You have got to hand it to Coach Jimmy Pruett’s Lady Tiger softball team.

Dawson overcame a 9-1 deficit early in the contest to pick up a 16-15 win over visiting Pickens County High School last Monday, Aug. 18.

It was the first game of the season for Dawson County and it was a nail-biter.

The Lady Tigers trailed the entire game until the bottom of the sixth inning.

Things looked bleak even in the last inning, when with two outs and runners on second and third and behind 15-14, Dawson batter Sydney Cox tapped a ball back to Pickens pitcher Ashley Brooks. Brooks threw the ball to Nettes first baseman Jessica Buchannan. Buchannan fumbled the throw and let the ball get away. Tiffany Rowan and Amber Youngblood scored for the Lady Tigers giving them the win.

“Our kids never gave up,” said Pruett. “You got to give our girls credit. They fought back.”

Pickens jumped on Dawson early and scored five runs in the first inning off Dawson pitcher Cheyenne Bennett. The Nettes added three more runs in the second to open up an 8-0 lead.

The Lady Tigers scored a run after senior Kayla Grizzle doubled to left field, which drove in Cox.

The visiting Nettes opened up a 12-6 lead, but couldn’t hold on. Pickens committed 14 errors in the game, which contributed to 14 unearned runs for Dawson.

“We couldn’t make a routine play,” Pickens head coach Kevin Jacobs said.  “They, Dawson County, kept fighting and wouldn’t just roll over for us.”

The Lady Tigers took the lead 13-12 in the bottom of the sixth inning just to see Pickens tie the game 13-13 in the top of the seventh.

Pickens took the lead 15-13 in extra innings, which led to the bottom of the eighth heroics by Dawson County.

Dawson finished the game with 11 hits.

Sydney Crumley, Cox, Grizzle, Bennett and Briana Haygood each got two hits for the Lady Tigers.

This past weekend Dawson played in a one-day tournament at Commerce High School.

The Lady Tigers came away with wins over Banks County 3-1 and Towns County 6-0. The team’s only loss came at the hands of North Hall High School, 4-0.

Pruett and his team currently have a 3-1 record.

The team will open Region 8-AA play on Sept. 2 in Commerce against East Jackson.

The Lady Tigers will host region opponent Union County on Thursday, Sept. 4 at home.

E-mail Pam Jacobs at sports@dawsonnews.com.