In the first two games of the Crescent tournament Boiling Springs saw their leads slip away in the final innings but on Saturday afternoon they left no doubt defeating Daniel 17-3 behind six RBIs and a complete game from the circle by Bri Stanley. In the previous two games the Bulldogs had bad luck strike them late twice as they fell to Crescent 7-2 after leading 2-1 through five and fell to Ninety-Six 3-1 after leading 1-0 most of the game.
On Saturday afternoon the Bulldogs jumped out to another lead as they led 5-0 when the top of the first inning was over. The scoring got started when Olivia Hall and Ragan Bristol came around to score on a hit by Stanley to shortstop to put the Bulldogs up 2-0 early. Boiling Springs added to their lead on the next at-bat when Jaycie Osment hit a single to right field scoring Kate Philbeck and Bri McAbee, who was pinch running for Stanley, to put the Bulldogs lead at 4-0. Alexis McFalls put the Boiling Springs lead at 5-0 when she singled to centerfield bringing home Osment and giving the Bulldogs a good head start in the game. After being kept silent in the second inning the Bulldogs bats got back to work in the top of the third inning still leading 5-0 over the Lions. McFalls reached base on a Daniel error before being brought home on a hit to centerfield by AD Raines to put the Boiling Springs lead at 6-0 after three innings. The top of the fourth inning was the difference maker for the Bulldogs as they scored eleven runs in the top of the inning to really put the distance between themselves and the Lions. The first hit of the inning came on a double to centerfield, the first of three in a row, by Philbeck and she was brought home by Stanley who also doubled to centerfield before coming around to score on an Osment double to put the Bulldogs lead at 8-1. The Bulldogs were then able to reach base on three straight Daniel errors and extended the lead to 10-1 before Hall singled to centerfield to score McFalls and make the Boiling Springs lead 11-1 with only one out. Bristol followed Hall's at-bat with a double to centerfield to score Raines and was followed by Philbeck who doubled home Hall to give the Bulldogs a 14-1 lead. In the very next at-bat on a one-and-one pitch Stanley hit a homerun to left field bringing home both Philbeck and Bristol to put the Bulldogs lead at 17-1 after four innings. While Stanley had a very impressive game at the plate she also had a good game from the circle limiting the Lions to only three runs on four hits while striking out six batters on Saturday afternoon. Boiling Springs will return to action on Tuesday night as they welcome in Hillcrest for another region matchup. After falling to Gaffney on Monday night 7-4 at home the Boiling Springs baseball team rebounded on Wednesday night by picking up a 5-2 road win over the Indians behind a strong pitching performance from the Bulldogs pitchers as they totaled fourteen strikeouts.
The strong Boiling Springs pitching performance got started from the very beginning as starting pitcher Tristan Smith pitched five innings allowing only one run on three hits while striking out ten Gaffney batters to pick up the win. Once Smith left the game after the fifth inning they also got two strong innings from reliever Will Holmes as he gave up one run on one hit while striking out four batters to pick up the save for the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs pitching also got some solid defense behind them against the Indians as Boiling Springs didn't have a single error in the field on Wednesday night. While the Bulldogs pitching was strong Boiling Springs also had a pretty good night offensively as well as they started their scoring in the top of the second inning when they got a two run homer from catch Vance Wagner on the first pitch of his at-bat to give Boiling Springs an early 2-0 lead. Will Holmes wasn't only strong coming on in relief pitching for the Bulldogs but also was pretty strong at the plate picking up two hits including a double in the top half of the fifth inning to score two runners and giving the Bulldogs a 4-1 lead. In the top of the seventh inning the Bulldogs added to their lead when third baseman Ben Hutchinson picked up a double and pushed the Boiling Springs lead to 5-1. The Indians added a run in the bottom of the seventh inning but that was all they would get to give the Bulldogs the 5-2 victory. The game Wednesday night was originally scheduled to be played on Friday night but the Bulldogs will now have six days off before their next contest on Tuesday night at home against Dorman. Boiling Springs junior Olivia Hall pitched to three batters on Wednesday night recording three straight outs and that was three more outs than she recorded at the plate as she hit three homeruns to lead the Bulldogs to a 19-4 win over the visiting Spartanburg Vikings. Hall finished her night with three homeruns including a grand slam and recording eight RBI's.
