Dragons hit 18 threes in road win at Lumpkin

PHS Basketball, Team FYN Sports

Dahlonega, Ga — The Pickens Dragons, made the trek to Dahlonega on Tuesday, January 30th as they took on the Lumpkin County Indians in a battle of two of the hotter teams in 7-AAA. Coming into the game, the Dragons, were 15-6, 6-2 in 7-AAA, and winners of 7 out of their last 8. The Indians, were 11-11, 4-5 in 7-AAA, and winners of 8 out of their last 9. The Dragons, hit 17 threes during the game including 6 from freshman Jamin Martin en route to a 70-50 win.

 

The ball game started with Hayden Jones knocking down the first three of the night to make it 3-0. T.J. Gaddis, would cut the lead to 1 as he got his first shot to drop. A lay in by Parker Davis would put the Dragons back up by 3. Caleb Lanford, would follow with a pair of free throws and Dodge Davis would hit his first three of the game to make it 10-2. Gaddis, would cut the lead in half as he made the layup and the foul shot.

After a bucket by Parker Davis, Gaddis again answered with a basket to make it 12-7. The Davis brothers, would then hit back to back threes to make it 18-7. Cal Faulkner, would be the first Indian other than Gaddis to score as he made it 18-9 as they would go to the second quarter.

 

The Dragons, began the second quarter with a 5-0 run as Dodge Davis made a basket and Jones hit his 2nd three to make it 23-9. Gaddis, then completed his 2nd and-1 of the game as that made it 23-12. After a three by Jamin Martin, Faulkner would go on a 6-0 run to make it 26-18. The Dragons, would then go on a 10-0 run as Martin hit two more threes, Dodge Davis hit a three, and Montego Morgan split a pair of free throws to make it 36-18.

Jac Chambers, would end the run with a three to make it 36-21. Morgan, would connect on a three just before the end of the first half to put the Dragons up, 39-21 going to the break.

 

The second half began with the Indians going on a 7-0 run as Landon Pierce hit a three, then Preston Cox and Chambers made back to back buckets to cut the lead to 39-28. Martin, ended the run by sinking his 4th three of the game. Faulkner responded with a three of his own. Martin, came right back and nailed his 5th three. After another three by Pierce, Lanford and Martin made back to back threes to make it 51-34.

Faulkner and Pierce would end the third quarter by making back to back threes of their own to cut the Pickens lead down to 51-40 going to the fourth.

 

Gaddis, would start the fourth quarter by making a pair of free throws to cut the lead down to 51-42. Back to back threes by Lanford stretched the Dragons lead back out to 57-42. After a three by the Indians, the Dragons would go on a 9-0 run to make it 66-45. A bucket by Faulkner would end the run to make it 66-47. McCord Purdy, would then hit a three to make it 69-47.

After a three by Jackson Pulley, Lanford would split a pair of free throws to end the ball game as the Dragons came away with the 70-50 win.

 

Scorers for the Dragons:

Jamin Martin: 18 points (6 threes)

Caleb Lanford: 12 points (3 threes)

Dodge Davis: 11 points (3 threes)

Parker Davis: 11 points (1 three)

Hayden Jones: 8 points (2 threes)

McCord Purdy: 6 points (2 threes)

Montego Morgan: 4 points (1 three)

 

7-AAA Basketball Standings:

Gilmer: 15-7 (9-1)

Pickens: 16-6 (7-2)

Dawson: 13-9 (5-4)

Wesleyan: 9-13 (4-5)

Lumpkin: 11-12 (4-6)

White County: 6-16 (2-7)

West Hall: 5-16 (2-8)

 

The Dragons, will once again be on the road as they head to Cleveland, Ga on Friday, February 2nd to take on the White County Warriors. The Dragons, defeated the Warriors back on January 9th. Tip off set for 8:30.

