Photo/Pam Jacobs Tiger pitcher Ren Butram, with the help of relief pitcher Chase Gilreath, combined for a 5-hit shutout over Fannin County last Monday, March 17 in Dawsonville. A key turning point in the game came in the second inning, when the Fannin County Rebels loaded the bases with no outs. Butram pitched his way out of the inning, allowing no runs.

Head coach Jimmy Pruett's varsity Tiger baseball team picked up two region wins last week. Pitching and defense were key factors in Dawson pulling off the two victories.

Austin Lark pitched 6.1 innings, and gave up only two earned runs in a 3-2 triumph over Rabun County last Thursday. Sophomore Chase Gilreath got the save pitching the last two-thirds of an inning.

On Monday, the Tigers prevailed with a 2-0 win against visiting Fannin County.

Despite control problems, Ren Butram pitched five scoreless innings for Pruett's Tigers.

Once again, Gilreath got the save with two innings of scoreless relief.

"Ren pitched five innings and was not as sharp as usual, with three hit batters and a few walks, but he pitched out of a lot of trouble and got help with the runner stepping clear over the bag at third early in the game," said Pruett.

Dawson is currently tied with Fannin for the first place lead in Region 8-AA (B) with a 3-1 record.

The Tigers are currently 6-3 overall, with three big region games this week.

Dawson County 2, Fannin County 0

Butram and Gilreath combined for a 5-hit shutout over Fannin County last Monday in Dawsonville. Butram had trouble with his control, but seemed to find a way out of early inning jams to pick up the win for Dawson County. Gilreath came on in the sixth inning to pick up the save.

"It was a good win, but it was ugly. We left too many runners in scoring position early in the game. I was really pleased with our defense and pitching. Chase really looked strong in relief," said Pruett.

Dawson had several chances to blow open the game, especially early. However, Fannin halted scoring opportunities by the Tigers each time.

The Tigers started the game with three straight hits to load the bases. Fannin made a pitching change. Dawson was unable to score due to a pop up and then a line drive double play.

The Tigers left runners at third base the next two innings. Chase Williams doubled to start the third inning and then advance to third on a passed ball. The Tigers were unable to get Williams home from third with two hard hit ground balls to third base and a strike out.

A key turning point in the game was in the second inning. The Rebels loaded the bases with no outs. Butram then pitched his way out of the inning, while allowing no runs.

Finally, in the fourth inning Dawson was able to get a runner across home plate.

With a runner on third base, Tolbert reached on an error on a hard hit ground ball to the Rebel shortstop, which he bobbled, allowing Tolbert to reach first. The runner scored from third, to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead.

It looked as if Fannin would tie the score in the top of the fifth inning.

The Rebels singled and advanced to second on a passed ball.

The next Rebel singled up the middle, seemingly scoring the runner from second. Dawson appealed the runner missing third and it was upheld by the umpiring crew, nullifying the run.

The Tigers padded their lead in the fifth inning when Little reached first on a walk.

Little scored on a hit from Lark, which made the final score 2-0. Little finished the game going 2-for-2 with a walk.

Dawson County 3, Rabun County 2

The Tigers came from behind in dramatic fashion against Rabun County. Jacob Barr blasted a two run homer in the bottom of the sixth inning to come away with a 3-2 win over the Wildcats.

Bubba Tolbert reached base with a hit up the middle to start the sixth inning. Little then bunted Tolbert to second with a sacrifice. Barr then took a fastball and deposited it over the centerfield fence for the game-winning hit.

"That was a huge hit for Jacob," said Pruett. "Our guys are finding ways to win. One game it's pitching and defense and the next it's scoring lots of runs."

Strong pitching performances by Lark (6.1 innings) and Gilreath (1.2 innings) helped lead the Tigers to victory.

Dawson opened the scoring in the fourth inning. Little singled with one out and advanced to second on a ground out by Barr. Alan Gilleland then singled, which scored Little and put Dawson ahead 1-0.

Pruett's troops played host to Banks County on Monday in a revenge game for an earlier 7-4 loss in Homer. The score was not available at press time.

Today, Union County will visit Dawsonville, while on Friday the Tigers will travel to East Jackson.

All games will begin at 5:30 p.m.

Originally published Wednesday, March 26, 2008