than back to the dugout. Jacob Mullis and Jude King reached on infield hits loading the bases. Telfair brought in their slugger Tre Bess as a pinch hitter. Bess had been running the 200 meters at the Region track meet earlier in the afternoon and did not start. It was soon apparent that Bess was swinging for the fences. Crummey managed to throw a fastball by him for the first out. Cameo Blankenship drew a bases loaded walk to score a run. Hancock had a bloop single to center for his fifth RBI of the day tying the game. King was out at third as he had to hold up to make sure the ball fell for a hit. With two outs, Dodge dropped a routine fly ball off the bat of Tre Blankenship allowing Cameo Blankenship to score for the 11-10 Telfair victory. This ended Dodge’s eight game winning streak.
Leading hitters for Dodge were as follows: Garrett Durden was one for four with one run batted in (RBI) and one run scored. Brodie Woodard was two for four with one RBI and three runs scored. Kaden Burse was two for three with a walk, one RBI and one run scored. Noah Mincey was one for three with three RBI. Parker Hardin was one for two with a walk and one RBI. Cole Cranford was two for four with a double and one run scored.
Parker Gay pitched two and one-third innings allowing one unearned run on two hits and one walk. Gay struck out two. Andrew Lowery pitched two and two-thirds innings allowing seven runs (five earned) on six hits and one walk. Lowery struck out two. Landin Crummey pitched two innings allowing three runs (one earned) on three hits and one walk. Crummey struck out three.
Dodge returned home to face the Northeast Raiders on April 16th where they won 14-4. Dodge recognized its three seniors prior to this final home game of the season. They are Kaden Burse, DeJa “DJ” Bursch and Parker Gay.
Brendan O’Connor started on the mound for Dodge. Northeast put three runs on the board in the first on the strength of three hits and a Dodge error giving Northeast a 3-0 lead.
Coach Herring penciled his three seniors into the first three spots on his lineup card. They did not disappoint. DJ Bursch led off with a homerun over the leftfield fence, his team leading fourth homerun of the season. Parker Gay and Kaden Burse followed with base hits moving to second and third on a wild pitch. Brendan O’Connor hit a sacrifice fly scoring Gay. Garrett Durden was hit by a pitch. Brodie Woodard singled. Noah Mincey reached on an error, which allowed Burse, Durden and Woodard to score. Andrew Lowery walked. Bursch singled scoring Mincey. Bursch took second on the throw home. A wild pitch allowed Lowery to score and Bursch to go to third. Bursch later scored on a wild pitch giving Dodge an 8-3 lead. Dodge added to the lead in the second. O’Connor was hit by a pitch, and Noah Cummings entered as a courtesy runner for O’Connor. Durden tripled driving in Cummings. Woodard drove in Durden with an infield hit giving Dodge a 10-4 lead.
Dodge added a run in the third. Burse and O’Connor reached on errors. Durden drove in Burse with a single for an 11-3 Dodge lead.
Macky Rowland relieved O’Connor to start the fourth, and he struck out the side. Dodge scored three runs in the fourth. Lowery and Parker Hardin led off with base hits and moved to third on a wild pitch. Bursch walked. Gay hit into a fielder’s choice scoring Lowery. Bursch scored on a bad throw back to the pitcher. O’Connor had a base hit scoring Gay for a 14-3 lead. Northeast would add a run in the top of the fifth ending the game in a 14-4 Dodge victory.
Leading hitters for Dodge were as follows: DJ Bursch was two for three with a walk, a homerun, one RBI and three runs scored. Parker Gay was one for three with a hit batsman and two runs scored. Kaden Burse was one for four with one run scored. Brendan O’Connor was one for two with a hit batsman, two RBI and one run scored. Garrett Durden was two for three with a triple, a hit batsman, one RBI and two runs scored. Brodie Woodard was two for three with one RBI and one run scored. Noah Mincey was one for three with a run scored. Andrew Lowery was one for two with a walk and two runs scored. Parker Hardin was one for two with a walk.
O’Connor pitched three innings allowing three unearned runs on three hits. He hit one batter and struck out four. Macky Rowland pitched two innings allowing one unearned run on one hit and no walks. Rowland struck out five.
Dodge traveled to Macon on April 18th for its regular season finale with Northeast and barely escaped with a 4-2 victory over the Raiders. Garrett Durden started on the mound for Dodge and pitched four innings allowing two runs on nine hits. Durden walked one and struck out four. Landin Crummey relieved Durden and pitched three scoreless innings allowing two hits and no walks. Crummey struck out three.