Dragons drop region opener to Lumpkin

PHS Football, Team FYN Sports

Jasper, Ga — 7-AAA region play began on Friday, September 22nd as the Pickens Dragons took on the Lumpkin County Indians. The Dragons, came into the game with a 1-3 record after a couple of tough games to close out their non-region schedule. The Indians, came into the game undefeated at 4-0 and ranked inside the top 10 in AAA in several polls. While the Dragons had several chances to make something happen, the Indians were able to pick up the win to begin region play, 49-14.

 

The Indians, won the toss and elected to receive to begin the ball game. The Indians, were able to drive down the field using mainly their run game. Their first drive ended after QB Cal Faulkner tossed a pop pass to Nolan Matthews on a sweep and he took it 18 yards for the touchdown. The PAT was good and with 9:04 left in the first quarter, the Indians led the Dragons, 7-0. The Indians, added to their lead after Mason Sullens scored on a 60-yd touchdown run to make it 14-0. Going to the second quarter, Lumpkin held a 14-0 lead over Pickens.

 

Dragons on defense in the 1st quarter

Nearly halfway into the second quarter, the Indians added to their lead with a 14-yd touchdown run by Faulkner. With 6:45 left in the first half, the Indians now led, 21-0. Sullens, punched in his 2nd touchdown of the night with a 3-yd run to give Lumpkin a 28-0 lead over Pickens heading into the break.

 

Sam Streicher dropping back for a pass

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Dragons, got the ball to start the second half. This drive, would be the most successful drive for the Dragons up to this point as QB Sam Streicher found WR McCord Purdy in the corner of the end zone for a 10-yd touchdown. the PAT from Charlie Gibbons was good and with 6:45 left in the third quarter, the Indians led the Dragons, 28-7. The Indians, were able to answer that score as Sullens scored his 3rd rushing touchdown of the game with another 3-yd run. Going to the fourth quarter, Lumpkin led Pickens, 35-7.

 

Dragons on offense in the second half

The Indians, opened up the scoring in the fourth quarter as Faulkner ran it in from 8-yds out for his 2nd rushing touchdown of the game to make it 42-7 Indians with 9:54 left in the game. Streicher and Purdy, connected for the second time in the game as Streicher found Purdy for a 53-yd touchdown. The PAT by Gibbons was good and with 8:58 left in the game, Lumpkin led Pickens, 42-14. The Indians, found the end zone one last time as Jackson Bell scored after a 2-yd run. The final in Jasper, Lumpkin 49 Pickens 14.

 

7-AAA Football Standings:

Lumpkin: 5-0 (1-0)

Wesleyan: 3-2 (1-0)

Dawson: 1-4 (1-0)

White Co.: 2-2 (0-0)

Gilmer: 3-2 (0-1)

Pickens: 1-4 (0-1)

West Hall: 1-4 (0-1)

 

The Dragons, will be on a bye week next week as they will have two weeks to get ready for the Dawson Tigers. That game will be at Dragons Stadium on Friday, October 6th. Kickoff is set for 7:30 pm.

Dragons fall short against Lions; prepare for region play next week

PHS Football, Team FYN Sports

Dalton, Ga — After having last week off, the Pickens Dragons were back on the field on Friday, September 15th as they took to the road for the first time during the 2023 season as they faced the Christian Heritage Lions in the final tune up before region play begins. An interesting part with these two teams playing is the head coach of the Lions, Frank Barden, used to coach the Dragons from 94-95. This was just the second ever meeting between these two schools in football as the Dragons came away with a 24-22 win in Jasper last year. This year, it was the Lions coming away with the win as they were able to hold onto a 29-24 victory.

 

The Dragons, much like they’ve done throughout the season so far, won the toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff. Pickens, couldn’t get anything on their opening drive, and had to punt it away to the Lions. The Lions, saw their first possession of the game stall out as well and they would have to punt it back to the Dragons. It wasn’t until the 2:36 mark of the opening quarter when we saw the first points being scored as the Lions connected on an 8-yd touchdown pass. The snap on the PAT attempt was high, but it helped the Lions pick up a 2-point conversion to make it8-0. The Dragons, wasted little time answering as McCord Purdy took the ensuing kickoff back 80+ yards for the touchdown. The PAT attempt would be blocked and as they headed to the second quarter, the Lions led the Dragons, 8-6.

