Panthers maul Georgia Christian

Published 12:00 pm Wednesday, March 8, 2023

CHULA — In a good day at the ballpark Tuesday, March 7, it was especially good for Tiftarea Academy Panthers to be named Parks. Parks Parrott started on the rubber in an 8-1 win and Parks Colwell threw two innings of no-hit baseball. Together, Parrott and Colwell struck out 13 against Georgia Christian.

The win bumped Tiftarea’s record to 4-4 ahead of a non-region showdown Wednesday with Fitzgerald.

Pitching has been electric, but head coach Chance Benson is waiting for the bats to come around a bit more. Other than that, “We’ve been playing very well,” Benson said. The Panthers notched five hits against Georgia Christian, but through they only drove in three of the eight runs, they found other ways to score.

Perhaps the biggest example was in a single at-bat for pinch hitter John Michael White. A day after homering twice in a junior varsity game, White doubled to centerfield in the 6th. He never had to stop on the play until he reached home as the Generals made two wild throws.

Tiftarea took its initial lead in the 1st inning. Matthew Malone doubled with two outs, went to third on a wild pitch and scored on an error. The Generals tied it in the 3rd, Seth Copeland doubling to very deep center to drive in Carson Hanks.

The tie was short-lived. A half-inning later, the Panthers were back on top.

Lane Cole was plunked by a pitch to lead off. With two outs, Cole was on third. He scored on a wild pitch to go ahead 2-1. The score held that way for two innings until the hosts broke through in a big way.

Once again, it wasn’t the Panthers’ bats that started the rally. John Jackson walked and Malone was hit by a pitch to start. Following a double steal, Parrott drove a ball to the outfield, where it was misplayed. Jackson and Malone score for a 4-1 advantage. The inning was not over.

Parrott was on third after the error, setting him up to score Tiftarea’s sixth tally on a sac fly Hershel Moore to center. Parrott had to come in with a slide after a strong throw.

They added two more runs in the 6th after White’s trip around the bases. Cole walked and Jackson was plunked, setting up Malone to pick up a pair of RBIs on a double to center.

While the Panthers were busy manufacturing runs, their defense was making sure the Generals couldn’t.

Parrott gave up only three hits in his five innings. One of the few jams he encountered saw the hurler work out of it himself, albeit not in an expected way.

Still up 2-1 in the top of the 5th, Hanks singled and went to second on a one-out sacrifice bunt. An infield error allowed Copeland aboard with two outs, putting runners on the corners. There, Georgia Christian attempted to start a pickle with Copeland, with the aim to distract the Panthers enough for Hanks to tie the score by stealing home.

However, Parrott was too fast for Copeland, tagging him before Hanks was even halfway to the plate.

The Generals were retired in order in the 6th and 7th. Parrott made another fine defensive play in the 6th, tracking down a long foul fly from his first base position, where he had switched after Colwell came on in relief. Colwell struck out the side in the 7th.

Malone’s doubles accounted for two of the five Tiftarea hits. Winston Lamb had a pair of singles. Cole, Jackson and Malone scored two runs apiece.

Copeland had two of two GCS’ three hits. Tanner Rayfield gave up one earned run in 4+ innings of work.