During the late innings of Tuesday night’s win against Warner Robins, the outcome had already been well decided for the Greyhounds as “I’m A Survivor” by Reba McEntire played over the loudspeakers at Cecil Patterson Field.
The Greyhounds, after jumping in front with a pair of early three-run innings, took the first of three wins last week against the Demons on Tuesday, winning 8-0 before Friday’s 7-2 and 11-3 victories to wrap up the regular season with a record of 16-12. JCHS began the state tournament with a best-of-three series Tuesday at McIntosh.
Yes, seeking another win to finish the season strong going into this week’s state tournament was key, but the underscored importance of Tuesday’s matchup was seen all over the field. From fans wearing pink to the Greyhounds trading purple and gold for the pastel of pink, it was a night centered on honoring those who have or are still fighting cancer during the Greyhounds’ Strike Out Cancer game.
The cause for raising cancer was a personal one for both Greyhounds head coach Mike Paulk and others in the Greyhounds dugout.
“I think the genesis of it kind of started with the loss of my mother a few years before I became head coach. I personally kind of saw the struggles that we went through and the heartache, and I know we have players on our team that kind of similarly experienced that same emotion,” Paulk said. “We have people in this community that have battled cancer. Some people have lost that battle, some have won and some continue to fight it. It’s a way for us to show we are supporting them, thinking about them.”
The cause went a bit further for Paulk and a few others as they had either names or initials of a loved one who had or continues fighting cancer on the sleeve of their jerseys.
“It was an emotional night for us on a few levels,” Paulk said. “I told them before the game, ‘let’s play for that person on the sleeve.’ It’s huge for those families that are being remembered.”
As for Tuesday’s game, the Greyhounds cashed in early with two outs, scoring three runs on both of the first two innings with two outs each time. A two-run double by Davis Upshaw got Jones County on the board, and Cohen Barfield added a run with a single. An inning later, Noah Robinson made it 5-0 on a two-out single preceded by Marlin Mills drawing a bases-loaded walk for the Greyhounds, who added two more runs in the sixth inning.
The early offensive output made it easier for the Greyhounds on the mound, where Cason Taylor and Landon Pettigrew combined for a shutout with Taylor giving up a hit through four innings before Pettigrew also allowed a hit in the final three frames.
“We worked on it (last) week, just battling in the box, seeing the good pitch,” Paulk said. “I thought that they did a great job on it. We kind of slowed the game down so our pitchers could get some work.”
Jones County completed the sweep of the Demons with wins of 7-2 and 11-3 on Friday. Kaylob Harris pitched four hitless shutout innings in the first game before giving away to a combo of Cayden Tidwell and Trent Paulk to close things out. The Greyhounds led 2-0 after an inning before pulling away with five runs late in a game that saw runs driven in by Mills, MJ Lane, Upshaw and Harris.
The Friday’s final game, the Greyhounds rallied from being down 2-0 and 3-2 with a run in the fifth innings and four runs in both the sixth and seventh. Colin Evans and Pettigrew each picked up two hits with Brayden Lampkin driving in two runs and other RBIs from Evans, Pettigrew, and Carter Harris.
Dalton Lowe pitched a pair of innings, giving up a run and two hits before Trent Paulk surrendered a run on three hits in two innings with Carter Harris’ three innings of work holding the Demons scoreless and hitless.
