Lady Hounds sail into region tourney on high note

GREYHOUND SOFTBALL

  • Aniya Canty lines a two-run single into play against Warner Robins. BRAD HARRISON/Staff
    Aniya Canty lines a two-run single into play against Warner Robins. BRAD HARRISON/Staff
  • Tranasia Parker is mobbed by her teammates at home plate following a three-MORE run homer against Warner Robins. BRAD HARRISON/Staff
    Tranasia Parker is mobbed by her teammates at home plate following a three-MORE run homer against Warner Robins. BRAD HARRISON/Staff
  • Ciara Stephens fires a pitch toward the plate in last week’s rout of Warner Robins. BRAD HARRISON/Staff
    Ciara Stephens fires a pitch toward the plate in last week’s rout of Warner Robins. BRAD HARRISON/Staff
  • Stella Lacy looks for instructions from the dugout after reaching second base against Warner Robins. BRAD HARRISON/Staff
    Stella Lacy looks for instructions from the dugout after reaching second base against Warner Robins. BRAD HARRISON/Staff

    With a pair of region victories last week, the Lady Greyhounds rolled into this week’s region tournament. Not only that, but Thursday’s thrilling 7-6 win at Union Grove improved Jones County’s draw for the double-elimination region tourney, which began Tuesday.

    Held at top-seeded Ola, it matched up Jones County and Locust Grove in Tuesday’s opening set of games with the other matchup being Ola and Union Grove. The thirdplace and championship round games were set for Wednesday.

    The Lady Hounds go into the region tournament with the mental edge of knowing they can go head-to-head with any team in the region. They split season matchups

    SOFTBALL >> C8 with Union Grove and Locust Grove while falling by a single run in a lateseason loss to Ola. In addition to determining a region champion, each team will also determine its state tournament seeding hinging on how it fares in the region tournament.

    “We’re starting to play well. It’s like I told them, if you take care of business, good things can happen,” Lady Greyhounds head coach Tripp Burt said. “We can beat any team in the region; we feel good about how things are going now.”

    If Jones County can get a start like it did against Union Grove, its odds of doing well in the region tournament should be good. The Lady Hounds went up early, leading 7-0 through four innings before withstanding a late Union Grove rally in a 7-6 win. It was Ansley Pegg getting the win on the mound, going six innings prior to Cate Downey getting the Lady Hounds out of the final inning to win.

    That early offensive charge was led by Ciara Stephens, who had three hits and a three-run homer as well as Stella Lacy and Taylor Nipper having a pair of hits.

    In fact, the homer by Stephens put JCHS up 2-0 in the first, and a Shayla Pennington two-run hit in the fourth was part of a four-run fourth inning that gave Jones County what’d be enough cushion to win.

    In Tuesday’s senior night win, Jones County simply took care of business against an outmatched Warner Robins team, winning 17-1 in three innings with Aniya Canty and Bailey Jackson each having two hits, Stephens having a triple and Tranasia Parker ripping a homer.

    Jones County and Warner Robins were actually tied 1-1 through an inning, but all of that changed with a massive 16-run second inning that saw the first 10 batters score a run to make it an easy day for Stephens as she got the three-inning victory in the pitcher’s circle.

    “To come out honor the seniors and then to take care of business, that makes things a lot better,” Burt said.

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