Griffin hurls no-hitter in EC win over Pebblebrook

A nine strikeout, no-hit performance
by Ryan Griffin helped lead the Indians
to the 10-0 win over the Falcons. Photo by
Olivia Davis.

MABLETON-Ryan Griffin held the Pebblebrook Falcons hitless for five innings Monday night as the East Coweta Indians ended a four game losing streak with a 10-0 Region 2-AAAAAAA victory.
The Indians, now 14-9 overall and 9-2 in the region, will travel to Smyrna on Wednesday for a key region matchup with the Campbell Spartans.
A victory over the Spartans or a loss by the Wheeler Wildcats to Pebblebrook, Newnan or Campbell will clinch second place for the Indians.
Wheeler defeated Westlake (EC opponent on Friday) 4-3 Monday evening to remain in third place with a 6-5 mark.
In the event of a tie, the Indians would still win the second spot due to the head-to-head meetings.
The Indians scored the first run of the game in the top of the second inning as Dooley Bunn reached on a two out double and after Caleb Cashion reached on an infield error, courtesy runner Bailey Psathas was able to come home with an unearned run.
In the top of the third inning, the Indians added to the lead as Trevor Crowdis reached on a leadoff single and advanced to second on a wild pitch before scoring on a double to left field by Ryan Dyal.
The Indians added to the total with one out in the top of the fourth inning as Bunn was hit by a pitch and after Psathas stole second and moved to third a throwing error, Cashion grounded out to third and the EC courtesy runner came home.
In the top of the fifth inning, the Indians broke open the score total as 13 batters came to the plate with seven coming home.
Tony Player reached on a pinch hit walk and stole second before Keegan Rich followed with an infield single that allowed him to advance to third.
A double steal allowed Player to come home for a run and William Kelley reached on a walk, a pitching change was made by Pebblebrook.
After the first out of the frame was recorded, Myles Dowell reached on a two base error by the center fielder allowed two runs to score and the lead was 6-0.
Bunn was was hit for the second time and Quinlan WIley followed with a pinch hiy single that scored Dowell the Landon Underhill reached base with an error that accounted for two runs.
Crowdis reached on a fielder's choice in which Underhill was tagged out at the plate and promptly stole second before scoring on a single by J.J. Freed for the final tally of the game.
The run support was more than enough for Griffin who had nine strikeouts with at least one in every frame with nine first pitch strikes to the 16 batters that came to the plate.
The only baserunners of the evening came on an error in the second inning that became a caught stealing and a walk of a batter in the fourth that was left stranded. 

EC junior varsity ends season after doubleheader split with Carrollton

William Tansey ended the 2018 junior varsity season with
another solid start Saturday afternoon. Tansey allowed three hits
 in five innings of a 6-4 EC win.

SHARPSBURG-William Tansey gave the East Coweta Indians five solid innings allowing three hits while his teammates took advantage of miscues in the field and withstood a late rally to defeating the Carrollton Trojans 6-4 to gain a split of a Saturday junior varsity doubleheader.

Earlier in the day, the Indians didn’t have an answer for Eli Runyan as he limited the home team to four hits with 14 strikeouts in a 2-0 for the Trojans.

The Indians took the lead in the bottom of the second inning as Keegan Rich reached on a one out single and eventually scored the first run on a wild pitch.

Errors in the infield by the Trojans allowed Devin Holmes and Levi Wilson to score runs and give EC a 3-0 lead.

The fourth run of the frame came as Tanner Floyd walked and eventually came home on another Trojan error.

The Indians tallied another score in the bottom of the third inning as Holmes reached base on an infield error with one out on the frame and came home on a triple to left field by Jacob Burgess.

Meanwhile, Tansey in what has been a solid season on the hill, retired the side in order to start the game and had only one inning where he had to get out of trouble as he faced a two out third that saw two runners on base before he escaped the jam.

Tansey allowed one run in his stint as Runyan opened the frame with a triple and came on a groundout by Chole Sullivan.

In the top of the sixth, Tansey was lifted from his last outing of the season and the Trojans rallied with a pair of runs on a bases loaded walk and an unusual interpretation of the infield fly rule.

With the bases loaded, nobody out and one run home a pop was hit to second but the ball was misplayed allowing a run to score to cut the margin to 5-3 and a runner to move into scoring position at third.