Dodge took an early lead. O’Connor led off with a walk and advanced to third on a single by Brodie Woodard. Kaden Burse drove in O’Connor with a sacrifice fly to give Dodge a 1-0 lead in the first.
Northeast managed four base hits in the fourth inning to tie the game at 1-1.
Dodge took the lead in the fifth. Timmy Johnson led off with a single. O’Connor singled, and a throwing error on the play allowed Johnson to take third and O’Connor to take second. Durden had a sacrifice fly to score Johnson. Woodard reached on an error, which allowed O’Connor to score and give Dodge a 3-1 lead.
Northeast came right back in the bottom of the fifth. Durden gave up two base hits before being relieved by Crummey who retired the next three batters in order. However, one run scored and was charged to Durden cutting the lead to 3-2.
Dodge added a final run in the sixth as Andrew Lowery doubled and scored when Crummey reached on an error. Northeast managed to get two hits in the seventh and had the winning run at the plate, but Crummey struck out two and Durden, now playing second base, caught a line drive moving to his right to help preserve the victory.
Leading hitters for Dodge were as follows: Brendan O’Connor was one for three with a walk and two runs scored. Garrett Durden was one for three with a double and one RBI. Brodie Woodard was one for four. Noah Mincey was one for three. Andrew Lowery was one for two with a double, a hit batsman and one run scored. Parker Hardin was one for three. Timmy Johnson was one for two with one run scored.
The doubleheader with Jeff Davis was cancelled by mutual agreement as both teams ready for postseason play. Dodge finished the regular season with an overall record of 17-7 and a region record of 9-3. Dodge finished tied for second in Region 3AA with Washington County. However, Washington County held the tie breaker over Dodge, so the Golden Hawks get the second seed in the playoffs while Dodge gets the third seed. Dodge travels to Alma to face the Bacon County Red Raiders (21-8) in the first round of the state playoffs on Wednesday April 24th at 4:30 pm. The teams will play two games on Wednesday. A third game will be held on Thursday if necessary to determine the series winner. The winner of this series will face the winner of the Thomasville/Laney series on May 2nd.

This is a huge week for the Falcons. The annual NFL draft starts this Thursday. The birds hold the 14th in the first round and the big question is what are they going to do. There is little question that the Falcons want defensive tackle Ed Oliver from Houston. There is only one small problem.
There is little to no way that he will be there at 14. So what happens? Well, everyone has their own opinion. Some say trade up to possible number seven and deal with Jacksonville.
It will probably take moving the second and third round picks to go there and that’s a steep price. Some people have Oliver moving in the top five and if that happens, it is time for plan B and that would be to trade down. I don’t really like anybody at 14. I think that it’s a reach for any of the Clemson defensive linemen and I am not crazy about a defensive back in that spot. I say they can get a decent back at 23 or so like Baker from Georgia or maybe even offensive lineman Cody Ford from Oklahoma.
The trade down would probably include a second run pick and then they can get a quality defensive guy. It should be rather interesting Thursday night as you have a somewhat desperate general manager and head coach. I say they will not pick number 14. It won’t be a boring draft this year.
Like most people, I thought the National League East was going to be mighty strong. We have just passed Easter and so far that has not happened. The Phillies are just 12-9 and actually hold a one game lead over the Braves and Mets.
Now do I think the Phillies and Nationals will get this going? Absolutely. They have way too much talent to be average. It looks like the Mets have survived a huge scare as last year’s Cy Young Award Winner Jacob deGrom is going to be okay after a short stint on the injured list.
Now for the Braves. Never a dull moment for this team. A completely rebuilding Arizona team sweeps them at home. Then the wild Cleveland series.
I think it’s the first series since the fateful 1995 World Series. The Braves looked doomed for a double-header loss as they trailed game two, seven to three going into the 9th. Five walks and three hits later, the Braves stole an eight to seven win after a two out bases loaded hit from Acuna.
Then came Sunday night baseball for the second week in a row. The game belonged to Josh Donaldson. He hit homers in the first and second innings in the 11-5 win. Left-hander Max Fried pitches great again and got the win. So far this year, he has been great as long as he can throw strikes. One of the big problems remains the bullpen. They got two of the four losses including blowing a late three run lead against Arizona.
The news didn’t get any better as Vizcaino was lost for the year with shoulder surgery. Venters also has been put on the disabled list. If you think Kimbrel is closer to being a Braves. Don’t. The second round compensation pick makes him a non-starter for them. Here is a little hope.
