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Baseball team must win four
Varsity Baseball pic2
Tiger pitcher Ryan Morawsky picked up his first win of the season against East Jackson High School last Friday. The Tigers dominated the game, winning 15-2. - photo by Ryan Coker Dawson Community News

There are four games remaining in the regular season for the Dawson County Tiger varsity baseball team. Head Coach Jimmy Pruett and his team must win all of them if they hope to have a shot at post season play.

  

“It’s up to us,” Pruett said. “Some other things must happen, but we have to win the next four.”

  

It starts this Saturday, when the team will travel to Lexington to face the Oglethorpe County Patriots (11-9 and 5-9) in a doubleheader scheduled to start at 1 p.m.

  

On April 30 the Tigers will play host to Walnut Grove (4-14 and 2-12) during another doubleheader. First pitch will be at 5 p.m. and it will be senior night.

  

The Tigers played four games last week. The team won two and lost two.

  

Dawson’s overall record is currently 8-11 and 6-8 in region play.

  

Tuesday the team travelled to Blue Ridge to face a tough Fannin County Rebel ball club. The game was scoreless until the bottom of the fifth inning when Fannin put up three runs to take a 3-0 lead off of Tiger starter Chase Williams.

  

The Tigers answered in the top of the sixth inning. The team scored two runs of its own to trail by only one run, 3-2.

  

Chase Gilreath started the rally when he walked with one out.

  

Chase Williams singled to put runners on first and third.

  

Josh Harper followed with a single that loaded the bases. The big hit of the inning was by Wesley Bearden who singled to drive home Gilreath and Williams.

  

Dawson had a chance to possibly take the lead in the top of the seventh inning.

  

With one out, leadoff hitter Luke Williamson singled. He was followed by a double by Cody Marshall. Gilreath walked, which loaded the bases, unfortunately a lineout and a strikeout ended the Tiger rally.

  

Fannin managed only five hits off of Williams.

  

Williams pitched a great game. He went six innings and recorded a strikeout and two walks. Control problems really hurt Williams in the fifth inning, and led to the Rebel runs.

  

Marshall and Harper led the offensive attack with two hits each.

  

On Thursday the team traveled to Lambert and dropped its second consecutive game by an 11-6 score.

  

Despite jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, Lambert answered with six runs of its own in the bottom of the inning to take a commanding 6-2 lead.

  

The Longhorns scored another run in the second inning and four more runs in the sixth to take the region win.

  

Control issues by all three Dawson pitchers contributed to the loss.

  

Bearden, who started, Harper, and Tyler King had eight walks and four wild pitches between them in the loss.

  

Williamson had a great day at the plate with three hits, including a double.

  

Bearden also had two hits in the game.

  

The team was at home on Friday for a doubleheader with East Jackson.

  

Both games were very important if Dawson was to have a shot at postseason play.

  

The Tigers won a close 5-1 decision in the first and run-ruled East Jackson in five innings, 15-2, in the second game.

  

Gilreath pitched a strong game for Dawson. He went the distance in the first game. He recorded eight strikeouts with only one walk and East Jackson had only three hits in the contest.

  

Bearden had a homerun in the first inning to get things started offensively for the home team. Bearden had another hit later in the game to drive in his second run.

  

Dawson managed only five hits, but it was enough to come away with a much needed victory. Williamson, Dylan Garrett and Austin Papaik had the other hits for Dawson.

  

Dawson scored in every inning in the second game. The Tigers rallied to score 15 runs.  In the fourth and fifth innings Pruett’s squad scored four and six runs respectively to end the game due to the mercy rule.

  

Ryan Morawsky picked up his first win of the season on the mound for the Tigers. Morawsky pitched five innings and recorded five strikeouts and three walks. Morawsky allowed East Jackson only three hits in the contest.

  

At the plate Dawson exploded. Homers by Gilreath and Bearden, his second of the day, highlighted the game.

  

Gilreath finished with six RBIs and Bearden finished with four RBIs to lead Dawson County.  

  

Williamson had three stolen bases for the Tigers.

  

Mitch Starling scored three runs followed by Williamson, Jacob Anglin, Papaik, Bearden, and Gilreath with two runs each.