On the play, the ball was thrown to second and the runner abandoned the base thinking the force was in effect which it was not.

The runner was called out and after the bases were reloaded, the final out of the frame was recorded.

In the bottom of the inning, the Indians managed to reclaim one of the runs as Nico Senese led off by reaching on another error by the Trojans and eventually scoring from third on a sacrifice fly by Rich.

Burgess, who ended the chaotic sixth inning, started the top of the seventh inning strongly by recording two groundouts but ran into trouble

Senese took over on the mound and recorded the save as he induced a flyball to right field.

The opener was more ho-hum as Runyan was the story of the game as he never faced more than four batters in any game.

He was given a 1-0 lead to protect as two errors led to a score in the top of the third inning and was given another run in the top of the seventh inning as Samuel Simpson reached on an error and eventually scored on a double by Sullivan.

The only batters to get on base against were Senese on a walk while Landon Underhill and JJ Freed had doubles with Quinlan Willey and Underhill recording singles.

The Indians finished the 2018 Junior Varsity baseball season with a 13-7 record.

Early runs support 10K pitching of Martin, Newlands to give EC freshman DH split

PEACHTREE CITY-Dekel Williams scored three runs while Ben Briskey and Austin Black each had two hits as the East Coweta Indians defeated the McIntosh Chiefs 6-3 and gained a sweep in a freshman doubleheader played Thursday evening.
The Indians, now 13-5, dropped the opener 9-2 as the Chiefs took advantage of defensive miscues in the bottom of the fourth inning by scoring seven runs.
The Chiefs scored single runs in the first and second innings to take an early lead of the opener, but the Indians tied the game in the top of the third inning.

Dekel Williams looks into the EC dugout after a first
inning steal in the first game of the doubleheader as
teammate Kaleb Carey looks on.

Craig Newlands singled and starting pitcher Trey Jones walked before Briskey singled to load the bases and Black brought them home with a game tying single.
However, three errors and a pair of two run doubles allowed the Chiefs to regain a lead they didn't give back.
In the nightcap, the Indians came out scoring in the top of the first inning as Williams walked and came home on a double by Mason Pearcy who eventually scored on one out single to left by Black.
After a fielder's choice and a walk to Charlie Paige, a pitching change was made by the Chiefs and the final out was recorded as Jacob Medina hit a ball off the pitcher that was fielded by the McIntosh shortstop.
In the top of second inning, EC added to the lead as Williams reached on an infield single and Pearcy reached on an infield error after one out in the frame.
A wild pitch allowed Williams to score and Pearcy to advance into scoring position before coming home on a single to right by Briskey.

Andrew Martin looks in for sign during his two and one-third
inning stint in game two. Martin held the Chiefs hitless while
recording four strikeouts.

The Indians need a little two out magic in the top of the third to add to the lead as Paige reached on an infield error, stole second and came home on a single by Medina who was tagged out on his way to second.
The 5-0 margin seemed enough for starting pitcher Andrew Martin who breezed through the first two innings with three strikeouts and retiring the first batter of the third on a strikeout.

Craig Newlands was involved in both games as he had two
hits and a run in the opener while recording six strikeouts
in the nightcap.

However, he would be lifted after reaching a pitch count with an 1-2 count on a batter and Newlands would take over to get the "shared" strikeout with one pitch before getting the next out on a strikeout.
In the top of the fourth inning, the Indians scored their final run of the game as Williams reached on a one out walk and stole two bases before scoring on a two out single by Briskey.
The Chiefs came back in the bottom of the fourth inning as Newlands allowed a pair of singles to open the frame and walked a pair of batters that led to the first McIntosh run of the game before the first out.
A hit batter led to second run and after a strikeout, the Chiefs scored their final run of the game on a walk before Newlands recovered to get the third out via the strikeout route.
In the bottom of the fifth, Newlands retired the first two batters with his sixth strikeout and a groundout to Pearcy at shortstop before allowing a pair of singles that brought the tying run to the plate.
However, Newlands made quick work of the batter to end the game as he caught a line drive hit back to the mound.
The Indians' freshman will close their season Saturday at Northgate in a doubleheader with the Vikings.

Roman, Medina combine to toss three-hitter, Newlands

Adrian Roman pitched the first four innings of the Indians
win over the Panthers. He recorded three strikeouts during
his stint. 

