Bates’ Bats Rock Rockdale: Dragons Burn Bulldogs 11-3

Featured Stories, Team FYN Sports

The Pickens High School Dragons baseball team burned the Bulldogs, of Rockdale County for the first home win of the 2014 season, and first of new head coach, Casey Bates’, PHS career. Pickens picked apart the Bulldogs, rocking Rockdale 11-3.Earlier in the week the Dragons took a narrow loss to South Forsyth, 4-3, despite building a 3-1 lead in the top of the third inning. The War Eagles scored in the bottom of the third to cut the lead to one, and added two more runs in the bottom of the fifth to take the 4-3 win.

Cameron Gregory lead the Dragons with a .750 batting average in the game, going three for four from the plate with one run scored.

The Dragons next hosted the Bulldogs, drawing first blood with a run scored in the bottom of the second inning; however, Rockdale ran out to a 3-1 lead after scoring three runs combined in the third and fourth inning.

Pickens picked up the lead for good by exploding for eight runs in the bottom of the fourth. Two more runs in the bottom of the fifth secured the 11-3 Dragons’ win.

Dylan Clark led Pickens with a .750 batting average for the game. Clark was three of four with two RBI and two runs scored. Tyler Garner finished the game second in batting average with a .667 average. Garner finished two for three one run scored. Zack Herman and Lawrence Walker both tied with Clark for the RBI lead with two each.

Starting pitcher, Eric Justice, pitched six innings, with two earned runs and seven strike outs. Travis Huffman closed the game, facing five batters in the top of the seventh, with two ground outs from the first two batters before a strike out ended the game.

Afterward Bates spoke about the Dragons’ deceiving 2-5 record.

“Right now we’re playing a lot of bigger schools. We’ve played four 6A schools up to this point. Our record doesn’t show where we’re at right now. We’re two and five right now but we could very easily be four and two.”

Bates also expressed his desire for the team to attack every game with the ultimate importance placed on it.

“Our expectations were to come in and play every game like it’s the state championship game.”

He addressed the reasons and thinking behind scheduling top tier opponents in the early part of the season.

“If we play bigger schools and teams that have more kids to choose from, you’re going to see better competition, you’re going to see better pitching and that way when we get into Region you’re going to be more prepared for what you’re going to see there.”

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