The Boiling Springs Bulldogs baseball team came into Tuesday night having won their first six region games and they kept that streak going with a 12-2 win over Gaffney in five innings. The Bulldogs (18-1, 7-0) kept their winning ways going with an offense that registered fifteen hits and an impressive pitching performance from Adam Leiszler who pitched five innings giving up only two runs on five hits and striking out four.
The Bulldogs who trailed 2-0 after two innings got their bats going in the bottom of the third inning as they scored six runs to take a 6-2 lead. The scoring in the bottom of the third inning got started when catcher John Michael Faile doubled home Justin Brasher and Mason Streater to tie the game at 2-2. Faile would come home himself on the next at-bat when Michael Bollinger doubled giving the Bulldogs a 3-2 lead. The scoring wouldn’t end there though as Dawson Taylor followed Bollinger with a two-run home run to right field putting the Bulldogs ahead 5-2. The scoring in the third inning would be capped when Will Brown tripled to left field bringing home Adam Pucetas and giving Boiling Springs a 6-2 lead. After both teams went scoreless in the fourth inning the Boiling Springs bats got back to work in the fifth inning as they scored six runs once again. The scoring in the sixth inning was led by a three-run homer by Faile, a home run by Bollinger, and RBI singles from Streater and Max Bailey. The game was ended in the fifth inning because of Boiling Springs establishing a ten run advantage after five innings. The Bulldogs will return to action on Wednesday night as they travel to Gaffney to continue their three game series against the Indians. The game time is set for 6:00 PM. The Boiling Springs Lady Bulldogs soccer team gained it’s first region III-5A victory on Thursday night as they defeated Gaffney 4-0. The Bulldogs (2-2, 1-2) evened up their regular season record and most importantly gained a region victory that will aid in their quest to gain a playoff spot at the end of the regular season. After the victory Bulldogs head coach Kelly Pannochia said about the win, “It was great to get that first region victory. The first two attempts didn’t work out the way we wanted for us but we got back to basics this week in practice and the girls worked really hard. It all paid off with a victory tonight.”
The Bulldogs were led on offense by senior Taylor McKinney who scored three of the teams four goals on the night. McKinney scored her first two goals within the first five minutes of the game and was able to give the Bulldogs breathing room early. McKinney added to her goal total just three minutes into the second half when she scored her third goal of the night giving the Bulldogs a 4-0 lead. Senior Victoria McGraw also scored on Thursday night as she was able to put the ball into the back of the net just before halftime to give the Bulldogs a 3-0 halftime lead over the Indians. When asked about her three goal performance McKinney said, “It was really exciting to accomplish that, it’s something that doesn’t happen very often at the varsity level.” Coach Pannochia added about McKinney’s performance “She’s one of our seniors and she always gives us one hundred and ten percent. You couldn’t ask for anything more.” While the offense was scoring all the goals, the Bulldogs’ defense was able to hold it’s second opponent of the season to a shutout. The Bulldogs defense is led by senior goalkeeper and SMC commit Jennifer Byrd. “Our defense is really strong and may even be the strongest part of our team, ” says Coach Pannochia, “Jen has really helped to lead our defense and she has worked hard to make it a strong part of this team.” The Lady Bulldogs will return to action on Tuesday night as they welcome into Bulldogs Stadium region foe Spartanburg. JV Note The Boiling Springs Lady Bulldogs JV soccer team is undefeated this season and kept that streak going on Thursday night as they defeated Gaffney 10-0. Whenever Boiling Springs and Byrnes step onto the softball field at the same time you know that you are going to see a championship level game and with the two teams playing a best of three series this season because of region realignment, it’s only added one more level to an already exciting rivalry. The Bulldogs were able to come away with the early advantage on Thursday night as they claimed a 4-3 victory over the Rebels. “With the way we played here last year it was nice to come over here and get this victory, ” said Boiling Springs head coach Randy Piazza, “everybody knows that this series is always a big one.”