SHARPSBURG-Adrian Roman and Jacob Medina combined to allow three hits while Craig Newlands had a bases clearing double as the East Coweta Indians defeated the Starr's Mill Panthers 8-0 in a freshmen game played Wednesday afternoon.
The victory improved the Indians record to 13-4 on the season with a doubleheader scheduled Thursday afternoon at McIntosh against the Chiefs.
The Indians scored their initial run of the game as Trey Jones led off with a walk, stole second base and moved to third on a bunt single by Kaleb Carey before scoring on a wild pitch.
The Indians added to the lead in the bottom of the third inning as Dekel Williams singled, stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch as Ben Briskey reached on a walk.
As Briskey stole second, the throw went into center field allowing WiIliams to come home and Briskey advanced to third on the play before scoring on a single by Austin Black to give the home team a 3-0 lead
Roman, who tossed a no-hitter against Newnan last Saturday, benefited from the early lead as he mowed through the Panthers' lineup in the first four innings including retiring six of the last eight batters faced before turning the game over to Medina in the top of the fifth.
The stint against the Panthers gave Roman a string of 12 scoreless innings.
Medina walked the first batter that he faced in the frame but a force play eliminated that runner while the next two batters went down quickly.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, the Indians were able to put the game away as Paige led off with a walk, stole second, went to third on an error and scored on a sacrifice fly hit by Williams.
Briskey was hit by a pitch and after the second out of the inning was recorded, Jones and Ethan Leonard reached on walks and Newlands followed with a double that cleared the bases and gave the home team a 7-0 lead.
Medina breezed through the top of the sixth inning quickly as he retired the first two batters on called third strikes while ending the frame on a groundout at third.
The final run came in the bottom of the sixth inning as Paige reached on a one out walk, stole two bases and came home on an infield error.
Medina was able to retire the side in order in the top of the seventh inning to record the side as Carey made two solid plays at second and Williams made a catch in which his back was to the field.

Indians JV get into double digits twice in doubleheader sweep of Cougars JV

William Tansey allowed three runs on seven hits

in four and two-third innings in the Indians' 11-3

win over the Cougars in game two.

SHARPSBURG-In a span of 14 hours, Keegan Rich of East Coweta had the game winning RBI for the varsity and on Saturday had a six RBI performance for the junior varsity to lead the Indians to a 10-4 win over the Newnan Cougars in the first game of a doubleheader.

The Indians garnered a sweep in the two games as they defeated the Cougars 11-3 in the second game as Ashton Deloach had two hits and four RBIs.

Newnan took the lead in the opening game as AJ Gould had an RBI single with two outs in the top of the second inning.

The 1-0 lead didn’t last long as the Indians scored three runs in the bottom of the third inning to take a 3-1 advantage.

JJ Freed and Nico Senese opened the frame by reaching on back to back walks and after a pitching change, Jordan Kenty followed with a single to left field that scored Freed with the tying run.

After the first out of the inning was recorded, Rich had a chance for his heroics as drilled a shot into left center field that saw Senese and courtesy runner Deloach score as the former reached third on a triple.

The Indians broke the game open in the bottom of the fourth inning as Freed reached on a one out error and score on a double by Senese.

Kenty was hit by a pitch and after the second out of the inning Rich had a chance to do more damage and he responded as a shot into right center field for a double that scored Senese and Deloach to give EC a 6-1 lead.

Landon Underhill followed with a walk and after a wild pitch that moved Rich and Underhill into scoring position, Quinlan Wiley reached on an infield error that scored the aforementioned baserunners.

The 8-1 advantage was enough for starter Lanier Wright who held Newnan to three hits in the first four innings.
However, he was lifted in the top of the fifth inning after Seth Bruce led off with a double in favor of Ethan Walker. 
After Walker recorded a strikeout, he ran into trouble as the Cougars cut the lead to 8-4 as Bruce doubled and scored on a wild pitch while an infield error allowed two other runners to come home.

The Indians reclaimed two of the runs in the bottom of the inning as Jonathan Williams reached on an error, Freed singled and Senese walked to load the bases with the first two scoring as Rich had a two-out single to right field as he narrowly missed the cycle.

Freed scored three runs in the game for the Indians while Senese, who had two hits along with two walks, and Deloach each scored twice. 