On June 3rd, the draft pick will come off the board. I think the Braves will make an offer then, but not a day before. I still think this year is an uphill climb for the Braves bullpen.

Indian baseball team wins eight in a row
By Joey Marchant
Dodge won three games last week improving their overall record to 15 wins and 6 losses. They are currently on an eight-game winning streak. Dodge traveled to Ashburn on April 10th to take on the Turner County Rebels. To look at the final score of 22-3, one would assume that Dodge cruised to victory running up the score on an outmanned band of Rebels. Nothing could be farther from the truth as Dodge had to scratch and claw their way to a 3-2 lead through five innings before the floodgates finally opened.
Landin Crummey started on the mound for Dodge and went six and one-third innings giving up three runs (one earned) on six hits and two walks. He struck out nine. Dodge took a 1-0 lead in the second inning. Crummey led off with a single to centerfield. Andrew Lowery was hit by a pitch and DJ Bursch was walked to load the bases. Brendan O’Connor hit a sacrifice fly to score Timmy Johnson from third who was running for Crummey.
Turner tied it at 1-1 in the third, and Dodge took a 3-1 lead in the fourth. After two quick outs in the inning, DJ Bursch doubled. O’Connor reached on an error allowing Bursch to score. Garrett Durden singled home O’Connor.
Turner cut the Dodge lead to 3-2 in the fifth with the help of two Dodge errors. Up to this point, it felt like Dodge would eventually start swinging the bats consistently and put the Rebels away. However, there are games when an underdog is allowed to hang around and gain confidence until the momentum finally shifts allowing the underdog to pull out a win. Turner was on the cusp of that. However, Dodge slammed the door in the final two innings.
Dodge scored two in the sixth. Parker Hardin reached on an error. Noah Cummings entered as a courtesy runner for Hardin. Bursch walked. O’Connor doubled to score Cummings. Durden hit a sacrifice fly to score Bursch giving Dodge a 5-2 lead.
Dodge finally broke it open in the seventh. Kaden Burse led off the inning with a strikeout, but he reached first when the pitch went all the way to the backstop. Timmy Johnson entered as a pinch runner for Burse. Noah Mincey ripped a double down the third baseline moving Johnson to third. Lowery walked, and Johnson scored on a wild pitch. Mincey and Lowery would also score from third on wild pitches. Hardin and Bursch each walked. Cummings entered as a courtesy runner for Hardin. It was at this point that Coach Herring began to empty his bench with two outs and an 8-2 lead. Roper Weathersbee singled to load the bases. Seth Cossett singled driving in Cummings and Bursch. Cole Cranford walked to load the bases. Cummings singled up the middle to score Weathersbee. Parker Gay walked scoring Cossett. Lowery singled scoring Cranford. Lowery advanced to second and Cummings scored on an errant throw from the outfield. Macky Rowland had an infield single to score Gay. A throwing error on the play allowed Lowery to score and Rowland to advance to second. Bursch singled scoring Rowland. O’Connor walked. Weathersbee singled to load the bases for Cranford who connected on a grand slam over the left field fence. When the dust cleared, Dodge scored seventeen runs in the inning to take a 22-2 lead.
Crummey struck out one batter in the bottom of the seventh before being lifted for Brodie Woodard. Turner added one unearned run charged to Crummey to make the final score 22-3.
Leading hitters for Dodge were as follows: Brendan O’Connor was one for four with a double, two walks, two runs batted in (RBI) and two runs scored. Garrett Durden was two for three with two RBI. Brodie Woodard was one for four. Noah Mincey was one for four with a double and one run scored. Andrew Lowery was one for three with a walk, a hit batsman, one RBI and two runs scored. DJ Bursch was two for two with a double, three walks and four runs scored. Roper Weathersbee was two for two with two runs scored. Seth Cossett was two for two with three RBI and two runs scored. Cole Cranford was one for one with a grand slam, a walk, four RBI and two runs scored. Noah Cummings was one for two with one RBI and three runs scored. Macky Rowland was one for one with one RBI and one run scored.
On April 12th, Dodge hosted Southwest Macon in a doubleheader. Dodge won the first game 16-1. Parker Gay started on the mound for Dodge and pitched all three innings giving up one unearned run on one hit and three walks. Gay struck out five.