After getting out of a bases loaded situation in the bottom of the first, it was the Bulldogs offense who struck first in the top of the second inning when Shelby Griffin singled home Moriah Gomez, who had reached on a hit-by-pitch, giving Boiling Springs a 1-0 lead. The Bulldogs next run would cross the plate when Emma Williams singled home Calli Richards and gave the Bulldogs a 2-0 lead at the end of the third inning. Griffin would add to her good night at the plate in the fourth inning as she belted a home run to right field giving Boiling Springs a 3-0 lead. After escaping a bases loaded situation in the first inning Bulldogs’ pitcher Calli Richards settled in and allowed only three hitters to reach base from the second inning through the fifth inning. In the sixth inning the Rebels batters were finally able to get something going though as they were able to score three runs with two outs. Haylee Whitesides gave the Rebels their first run of the game when she singled home Haven Pesce to make the score 3-1. The Rebels would score two more runs on the next at-bat when Hayden Bradley singled home Tadum Arboleda and Kassie Rimel tying the game at 3-3 at the end of the sixth inning. Neither team was able to get anything going in the seventh inning and as with any big matchup it was going to take extra innings to decide this one. In the top of the eighth inning Coach Piazza brought in freshman Regan Bristol to pinch hit to start the inning and it paid off as she was able to reach with a single. After being moved over to second base on a sacrifice bunt by Emily Hill, Bristol was able to make it to third on a Lindsey Edge single to right field. With one out in the inning, it was time for Griffin to come to the plate again and she delivered with a double to left field that scored Bristol from third base and gave the Bulldogs a 4-3 lead. When asked about the hit after the game Griffin said, “I was just focused on trying to really hit the ball well and being confident in myself. It just feels really good to get this first win against Byrnes.” Coach Piazza said about Griffin’s clutch hitting, “If I had to have someone at the plate in a big situation, I’d want it to be Shelby. I’m just really proud of her performance tonight.” The Rebels came to the plate in the bottom half of the inning and were able to get their leadoff hitter on base but after a sacrifice bunt attempt by Rimel advanced the runner to second, Bulldogs second baseman Nattalie Hazzard was able to throw out the lead runner trying to advance to third giving the Rebels two outs. The final out of the game came when Hazzard was able to secure a fly ball to second base and give the Bulldogs a 4-3 victory. Boiling Springs will return to play Friday night as they host Gaffney at 6:00 PM. The Rebels will return to action on Saturday as they play in the 2017 Lady Rebel Invitational at Tyger River Park. The Boiling Springs Bulldogs girls soccer team started their season on Thursday night with a stellar performance as they defeated the Westside Rams 5-0. The Bulldogs got on the scoreboard early when forward Anna Anthony found the back of the net and gave Boiling Springs a 1-0 lead after an assist from teammate Indya Sullivan. The Bulldogs would score again with just over three minutes left in the first half when Brooke Nana was able to find the goal thanks to an assist from Amaya Farr giving Boiling Springs a 2-0 halftime lead.
The Boiling Springs defense controlled most of the game as they didn’t allow the Westside offense a shot on goal during the entire second half and only allowed one shot on goal the entire game. When asked about her team’s defensive performance Bulldogs head coach Kelly Pannochia said, “We’re a defensive minded team and it is truly the strong point of this team. A lot of our girls have played on the same team for years and they know how to communicate with each other which helps in producing great defensive outcomes like we had tonight.” The Bulldogs offense got back to work late in the second half as they were able to get scores from Indya Sullivan, Victoria McGraw, and Kate Johnson stretching the Boiling Springs lead to 5-0 over the visiting Rams. When asked about the victory after the game Coach Pannochia added, “It’s a great feeling to just get that first victory.” The Lady Bulldogs will return to action on March 13th as they welcome the 2016 SCISA AA Girls Soccer State Champions Oakbrook Prep to Bulldogs Stadium. |
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