Walker recovered from his fifth inning trouble and got through the final two innings of the game as he recorded four strikeouts and started a pickoff attempt that resulted in an out for the Cougars in the top of the seventh inning.

Bruce was 2-for-3 with a run scored for the Cougars while Roberts reached twice on walks and scored a run.

The second game was scoreless after the first inning, but the second inning was a different story as 13 batters went to the plate and six came home for the Indians to give them the lead.

Jacob Howell singled, Rich walked and Devin Holmes reached on an error that allowed Howell to score the first two runs of the game.

Rich scored the second run on a single by Levi Wilson and Holmes eventually gave EC a 3-0 lead when he came home on a wild pitch.

Wilson eventually scored on a wild pitch and after Jacob Burgess and Jonathan Williams reached on walks, Deloach lined a single that allowed both to come home and the lead was 6-0.

That was enough for starter William Tansey who kept the Cougars in check during his four and two-third inning stint on the mound.

For good measure, the Indians gave Tansey a 10-0 cushion in the top of the fourth inning when they added four more runs to the tally as Deloach had a two-run triple while Senese and Howell followed with RBI singles.

However, as Tansey attempted to finish off the Cougars under the five inning mercy rule, but they cut into the margin by scoring three runs.

Jackson Youngblood and Malik Truitt singled to open the frame, but hope for the Indians came as they turned a 4-6-3 double play.

However, Youngblood moved to third on the play and came home on a double by Tyler Rodgers who eventually scored on a single by Bruce.

After a walk to Christian Winski, Roberts reached on a double that scored Bruce and that was the end of the day for Tansey who was lifted in favor of Wiley who retired Gould on a flyball to end the inning.

Tansey allowed seven hits and recorded four strikeouts in his stint on the mound.

Bruce went 3-for-4 at the plate for Newnan while Roberts and Youngblood collected two hits in the game.

The Indians added one more run in the bottom of fifth as Wilson came home on a bases loaded walk to Williams.

Wiley faced four batters in the top of the seventh inning without any damage to end the game as he recorded three strikeouts.

Dyal hits three-run shot as EC defeats Sandy Creek in five inning affair

SHARPSBURG-The East Coweta Indians overcame miscues of their own by taking advantage of those committed by the Sandy Creek Patriots and riding the bat of Ryan Dyal to come away with a 17-4 win Wednesday.

The non-region five inning win improved the Indians’ overall record to 11-5 on the season as they prepare to face the Westlake Lions at home Friday night in a key Region 2-AAAAAAA contest at 6:00.

The Indians took the lead in the bottom of the first inning with out the benefit of a hit as Tony Player reached on an error, Caleb Cashion and Jeff Sangster walked, Dyal was hit by a pitch as part of a frame that saw three runs score.

The Patriots cut into the lead in the top of the second inning with a pair of runs as a result of a couple of errors committed by the Indians..

However, EC answered with three runs in the bottom of the frame as Player and Cashion reached on one out singles ahead of Dyal who drilled the first pitch he saw over the right field fence for a three-run shot and a 6-2 lead.

Problems occurred in the top of the third inning for the Indians as a walk, an infield error and a single led to a pair of runs that allowed Sandy Creek to cut the deficit to 6-4.

That meant the end of the game for starter Peyton Ramey who was lifted in favor of Bryan Crow who recorded a strikeout and induced an infield fly to end the frame and leave runners on base.

The Indians had an answer to the third inning rally by the Patriots as 10 batters came to the plate with seven coming home and the lead became 13-4.

Dooley Bunn reached on a leadoff double to right field and advanced to third ahead of a walk to Nick Daniel before coming home on a bunt single by Brayden Carey who beat the throw at first as he recorded the RBI.

After Player singled to load the bases, Cashion was by a pitch that allowed Daniel to score from third and Dyal hit a sacrifice fly to left field that allowed Carey to come away and the score was 9-4.

Sangster was hit by a pitch and William Kelley single to right with three runs coming home as the right fielder misplayed the safety with Kelley advancing to third.

Kelley came home with the final run of the frame as Bailey Psathas hit a sacrifice fly to center field.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Indians added four more runs to add to the lead they were enjoying.

Daniel walked and was replaced on the bases by Myles Dowell and the latter moved into scoring position as Carey lined a double to left field and Trevor Crowdis came off the bench and reached with a walk that loaded the bases for EC.