"I was just looking for my pitch and it seemed like each one I was looking for was what the pitcher was throwing," said Hall. "I was able to get the bat to hit the ball and it just went from there. I just came into the game thinking that tonight was going to be my night." After retiring the top of the order with two strikeouts and a groundout to the pitcher the Boiling Springs bats got going in the bottom of the half scoring ten runs in the first inning. After AD Raines reached safely on a single to right field to start the game Olivia Hall hit her first homerun of the game to left field giving the Bulldogs an early 2-0 lead. After getting a run on a wild pitch and a bases loaded walk by Hailey Owens brought home Kate Philbeck to put the score at 4-0 the Bulldogs made the lead 6-0 when Alexis McFalls hit a double to left field bringing home Abbie Threatt and Jacie Osment. The Bulldogs made it 8-0 when AD Raines hit a single through the right side of the infield brining home both Owens and McFalls to add to the Boiling Springs lead. With Raines and Hall on base Bulldogs catcher Ragan Bristol hit a single to left field bring home both runners and putting the Boiling Springs lead at 10-0 after the first inning. "We came out of the box hitting the ball well tonight," said Bulldogs head coach Randy Piazza. "Olivia had a big night at the plate for us and I loved how we hit the ball as a team tonight. These players have been working hard in the cages and it's starting to show as we're getting production throughout the whole lineup. It's also great that we got a chance to get a lot of kids in the game tonight." After Spartanburg was able to add three runs in the top of the second inning the Bulldogs offense went back to work in the bottom half of the second inning scoring six runs. Osment was able to get the Bulldogs first run of the inning scoring on a wild pitch to put Boiling Springs up 11-3. With the bases loaded the Bulldogs Hall stepped to the plate again this time hitting a grand slam to left field scoring Owens, McFalls, and Raines while putting the Boiling Springs lead at 15-3 that they extended to 16-3 before the inning was over. In the top of the third Spartanburg added another run to put the game at 16-4 in favor of the Bulldogs but Boiling Springs wasn't done with the bats. In the bottom of the third inning Kati Roberts singled to centerfield before Hall stepped up to the plate two batters later and hit a long homerun to centerfield giving the Bulldogs an 18-4 lead. In the bottom of the fourth inning the Bulldogs were able to add another run to put the final score at 19-4 in favor of Boiling Springs. With Boiling Springs getting a big lead after the first inning it allowed them to remove pitcher Olivia Hall and get some work for fellow pitchers Hailey Owens and Bri Stanley who pitched well for the Bulldogs on Wednesday night. "It was big for us to get all three pitchers some work tonight as it is for any team," said Piazza. "We tried to get them all some work in the scrimmages and then when you get an opportunity like this you have to take advantage of it because you never know when you'll need any of the pitchers moving forward." Boiling Springs will next play in a tournament at Crescent High School this weekend before returning home on Tuesday night to face Hillcrest. It took Boiling Springs half an inning to dust off a little bit of the rust of the offseason but from the bottom of the first inning on it was all Bulldogs as they grabbed a 7-2 region win over the Gaffney Indians to start the 2020 season.