 

Dragons defending the Lions early on

Scoring in the second quarter was hard to come by for both teams as Christian Heritage would add to their lead with a 4-yd touchdown pass. The PAT attempt was good and with 4:12 remaining in the first half, the Lions now led the Dragons, 15-6. The Dragons, were then able to sustain their first big offensive drive of the game and answer with points of their own as Miguel Salto, with a little help from his buddies up front on the offensive line, powered in for a 7-yd touchdown run. Pickens, then went for two to try to make it a 1-point game, but they were stopped short and with 1:18 left in the first half, the Lions lead was cut down to 15-12. After getting a stop on defense, the Dragons had a chance to tie or take the lead late in the first half. After picking up one first down, Sam Streicher’s pass into the end zone as time expired would be tipped away and as they went into the half, Christian Heritage led Pickens, 15-12.

 

Miguel Salto with a touchdown run

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was not a lot of scoring in the third quarter for both teams, but the lone points in the quarter came from the Lions as they were able to score on a 54-yd touchdown on a screen pass. The PAT would be good and as they headed into the fourth quarter, Christian Heritage held a 22-12 lead over Pickens.

 

Dragons looking to stop a Lions run play

In the fourth quarter, the Lions added to their lead as their QB Carter Triplett scrambled for a 22-yd touchdown to make it 29-12 Lions with 10:09 left in the ball game. The Dragons, were able to cut into the lead as Streicher found Purdy for a 7-yd touchdown. The PAT attempt was no good and with 8:38 left in the game, the Lions now led the Dragons, 29-18. The Dragons, after getting a stop, looked to again cut into the lead. On fourth down, the Dragons Streicher rolled to his left, and his pass would be tipped by a Lions defender right into the waiting arms of Ezra Faber, who took it the rest of the way for a 44-yd touchdown. The 2-point conversion attempt was no good and with 1:54 left in the game the Lions lead was down to 29-24. The Dragons, then went for the onside kick attempt and nearly came up with it, but the Lions were able to fall on it. Christian Heritage would then run out the clock to get the win, 29-24.

 

After a tough stretch to end their non-region schedule, the Dragons will now turn to 7-AAA play as they will host a team in who many believe are the region favorites, the Lumpkin County Indians next Friday. Kickoff is set for 7:30.

Dragons fall in region opener at Lumpkin

PHS Football, Team FYN Sports

Dahlonega, Ga — It was a pretty and much cooler Friday night as the Pickens Dragons traveled to Dahlonega to open up 7-AAA region play against a team that some may think have had a surprising start to the season in the Lumpkin County Indians. These two teams hadn’t played each other since 2009. These two first started playing one another in 1962. It took a break after 1999, and came back in 2006 before again going on a break after 2009. Coming into the game, the Indians held a 3-game win streak dating back to 2007. The last win for the Dragons came in 2006. Pickens led the all-time series 19-18-1 coming into the game. The tie came in 1981. The Indians, kept their perfect start to the season as they were able to pull away, 42-7.

 

Lumpkin won the opening coin toss and elected to differ. After the Dragons were unable to get anything going on their opening drive, the Indians got the ball and drove down the field and scored on a 16-yd run by Junior Mason Sullens. The PAT was good and with 6:38 left in the first quarter, Lumpkin took a 7-0 lead. The Indians added to their lead at the 4:17 mark of the opening quarter as Senior Cooper Scott connected with his target for a 57-yd touchdown. After the PAT, Lumpkin led it 14-0. The Dragons got on the board after they were able to drive down the field and cash in with an 11-yd run by Senior Kadyn Hampton. The PAT was good and with 1:59 left in the first quarter, the Indians lead was cut in half, 14-7. Pickens got the ball back after the defense blew up a play and recovered a fumble. The Dragons had the ball going to the second quarter.