Dodge started sloppily as the leadoff man for Southwest dribbled one up the first baseline for an infield hit. A stolen base and two errors allowed the runner to score and Southwest to take a 1-0 lead. Dodge came back in the bottom of the first. After two quick outs separated by a 30-minute lightning delay, Brodie Woodard reached on an error and stole second. Kaden Burse singled to drive in Woodard. Noah Mincey tripled driving in Burse. Landin Crummey doubled scoring Burse. Dodge led 3-1.
Dodge continued to score in the second. Brendan O’Connor had a blooper which he turned into a double by hustling. He went to third on an errant throw in from the outfield. Garrett Durden reached on an error. Woodard walked to load the bases. Burse had a bases clearing triple. Noah Mincey had a sacrifice fly to score Burse. Dodge led 7-1.
Dodge would end this one in the third. Parker Hardin led off with a base hit, and Timmy Johnson entered as a courtesy runner for him. DJ Bursch hit a two-run homer over the left field fence for his team leading third homerun of the season. O’Connor singled, moved to second on a wild pitch and to third on a passed ball. Durden walked. Woodard had a base hit scoring O’Connor. Woodard was erased when Burse hit into a fielder’s choice. Mincey walked to load the bases. Crummey walked plating Durden. Lowery walked plating Burse. Hardin was hit by a pitch plating Mincey. Bursch walked plating Crummey. Lowery scored on a wild pitch. O’Connor walked loading the bases. Woodard singled scoring Hardin to end the game 16-1.
Leading hitters for Dodge were as follows: Brendan O’Connor was two for three with a double, a walk and two runs scored. Brodie Woodard was one for two with a walk, one RBI and one run scored. Kaden Burse was two for three with a triple, four RBI and three runs scored. Noah Mincey was one for one with a triple, a walk, two RBI and two runs scored. Landin Crummey was one for one with a double, two walks, two RBI and one run scored. Parker Hardin was one for two with a hit batsman, one RBI and one run scored. DJ Bursch was one for two with a homerun, two RBI and two runs scored.
Dodge shut out Southwest 10-0 in the second game. Andrew Lowery started on the mound for Dodge and pitched three scoreless in nings giving up two hits and one walk. Lowery struck out five. Brenan O’Connor worked the final two scoreless innings giving up one hit and one walk while striking out four.
Timmy Johnson led off the first inning for Dodge reaching on an error and stealing second. Garrett Durden singled scoring Johnson. Noah Mincey singled scoring Durden. Dodge led 2-0.
Dodge added three more runs in the third. Durden doubled to left. Woodard had a bunt for a hit. Mincey reached on an error allowing Durden to score. Cole Cranford had a double scoring Woodard. Seth Cossett hit a sacrifice fly to score Mincey. Dodge led 5-0.
Dodge added three more runs in the fourth. Roper Weathersbee and Johnson each reached on errors. Durden got down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners to second and third. Woodard singled driving in Weathersbee. O’Connor grounded out third scoring Johnson. Mincey walked. Cranford singled scoring Woodard. Dodge led 8-0.
Dodge closed it out in the fifth. Noah Cummings reached on an error and stole second. Johnson had an infield hit. Parker Gay doubled scoring Cummings. Macky Rowland hit a fly ball to right field, which was misplayed by the right fielder allowing Johnson to score the final run for the 10-0 Dodge win.
Leading hitters for Dodge were as follows: Timmy Johnson was one for four with three runs scored. Garrett Durden was two for two with a double, one RBI and two runs. Brodie Woodard was two for three, one RBI and two runs scored. Noah Mincey was one for two with a walk, one RBI and one run scored. Cole Cranford was two for three with a double and two RBI.
Dodge was scheduled to travel to McRae to face Telfair County (12-9) on April 15th and host Northeast Macon (5-12) on April 16th. Results of those games were unavailable at press time. Dodge will finish the regular season by visiting Northeast Macon on April 19th and traveling to Hazlehurst for a doubleheader with Jeff Davis (21-2) on April 20th. The Yellow Jackets are ranked #2 in the state in AA. Dodge will see the best pitching staff that it will face in the regular season.
This should be a good measuring stick series for Dodge and show them what they can expect to see should they make a deep playoff run. In other action this week, Washington County split its season series with Bleckley County, which means Dodge’s playoff seeding will come down to the final week of the regular season.
Depending on this week’s results, it appears Dodge will finish either second or third in Region 3AA. A second-place finish would have the Indians at home in the first round of the playoffs while a third-place finish would result in the Indians hitting the road. Most likely opponents in the first round of the playoffs from Region 2AA are Bacon County (19-7) or Vidalia (15-9). S