"We were really pumped up to start the game and it took us a little bit to settle in to the game," said Bulldogs head coach Randy Piazza. "We struggled to get the leadoff to start the game but then we were able to get the leadoff on our side and just got it going from there." The Indians got two runs in the top half of the first inning as the first two batters were able to cross the plate but that was the end of the scoring for Gaffney as Boiling Springs pitcher didn't allow another hit until the fifth inning. Boiling Springs cut the Gaffney lead in half in the bottom of the first as left fielder AD Raines singled to left to start the game and later came around to score on a sacrifice fly by catcher Ragan Bristol to put the Indians lead at 2-1 after one inning. The Bulldogs tied the game in the bottom half of the second inning when senior Abbie Threatt reached base on a walk and then after being moved over to second base on a sacrifice bunt from Olivia Hall came around to score on an errant throw that found its way to left field tying the game at 2-2. In the bottom of the fourth inning is when the Bulldogs opened up the game as they scored three runs to grab the lead for the first time in the game. The inning got started when third baseman Kate Philbeck singled to right field before stealing second and third base before scoring on a single by shortstop Jacie Osment to put the Bulldogs up 3-2. Osment advanced to third base on consecutive wild pitches before second baseman Alexis McFalls walked and reached second base on a heads up steal. McFalls was followed by Raines who hit a line drive double down the third baseline scoring both Osment and McFalls to give the Bulldogs a 5-2 lead. Philbeck and Raines are stepping into roles that were held by seniors last season and proved early they are up for the challenge. "You want your leadoff getting on base and AD came in and really stepped up in the leadoff position tonight," said Piazza. "AD also got a big hit for us there in the fourth as well. Kate Philbeck is a player that we know we can get success from and if she keeps playing like she did tonight we'll have some success this season." Brianna Stanley came up big in the fifth and sixth innings for the Bulldogs as she doubled to start the fifth inning before coming around to score on a single by Philbeck and then in the sixth doubled home Kati Roberts who was pinch running for Bristol who had singled to centerfield in the previous at-bat to give Boiling Springs a 7-2 lead. The Bulldogs got a great night from the circle by junior pitcher Olivia Hall who didn't allow a run after the first inning and struck out eleven of the Indians batters. From the second inning to the fifth inning all the outs were either a strikeout by Hall or an out recorded by second baseman McFalls, who made a nice double play when she tagged the Gaffney baserunner and then threw to first base in the fourth inning. Hall also finished the game out strong by striking out all three batters that came to the plate in the final inning. "With the way the weather has been this offseason Olivia didn't get a lot of chances to throw to live hitters here early," said Piazza. "She really settled down there in the second inning and got into a groove. She was on her game tonight and really helped us out there." The victory not only gives the Bulldogs a win to start the season but also a key region win to start the season. "It's a good region win," said Piazza. "I tell the girls that these region wins are big and every one of them is important. You can't take a night off in this region and that was a great performance tonight picking up not only our first win but also our first region win." Boiling Springs will return to the field on Wednesday night for another region matchup as they host the Spartanburg Vikings. On a frigidly cold night the Boiling Springs lacrosse team used a big third quarter to come away with a 12-7 victory over the visiting TL Hanna Yellow Jackets on Friday night. The game is a great bounce back game for the team after a tough 11-8 loss to Dorman on Wednesday night.
"I told the guys coming off a tough game like we had against Dorman I'd figured we'd have kind of a lull," said Bulldogs head coach Justin Mills. "We fought through it and some of the seniors said some words at halftime that inspired us to get through the lull." The Bulldogs got on the board first on Friday night as Riley Alfonso found the back of the net off an assist from Luke Olson. TL Hanna responded just two minutes later when the Yellow Jackets' Wes Wright scored on a two-on-one breakaway to tie the game at one. In the last two minutes of the quarter both the Bulldogs and Yellow Jackets picked up a goal as the Boiling Springs' Matthias Oslund and TL Hanna's Wright both found the back of the net to make the score 2-2 when the buzzer sounded to end the first quarter. Boiling Springs started the second quarter scoring first again as Luke Olson hit a shot from fifteen yards out off an assist from Micah Oslund to go up 3-2 early. TL Hanna tied the game at the six minute mark as Andrew Linke made a left handed shot on a cross from the right side and then took a 4-3 lead when Kade Nelson made a shot