Lady Vikings shutout Lady Indians in Strikeout Cancer game

Members of the Northgate and East Coweta softball teams gather around longtime softball coach Larry Shelnutt, his wife Linda and his granddaugher during the Strikeout for Cancer game held at ECHS on Monday night. Shelnutt, who is currently fightning cancer, coached many of the players in the photo and was a former assistant coach and booster club president of the softball program at ECHS. 

SHARPSBURG-The Lady Vikings scored four runs in the top of the third inning Monday night while pitchers McKenzie Peace and Haley Flood combined to allow three hits in a 6-0 victory over the East Coweta Lady Indians.
The game was part of a junior varsity/varsity doubleheader in an annual Strikeout for Cancer event held at East Coweta High School.
The Lady Vikings played without head coach Lisa Skelton who was serving out a two-game suspension after being ejected from a recent game and improved to 9-2 on the season while the Lady Indians dropped to 6-4 on the season.
The Lady Indians had an opportunity to score the first runs of the game as Mekhia Freeman and Shemiah Sanchez reached base with one out in the bottom of the first inning but Peace left them stranded as she induced a popup and a groundout to end the frame.
Both teams were scoreless until the top of the third inning when the Lady Vikings took advantage of mistakes to get on the board.
Brittany Futral led of the inning by reaching first on a walk, couretsy runner Ebonee Echols stole second and went to third on a sacrifice bunt by Rachel Cook.
Kat Davenport attempted a sacrifice bunt that was hit to the mound, but the ball was misplayed by EC starting pitcher Morgan Goree as Echols came home with the intial run of the game.
Davenport moved to second on a wild pitch and after a strikeout came home on a double to left field by Regan Kinsch.
Peace followed by reaching first after being hit by a pitch and Skalski reentered the game as a courtesy runner.
With Jessica Cochran at the plate, Kinsch advanced to third on a wild pitch and would come home as the throw from home to third went into left field.
Meanwhile, Skalski would follow Kinsch to third and eventually the final run of the inning on a single by Cochran.
The margin was enough for Peace who held the Lady Indians at bay for five innings as they were able to collect two hits through the first four innings before Flood took over who allowed one hit through the final three innings to collect a save.
The Lady Vikings added to their lead in the top of the sixth inning as Echols reached on a one out walk off reliever Kaylin Wall and Jessica Houk followed with a single to center field.
After an infield fly, Khira Long hit a single to right that scored Echols and advanced Houk to third who would eventually come home with the final run on a steal of home.

Lady Cougars end nine-year drought, defeat Lady Indians for region lead.

6

5

UPDATE

SHARPSBURG-On October 23, 2004, George W. Bush was a couple of weeks away from being reelected as the 41st president of the United States and the number one song was My Boo by Usher and Alicia Keys.
It was also the last time the Newnan Lady Cougars defeated the East Coweta Lady Indians in softball as the former were 1-0 winners and advanced to the Elite Eight Tournament in Carrie Gilmore’s first year as head coach.
The Lady Cougars ended that streak Thursday evening as they scored four runs in the first inning and made the lead stand as they came away with a 6-5 victory and the lead in Region 3-AAAAAA.
With the victory, the Lady Cougars improved to 5-3 overall and 2-0 in region play while the Lady Indians fell to 6-3 overall and 1-1 in the region.
The game got off to rugged start for the Lady Indians as the Lady Cougars jumped on miscues of the former with two outs.
After EC starter Morgan Goree retired the first two batters in the top of the first but Arden Jobe reached base after an infield error and Lindsay Stewart followed with a single.
Lesley Davis came through as she hit a double that scored courtesy runner and Stewart then after a walk to Newnan starting pitcher Tori Loveless, Masen Willard singled to left field to score Davis and on the play another run came home as the ball was misplayed.
The Indians rallied after one out in the bottom of third inning as Kia Smith was hit by a pitch and Mekhia Freeman reached on a single.
After Shemiah Sanchez hit a flyball to center field, Katey Lynch and Maggie Morrow followed with RBI singles that cut the margin to 4-3.
The Lady Cougars scored an insurance run in the top of the fifth inning as Davis led off with a double, a sacrifice bunt moved pinch runner Tori Neil to third and Willard followed with a sacrifice fly that scored Neil from third.
In the bottom of the frame, the Lady Indians had an opportunity at tying the game as Freeman walked and Sanchez singled with both advancing on a sacrifice bunt by Lynch.
However, Loveless got out of trouble as she retired Morrow on a strikeout and induced an infield pop to Reba Jones.
The Lady Cougars took a 6-3 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning as Goggins reached on a one out walk and after the second out of the frame was recorded came home on a double by Jobe.
As the case has been in previous games between the two, the Lady Indians usually rallied late to escape with the win and this game was appearing be following that theory in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Sanchez led off with a walk and Lynch followed with a double that put the two in scoring position, but that is where the theory ended as the Lady Cougars traded runs for outs as Morrow and Jones had RBI groundouts.
Loveless managed to end the game and break the streak as induced a groundball to Stewart who threw a strike to first baseman Courtney Darrow and the dugout emptied with excitement.
The Lady Indians will look to recover Monday when they host the Northgate Lady Vikings in the annual cancer game with proceeds going to the Pink Posse of Coweta County and the Cancer Treatment Centers of America who have a foundation and a facility in Newnan.
The junior varsity will play at 4:30 and the varsity will play afterward.
The Lady Cougars will host the Pike County Lady Pirates at 6:00 in a non-region contest before spending the weekend at the East Carroll Complex in the Trojan Slam.

