The school year is beginning and with it so is our Dawson County Lady Tiger softball team. The Tigers dropped their first game of the year to the Sonoraville Phoenix 8-0 on Thursday in a game that was called after five innings. 

Junior Reese Moore got the opening day start this year and started the game off right with a first pitch groundout. However, the Sonoraville batters woke up after that, scoring five runs in the first inning. Moore pitched three more innings, with the second being a comfortable 1-2-3 inning, but gave up a two-run home run in the third. 

By the time that Moore was pulled from the game, the Lady Tigers were staring at an 8-0 deficit. Sophomore Layne Bailey pitched well in two innings of relief work, allowing three hits and striking out two. The defense played well throughout, including a nice catch by senior Rylie Erickson to set up a double play to end the fifth.

The offense suffered for the Lady Tigers. Sonoraville’s Taylor Long pitched a perfect game, striking out all 15 batters she faced. 

“When you run up against an arm like [Long’s,  that’s just tough,” Rickett said. “That’s a kid who struck out 600 girls in high school and that’s quite an accomplishment. First game of the year is tough. We got a long way to go. We got 29 more.”

The game started with a moment of silence for Connor Luke Hayes, the late son of Sonoraville coach Chad Hayes who died of cancer earlier this year. The Tigers announced that a portion of the game’s ticket sales and concession sales would be donated towards the CL Strong foundation, dedicated to finding a cure for childhood cancer.

The Lady Tigers will get a chance to rebound in a friendly tournament at Union County High School on Saturday, Aug. 7. Their first game starts at 12 p.m.