from just inside fifteen yards out with just three minutes remaining in the quarter. With time running out in the first half Luke Olson made a run on an inbound play from midfield and found Riley Alfonso for his second goal of the game and tying the game at 4-4 when the halftime buzzer sounded. When the Bulldogs came out of halftime they didn't waste much time getting back on the scoreboard as Matthias Oslund found the back of the net on a bounce shot that got pass the Yellow Jackets defender to spark a 6-0 run by the Bulldogs in the third quarter. During the run the Bulldogs got three goals from Alfonso along with a goal from Connor Bates and a goal from Eli Byrd that was started by a great save from goalie Jake Lipscomb, who played a great game in goal for the Bulldogs on Friday night. "Our goalie played a great game tonight," said Mills. "We have a blessing and a curse as we have two of the best goalies in the state on the same team. You can only play one and Jake stepped up tonight but we have two options and they're both amazing in the goal." Boiling Springs entered the fourth quarter with a 10-5 lead and the Yellow Jackets tried to make a run to start the fourth quarter as they got two goals from Connor Smith and Jett Waldrop to narrow the Bulldogs lead to three with just over five minutes to go in the game. The Bulldogs reestablished their lead as Alfonso scored his sixth goal of the game and then was followed up by a goal by Brock Davis with just over a minutes left in the game to give Boiling Springs a 12-7 lead and the victory. "We told the kids after the loss against Dorman that it wasn't the end of our season and everything that we have worked for is still ahead of us," said Mills. "This game was just another step in our process and we were able to pick up the win." Boiling Springs will next play Clover on Wednesday night at home in a region matchup. As the buzzer sounded to end the game on Monday night the final shot by Boiling Springs rolled away from the net after being deflected by the Greenville goalie as the Red Raiders escaped with a 10-9 victory.
Boiling Springs got the first lead of the game behind a goal from Mary Martell who gave the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead just over a minute into the game. The goal was the first of five for Martell including the goal to tie the game just before halftime as she found the back of the net with six seconds left in the first half to put the Bulldogs in a 5-5 tie at the half. The Bulldogs held a 3-1 lead with just over twelve minutes left in the half but over the next three minutes the Red Raiders scored four unanswered goals over the next three minutes to take a 5-3 lead as Anna Smith and Alston Lucas both scored two goals a piece during the run for Greenville. When the second half started the Bulldogs grabbed a 6-5 lead just three minutes into the new half when Mia Lockwood found the back of the net but the game was soon tied up again when Lucas scored a goal for Greenville just a minute later. The game went back and forth going from one goal leads to tied until just under five minutes left in the game when Greenville's Kathryn Ann Batson gave the Red Raiders a two goal lead at 10-8. With just under a minute left in the game Martell scored her fifth goal of the game for the Bulldogs to put the Bulldogs within one goal at 10-9. As time was running out the Bulldogs were able to get the ball back from Greenville with about sixteen seconds left in the game and they raced down the right side of the field before making a last second bounce shot that hit the stick of the Red Raiders goalie giving Greenville the victory. The Bulldogs lacrosse team will be back in action on Wednesday as they travel to Dorman to take on the Cavaliers. The Boiling Springs girls soccer team had quite the weekend as they finished in third place at the prestigious Viking Cup held at Spring Valley High School in Columbia. The Viking Cup is an invitational only tournament for the top thirty-two soccer programs in the state of South Carolina no matter of classification.
Boiling Springs started their tournament off on Friday night by defeating the defending state champions JL Mann 2-1 in penalty kicks after finishing regulation play in a 1-1 tie. On Saturday morning the Bulldogs had a bit of deja vu from the previous night as they once again won in penalty kicks, this time 3-2, defeating Fort Dorchester after both teams finished regulation in a 0-0 tie. The Bulldogs finished up play on Saturday by winning their bracket during afternoon play when they defeated St. Joesph’s 1-0, who had defeated Dorman 1-0 in the first round, to advance to the final four of the tournament. In morning play on Sunday the Bulldogs suffered their first loss of the tournament when they fell to region foe, and eventual Viking Cup champion, Riverside 3-0 to end the Bulldogs run in the tournament. Riverside won the tournament by defeating Mauldin 4-1 on Sunday afternoon. The third place finish for Boiling Springs in such a strong tournament gives the Bulldogs a lot of momentum heading into the regular season which they will start at Byrnes on Thursday night. |
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