William Garner (24) gets a forearm bash from Hershel Moore (5) after scoring the Panthers’ first run of 2023.

CHULA — Valentine’s Day was not ao sweet for the Tiftarea Academy baseball team. The Lanier County Bulldogs scored three runs in the top of the 7th inning Feb. 14 for a 9-7 victory in the Panthers’ regular season opener.

Down a run with one out in the top of the 7th, Stone Carey drove in Caydon Cook with a single, knotting the score at 7-7.

With runners at second and third with one out, Tiftarea head coach Chance Benson elected to intentionally walk the next man to load the bags and set up a force out at every bag. He got what he wanted with a strikeout, but a wild pitch and error plated Ashton Cook and Carey.

Lanier got a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the 7th to hold on to the victory.

It took until the third inning for either side to produce much offense. Perhaps it was a matter of turning on the lights.

Between the 2nd and 3rd, the opening notes of ZZ Top’s “La Grange” started, then it and half the lights and scoreboard at Tiftarea’s stadium abruptly shut off. After a delay and work at the breaker box, everything powered up again.

Both sides plated runs in the 3rd, one for Lanier and two for the Panthers.

Ashton Cook had the Bulldogs’ first hit to lead off, coming around on an error. William Garner and Lane Cole put Tiftarea ahead in their half.

Garner worked a walk and stole second. Cole was initially thought to have followed with walk, but it was instead a balk. With another chance to swing the lumber, Cole doubled to deep center, driving in Garner.

Winston Lamb dinked a single, putting runners first and third. Preoccupied with holding Lamb on, a tag on a pickoff attempt caused enough of a delay for Cole to scoot home with run No. 2.

The Panthers padded that lead with three tallies in the 4th.

Parks Colwell got the party started with a double down the right field line, scoring on a single by Lamb. With two down, Cole walked and Hershel Moore drove in Kam Brown (running for Lamb).

Cole scored his second run of the night on a John Jackson single, giving Tiftarea a 5-1 lead.

The Bulldogs were undeterred, going up 6-5 on three runs in the 5th and two in the 6th.

Lanier batted around in the 5th, with a walk and two errors providing the runners who came around to score.

Josh Furney doubled in Payton Culpepper and Carey and a bases loaded walk to Grant Gano made for an easy run for Talen Tarbox.

The Panthers tied the count in their half of the 6th.

Cole walked, went to second on a sac bunt by Moore and touched home on an RBI groundout by Matthew Malone.

Lamb started on the hill for the Panthers, throwing four innings of two-hit, one-run ball. THe run was unearned. Colwell, John Michael White and Cole pitched as well.

Cole, Moore and Jackson had two hits apiece and Cole scored three of the team’s seven runs.