Five run fifth inning keys Lady Cougars to victory

 WINS 6-4

The Lady Cougars scored five runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to defeat the Carrollton Lady Trojans 6-4 in a Tuesday evening non-region contest.
The win was the fourth in a row for Newnan who now own a 5-3 record after starting the season 1-3 with a Region 3-AAAAAA matchup with rival East Coweta Thursday night in Sharpsburg while Carrollton fell to 5-3.
Trailing 3-1 in the bottom of the fifth inning when Lauren Ferguson led off with a solo home run to cut the margin to 3-2.
Chaycie Goggins singled and advanced to second on a wild pitch before advancing to third on an infield single by Shania Colton and Arden Jobe hit a groundball to short as Goggins scored the tying run.
However, the shortstop dropped the ball and Jobe reached first while Colton moved to third with a chance to be the go ahead run.
Hannah Scarburough ran for Jobe and Stewart hit a double to left and Colton came home to give Newnan a 4-3 lead.
A groundout to short by Lesley Davis and a sacrifice bunt by pitcher Tori Loveless folloed and accounted for a pair of runs and a 6-3 lead.
Howver, the Lady Trojans tried to come back in the top of the sixth inning on a two-out double by Shelby Yates but Loveless was able get the third out and strand two runners.
In the top of the seventh, the Lady Trojans saw a runner on base due to an infield error but Loveless was able to leave her stranded as the game ended.
The Trojans took the lead with a single run in the top of the first inning but the Cougars tied the game in the bottom of the frame as Goggins led off with a walk, stole second and advanced to third on a single by Arden Jobe before coming home when Lindsay Stewart popped to the pitcher in foul territory.
The Lady Trojans took a 2-1 lead with an unearned run in the top of the third inning and scored a single run in the top of the fifth inning on an RBI double by Alli Hubbard.

Indians play near perfect game in win over Warhawks

SHARPSBURG-From the moment the national anthem was completed, Friday night could not go wrong for the East Coweta Indians in their 2013 season opener against Henry County Warhawks at Garland Shoemake Stadium.
The Indians won the toss and elected to receive then proceeded to dominate the Warhawks 49-8 on a warm evening for football.
In the opening drive, the Indians would begin at their 32-yard line and methodically pick apart the Warhawks defense for approximately 10 yards per play.
A nine-yard sack of quarterback Bryce Gemmel slowed the drive briefly until Weylin Orr lined up to the right of Gemmel, took the handoff and raced to his left for a 31-yard touchdown with 8:46 remaining in the first quarter.
Indians' placekicker Cole Antley could do no wrong either as he converted the extra point then drilled the ensuing kickoff into the end zone for a touchback.
This would be a recurring theme for Antley who converted all of his extra points and came within one yard of recording seven touchbacks.
After holding the Warhawks, the Indians appeared to be looking to add to the lead after three plays moved the ball to midfield, but an interception with Warhawks' defender Derrius Amis with 5:54 remaining negated the effort.
However, the Warhawks were unable to cash in on one of the few miscues by the Indians and were forced to punt.
That worked nicely for the Indians as Markell Boston took the kick from his 19 and raced 52 yards to the HC 29 with 3:15 remaining.
On this drive, Malik Robinson would have a 15-yard run but Orr would handle most of the seven-play series including a three-yard touchdown run with less than two seconds remaining to take a 14-0 lead.
After Antley's kick went into the end zone, the Warhawks took possession at their 20 but the Indians nearly had a third touchdown as quarterback Michael Foreman was intercepted at the 49 by Kevin Lashley who returned the ball back to the end zone for the score.
However, the Indians were called for a penalty and had to run an untimed play from the Warhawks 24.
No problem as Alex Branch, who wears number 24 carried the ball on the play and went through the middle of the Warhawks' defense for a 24-yard touchdown and the lead was 21-0 as the quarter officially ended.
The second quarter started the way the first ended with a turnover as the Warhawks fumbled the ball on the second play of the stanza and Alex Heard recovered at HC 35.
Similar to the first period, EC took advantage and scored as Robinson culminated a six-play drive with a three-yard run for a score and the lead increased to 28-0 with 9:35 remaining in the half.
On the ensuing series, the Warhawks went backwards with two penalties and the Indians eventually took over at he HC 43.
The ensuing possession didn't last long as Orr had an 18-yard run and Robinson had a 23-yard run that included a hurdle over two defenders on his way to the end zone with 6:25 remaining.
The Indians added another touchdown before halftime after a Warhawk turnover as Orr ended a six-play, 29-yard drive with a two-yard run.
The Warhawks averted a shutout with a 36-yard fumble return for a score 10 seconds into the final quarter and converted a two-point conversion but the Indians closed out the scoring with a three-yard run by Elishua Orr with 2:44 remaining.
Next for the Indians will be a trip to Gwinnett County for a matchup against Archer.