Isaiah Williams makes a catch for a first down

Starting the second quarter, Pickens looked to try and tie the game. After being stopped on 3rd down, the Dragons went for it on 4th. The Dragons picked up the first, but the officials ruled that a fumble occurred and that Lumpkin had recovered. The Indians added to their lead with a 1-yd touchdown run. With 4:13 left in the first half, Lumpkin led Pickens, 21-7. The score would remain the same as we headed into halftime.

Dragons defense gets to the QB

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Indians, got the ball first in the second half. Lumpkin, again stretched their lead after a 15-yd touchdown pass. The PAT was good and with 7:26 left in the third, the Indians led the Dragons, 28-7. Both teams had chances the rest of the quarter, but the score remained the same as we headed to the fourth and Lumpkin ahead, 28-7.

Sam Streicher pitches to Kadyn Hampton

In the fourth quarter, the Indians added a 42-yd touchdown pass. The PAT was good and with 8:30 left in the ball game, Lumpkin led Pickens, 35-7. Late in the game, as the Dragons were trying to get something going, the Indians picked off the pass attempt and took it all the way back to make it 42-7. That would be the final score on the night as the Indians picked up the win.

 

7-AAA Football Standings:

Lumpkin: 5-0 (1-0)

Gilmer: 4-1 (1-0)

Dawson: 3-2 (1-0)

Pickens: 1-4 (0-1)

Wesleyan: 1-4 (0-1)

West Hall: 1-4 (0-1)

White County: 2-2 (0-0) *had a bye week

 

The Dragons, will be off next week as they have their region bye week. The next time Pickens will be in action is on Friday, October 7th as they again take to the road to battle the Dawson Tigers. The Dragons will look to get back on track and even up their region record. Kick off is set for 7:30.

Dragons use late game heroics to pick up win in home opener

PHS Football, Team FYN Sports

Jasper, Ga — It was a welcome sight for Dragon fans on Friday, September 16th as the Pickens Dragons were at home for the first time during the 2022 season as they welcomed the Christian Heritage Lions for Homecoming, and the final non-region contest. It had been a rough go to start the season for the Dragons as they were on the road against three playoff caliber teams and couldn’t come away with a win. The Lions, came in looking for a win as well as they came in with a 1-2 record. After some back and forth, a late touchdown and interception by the Dragons sealed a 24-22 win.

 

Christian Heritage, won the toss and elected to differ to the second half. The Dragons, got the ball first and drove down the field to punch it in for the first score of the game. Freshman Landon Poole took the hand off and ran it in from 15 yards out. Pickens went for two, but were unsuccessful in the attempt. With 8:04 left in the first quarter, the Dragons held a 6-0 lead over the Lions. The Dragons added to their lead as Senior Kadyn Hampton punched it in from 4 yards out. The ensuing PAT attempt was blocked and with 2:08 left in the opening quarter, Pickens led Christian Heritage, 12-0.

The Lions answered with a screen pass from Sophomore Carter Triplett to Senior Eli Thomason went 55 yards for the score. The PAT was good and as we headed to the second quarter, the Dragons led Christian Heritage, 12-7.

Dragons on offense in the first quarter

The next drive for Pickens started as the first quarter was coming to an end. As the second quarter began, the Dragons faced a third down just inside Lion territory. The Dragons were able to convert, and end up scoring on the drive as Junior Sam Streicher found Junior Marcus Pike in the corner of the end zone for a 13-yd touchdown. The 2-point conversion attempt was no good and with 11:10 left in the first half, Pickens led Christian Heritage, 18-7. AS time expired in the first half, the Lions hit a 39-yd field goal to cut the Dragons lead down to 18-10 as we headed to the break.