A walk to Cashion scored Dowell and Dyal was hit by another pitch to record his fifth RBI of the game as Carey came home with his second run of the game.

A sacrifice fly to right field by Ryan Griffin scored Crowdis from third and the final run of the night as a throw from left field got away with Cashion coming home.

After tossing one and two-thirds innings of relief, Crow was replaced on the mound in the top of the fifth inning by Ethan Walker who allowed a pair of runners in between the three outs he recorded.  

EC Freshmen, Varsity win big over their opponents

Niko Senese was solid on the mound and the plate as
he allowed three hits in four innings and was 2-for-3 with
two RBIs and two runs scored. Photo by Stuart Crosby

SHARPSBURG-The East Coweta Indians freshman squad got a measure of revenge Tuesday evening as Dekel Williams had three hits while Kaleb Gardner reached four times and scored twice as they came away with a 15-5 victory over the Whitewater Wildcats.
The Indians, who lost 8-0 to the Wildcats in a game played February 20 at Sharpsburg improved to 9-1 on the season with a game at home against Newnan on Thursday at 5:30.
Meanwhile, the varsity picked up a big Region 2-AAAAAAA win as they defeated the Westlake Lions 10-0 in a five inning contest as Austin Bunn tossed a one-hitter.

As for the younger version, the Wildcats took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning as Javon Compton scored on a single and error.

However, the Indians came back in the bottom of the frame as Williams led off with a single, stole second and went to third on a groundout.

With two outs, Gardner reached on a walk then stole second before Austin Black responded with a double to left that scored both players and gave EC the lead they never relinquished.

The Indians added to lead in the bottom of the second inning as Craig Newlands was hit by a pitch, Zack Carlton walked and Charlie Paige reached on a single to load the bases.

A single by Williams scored Newlands and Carlton eventually scored from third on a sacrifice fly by starting pitcher Nico Senese to give the home team a 4-1 lead.

The scoring continued in the inning as Williams came home on a two out single by Black who went 2-for-4 in the game with three RBIs.

Quinlan WIley leads off third base before
scoring one of his three runs in the 15-5
win over Whitewater. Photo by Lance Wiley.

An error allowed Quinlan Wiley to score and after a wild pitch allowed Gardner to come along, EC enjoyed a 7-1 advantage after two innings.

The Indians added three more runs in the bottom of the third inning Paige reached on a one out walk, advanced to second on a balk and took third on a groundout before scoring on a single by Senese.

A double by Wiley scored Senese and after moving to third on a wild pitch, the former came home on an infield single by Gardner and the lead was 10-1.

Benefiting from the run support and aiding his own cause was Senese who dominated the Wildcats in four innings on the hill as he allowed three hits, recorded three strikeouts in that stint and received stellar defensive support from Paige who moved several miraculous catches in left field.

At the plate, Senese was 2-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored.

Wiley took over in the fifth on the mound and had to overcome several miscues in the field by his defense as the Wildcats scored four times and cut the margin to 10-5 before starting a 1-6-3 double play.

The Indians responded in the bottom of the inning with five runs to end the game as Senese reached on a single and advanced to second on an error before scoring on an error that allowed Wiley to reach base.

After Gardner was hit by a pitch, both runners advanced a base as Black grounded out and Jacob Medina followed by drilling a shot to deep center field that was caught.

However, Wiley was able to score on the sacrifice fly and Gardner moved closer to scoring by taking third.

A single by Newlands scored Gardner and after Kaleb Carey walked, Ethan Leonard loaded the bases with a single and Williams was able to end the game with a two-run single.

In the varsity game, the Indians gave Bunn a 7-0 lead in the first two innings and he rewarded the offensive support by retiring five of the first six batter via the strikeout route.

Bunn allowed one hit and recorded 11 strikeouts in his stint on the mound as he managed another quality start.

The Indians added two runs in the top of the fourth and a single run in the fifth inning to seal the win.

William Kelley, Jeff Sangster and Ryan Dyal each contributed two hits in the win with Kelley and Bailey Psathas recording two RBIs.

With the win, EC improves to 10-5 overall and 5-0 on the season as they will host Sandy Creek in a non-region game on Wednesday in Sharpsburg and a rematch with Westlake on Friday.

The aforementioned Westlake fell to 6-10 overall and 1-4 in the region.