Three home runs by Goggins aid Newnan's win over Douglas County

Newnan shortstop Chaycie Goggins takes a pitch in her first at bat against Douglas County. She would not take too many after that as she hit three home runs in the 14-0 four-inning victory.

The Newnan Lady Cougars found their power stroke Thursday evening as they had eight extra base hits including three home runs by Chaycie Goggins on the way to a 14-0 home victory over the Douglas County Lady Tigers in the Region 3-AAAAAA opener for the two teams.
The game was called in the bottom of the fourth inning under the mercy rule as the Lady Cougars, who defeated the Northside-Columbus Lady Patriots 12-0 the night before, improved to 4-3 overall.
After Newnan starter Tori Loveless retired Douglas County in the top of the first inning, her teammates went to work in the bottom of the frame as Goggins was hit by a pitch, stole second and moved to third as Masen Willard singled and eventually stole second.
Arden Jobe hit a ground ball to second that scored Goggins but the throw to first was off and Masen Willard followed her home to give the Lady Cougars a 2-0 lead.
A single by Lindsay Stewart and one out walks to Lauren Ferguson and Loveless led to the third and final run of the frame.
Loveless retired the Lady Tigers in order in the top ofthe second inning and her teammates gave her more runs to play with as all nine batted with five runs coming home to grab an 8-0 lead.
Goggins hit a solo home run that went to the right of the foul pole in left field then Willard followed with a double and came home on a wild pitch, Ferguson and Loveless singled for single RBIs and M.B. Arnall followed with an RBI double.
In the bottom of the third inning, the Lady Cougars struck again as Goggins led of with a solo home run in almost the same area as the last shot, Willard singled and Jobe followed with a two-run shot over the left center field fence.
The Lady Cougars took an 11-0 lead into the top of the fourth inning as head coach Carrie Gilmore made a number of changes including Jobe from behind the plate to shortstop and removing Loveless from the game in favor of Emily Allen.
In three innings, Loveless held the Lady Tigers to no hits, walked a batter and recorded four strikeouts.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, the bats refused to cool down as they added three more runs as Arnall walked, Chasity Meadows doubled and Goggins lined a shot over the right field fence for her third home run  and left a dent on a car as the ball made a loud sound upon impact.
Next for the Lady Cougars will be Tuesday against Carrollton and a Thursday region matchup in Sharpsburg with the rival East Coweta Lady Indians.