Dragons on defense

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The third quarter was dominated by defense as both teams kept the offenses out of the end zone. Both teams had opportunities, but could not score. Going to the fourth quarter, Pickens still led Christian Heritage, 18-10.

Isaiah Williams with the catch on the screen pass

In the fourth quarter, the scoring would resume. The Lions, got in on a 9-yd touchdown run by Sophomore Jaylon Gay. The 2-point conversion to try to tie the game was no good, and with 8:11 left in the game, the Dragons were clinging to an 18-16 lead. Christian Heritage took the lead for the first time after a 45-yd touchdown pass from Triplett to Senior Braden Koneman. Once again, the 2-point try would be unsuccessful, and with 5:08 left in the game, it was the Lions that held a 22-18 lead. Down, but not out, the Dragons offense took the field looking to send the Dragon faithful home happy. After a hold was called on the Lions, Streicher found Junior Isaiah Williams, who ripped the ball away from a defender, at the 50-yd line for a big gain.

Faced with fourth and long and the game on the line, Streicher, again made a big time throw as he connected with Senior Mason Powell, who made a fantastic sliding grab for the first down. Streicher then found Senior Colby Brooks on the screen pass and Brooks took it to the 7-yd line. Streicher, then kept it himself and got into the end zone from 7 yards out to give the Dragons the lead. The PAT was blocked, and with 47 seconds left in the ball game, Pickens led Christian Heritage, 24-22. The Lions, still had time on the clock to try to make a comeback as well. After getting near midfield, Christian Heritage had one last shot. The final pass was intercepted by Junior Mason Stanfield to end the ball game and give the Dragons a 24-22 win.

 

With the win, the Dragons finish off the non-region portion of their schedule at 1-3. With the non-region schedule done, the Dragons will now turn their focus to 7-AAA play next week. The Dragons will kick off region play as they travel to Dahlonega to take on the Lumpkin County Indians, who have been one of the surprise teams early on, have started the season 4-0. This will be the 39th all time meeting and the first meeting between the two schools since 2009. The Indians currently have a 3-game win streak against the Dragons. Pickens last win against the Indians came on the road in 2006. The Dragons lead the all time series 19-18-1. Kick off is set for 7:30.

Dragons drop first game of season to 6A Wheeler

PHS Baseball, Team FYN Sports

Pickens County, Ga — As we said in the Murray County/Pickens recap article, Saturday, February 26th was a busy day as far as baseball went. After the game between the Indians and Dragons finished, Murray County took on the Lumpkin County Indians. After a good back and forth game which saw Murray try to come back late, Lumpkin came away with a 10-6 win. The third game of the day saw Lumpkin take on the Wheeler Wildcats. Wheeler, was the biggest school in terms of classification as they are a 6A school. Lumpkin hung with Wheeler for the better part of the game as the Wildcats came away with an 11-4 victory in game 3. Game 4 saw the host team, the Pickens Dragons take on Wheeler in the night cap. After a tough time in the middle innings for the Dragons, Wheeler picked up the win, 16-2.

 

Freshman Connor Shouse made the start for the Dragons and pitched very well against the 6A school. The Wildcats, picked up 2 hits, but were held to just 1 run in the top of the first. In the bottom of the first, Pickens got a 2-out double from Hunter White, and Seth Densmore was able to reach 1st base on an error. The two runners were left stranded however and we headed to the second with the Wildcats lead the Dragons, 1-0.

 

In the top of the second, Shouse racked up his first three strikeouts of the game, but Wheeler was able to push across another run as they increased their lead to 2-0 going to the bottom of the second. In the bottom half of the inning, Jarod Whitmore led off with a single, Trace Ledbetter followed with a single of his own, and Evan Giddens brought in Whitmore after a sacrifice bunt to make it 2-1 Wildcats as we would head to the third.