Sanchez, Lynch, Liebe pace EC victory over Northside-Columbus

COLUMBUS-Shemiah Sanchez and Katey Lynch each went 3-for-5 at the plate and Lauren Liebe added two more and the trio combined to score seven runs to lead the East Coweta Lady Indians to a 12-6 win Wednesday night over the Northside Lady Patriots.
The win improved the Lady Indians’ record to 3-1 on the season while the Lady Patriots fell to 2-1.
Kia Smith reached on a single, stole second inning and advanced to third on a bunt single by
Freeman who stole second with Sanchez at the plate.
Sanchez reached base on a dropped third strike allowing Smith to score the game's first run
and Freeman to move to third.
Lynch reached on an error by the pitcher allowing Freeman to score the second run of the frame
and move Sanchez to third while the former took second.
Reba Jones followed with a groundout to third which allowed Sanchez to score then Maggie Morrow followed with an RBI single to give EC a 4-0 lead.
After the single, Morrow took second on the throw into the infield and went to third on a wild
pitch before coming home on an infield single by Gabby Freed.
The Lady Indians added a run in the top of the third inning as Liebe reached on a two-out single, advanced to second on a passed ball and came home on a double by Hailey Baswell.
The Lady Patriots got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the third with a run then added another in the bottom of the fifth inning off Lady Indians starter Kaylin Wall to cut the margin to 6-2.
However, the Lady Indians got the runs back in the top of the sixth inning as Lynch led off with a single, advanced to second on a groundout and went to third when Morrow’s ground ball was mishandled before coming home on a groundout by Gracelynn Newmon.
Liebe would reach on an error allowing pinch-runner Madison Carter to score from third and after a trio of wild pitches, the former would come home to increase the lead to 9-2.
After the pitching the first five innings, Wall was relieved by Kayla Vincent who retired the side in order in the bottom of the sixth inning.
In five innings on the mound, Wall allowed four hits, walked two batters and recorded a strikeout.
The Lady Indians added to their lead in the top of the seventh inning with three more runs as Sanchez singled and scored on a double by Lynch who came home on a wild pitch while Liebe had an RBI single with two outs in the frame.
The Lady Patriots attempted a mini-rally with two outs in the bottom of the frame as they scored four runs, but they weren’t able to get any closer.

East Coweta defeats Whitewater in non-region softball matchup

Lady Indians catcher Reba Jones lays down a sacrifice bunt in the top of the third inning that led to a run in East Coweta's 8-6 victory over the Whitewater Lady Wildcats.

The East Coweta Lady Indians took adavantage of early miscues to take a lead that stood throughout Tuesday night as they defeated the Whitewater Lady Wildcats 8-6 in a non-region road contest.
The game was originally scheduled to be played Saturday as part of the Georgia Dugout Club but was called off in the second inning due to rain.
With no rain in the neighborhood, Kia Smith led off the game for the Lady Indians (2-1)  with a single to left and stole second prior to Mekhia Freeman reaching base on a walk.
Shemiah Sanchez followed and loaded the bases when she was hit by a pitch and with one out, problems began for the Lady Wildcats (4-1) as a wild pitch by starting pitcher Sarah Middleton allowed Smith to score while Freeman came home on a throwing error by the catcher.
Meanwhile, Sanchez advanced two bases on the two iscues and was able to score the third and final run of the inning as Reba Jones lined a single to center field.
The Lady Wildcats came back with a run in the bottom of the second inning as Brielle Grubbs led off with a walk and eventually scored on a two-out single by Breanna Burgett.
However, the Lady Indians responded in the top of the third inning as Freeman reached on a walk and stole two bases before coming home when a ball hit by Sanchez was mishandled by the Lady Wildcats second baseman.
After Katey Lynch was hit by a pitch, Bailey Schmieder had the first of two sacrifice bunts in the game and and Lauren Liebe followed with a groundout that scored Sanchez.
Whitewater rallied in the bottom of the frame as East Coweta starting pitcher Morgan Goree walked the first two batters and surrendered an RBI single to Kim Perkins and after a walk and a line drive hit to Gracelynn Newmon at third, the margin was cut to 5-3 after an RBI groundout.
In the top of the fourth inning, the Lady Indians widened the margin to 7-3 as Hailey Baswell reached first after being hit by a pitch and advanced to second on a sacrifice by Schmieder and to third on a groundout before Smith walked and stole second.
Freeman followed with a shallow flyball that saw the ball drop as the shortstop and left fielder collide allowing Schmieder and Smith to score.
The Lady Wildcats scored a run in the bottom of the fourth inning but the Lady Indians got the run back in the top of the sixth inning when Baswell reached on an error and eventually scored on a two-out single by Smith.
Benefitting from the run support was Goree who struggled with control early but settled down to retire nine of 10 batters from fourth inning to the bottom of the seventh.
After retiring the first batter in the bottom of the seventh, Goree saw her streak end as she surrendered a single to Kaylee Southers and a home run by Perkins over the center field fence.
After a conference with pitching coach Danny Chocallo, Goree settled back intoher groove needing only three pitches to retire the final two batters of the game.
Next for the Lady Indians will be a trip to Columbus to face Northside.