 

Shouse found his groove in the top of the third as he needed only 11 pitches to get out of the frame and picking up his 4th strikeout in the process. The Dragons went quietly in the bottom of the third. As we went to the fourth inning, Wheeler still held a slim 2-1 lead.

 

After the first batter for the Wildcats reached on an error to begin the fourth inning, Shouse settled down and picked up his 5th and 6th strikeout of the game to send us to the bottom of the inning. In the bottom of the fourth, Ledbetter was left stranded on 1st after a 2-out single. Going to the top of the fifth, Wheeler still held a 2-1 advantage.

 

In the top of the fifth, Shouse picked up his 7th strikeout for the first out of the inning. The Wildcats, scored 5 runs in the top half of the inning to give them a 7-1 lead going to the bottom of the frame. In the bottom of the fifth, Shouse, now over a shortstop, got hit by a pitch with 1 out, White walked, Densmore got hit by a pitch, and Drake Sutton brought in Shouse after drawing a walk to make it 7-2 Wheeler going to the sixth.

 

The top of the sixth inning, was not kind to the Dragons. The Wildcats would score 9 runs in the top of half of the frame to make it 16-2 as we would head to the bottom of the inning. The Dragons, went down in order in the bottom of the sixth and the Wheeler Wildcats took this one, 16-2.

 

The Pickens Dragons will look to regroup as they will host the Lumpkin County Indians on Tuesday in non-region action. First pitch is set for 5:30 pm at Dunn Field.

Dragons baseball wins two games on Saturday

PHS Baseball, Sports, Team FYN Sports

The PHS Dragons varsity baseball team recently broke in their brand new baseball facility and started the 2020 season on Thursday with a 6-5 win over the Murray County Indians. On Saturday, they hosted the Union County Panthers, the Lumpkin County Indians, and the Coosa Eagles for a day filled with baseball. The Dragons faced off against Union County and Coosa. First up, Union County. Pickens used a big fourth inning to get the win over the Panthers, 12-4.

In the top of the first, the Panthers got on the board first as they scored one run on three hits to take an early 1-0 lead. The Dragons came right back in the bottom of the first with two runs on one hit to take a 2-1 lead into the second inning.

Dragons up to bat against Union

The second inning saw Pickens extend their lead to 3-1 over Union County after Hunter White drove in Drake Sutton. In the top of the third, the Panthers had runners on second and first after a two-out double and single. Dragon starter Alex Snelgrove was able to get out of the jam as Pickens kept their 3-1 lead.

Alex Snelgrove on the mound in game one

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The fourth inning saw a lot of scoring. First, the Panthers retook the lead 4-3 with three big runs in the top of the frame. Not to be outdone, the Dragons would bat around in the bottom half of the inning scoring nine runs to take a 12-4 lead over Union.

Dragons looking to score runs in game one

Pickens held on to their 12-4 lead over the final three innings to get their second win of the young season.

Game 2:

After Lumpkin played Union and Coosa, the nightcap of the full day of games saw Pickens take on Coosa. Much like their game against Union earlier in the day, the Dragons used a big inning to propel themselves over the Eagles, 11-1 in five innings.

After nothing doing for either team in the first inning, both teams plated runs in the second inning. Coosa scored in the top of the second with one run to take a 1-0 advantage. In the bottom half of the inning, Pickens nearly batted around and scored four times to take a 4-1 lead going to the third.

Dragons batting against Coosa

In the bottom of the third, the Dragons again showed off the offense as they would bat around and plate seven runs to take an 11-1 lead over the Eagles.

Pickens battling Coosa under the lights

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pickens held on over the final two innings to defeat the Coosa Eagles 11-1 in five innings.

Pickens, will have another busy week next week as they will have a home and home series with the Lumpkin Indians. The first game will be at PHS on Tuesday with a first pitch time of 5:30. The Dragons will then travel up to Lumpkin on Thursday with the same first pitch time. Pickens will end the week with games against Dalton and Dominion Christian on Saturday at PHS.

 

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