Toombs Falls In Columbus
The Toombs County High School Lady Bulldogs softball team saw their season come to a close last week in Columbus after going 0-2 in the GHSA State Softball Tournament. The Lady Bulldogs opened the double-elimination tournament with a tough 11-7 loss to the Gordon Lee Lady Trojans on Thursday before falling 13-1 to the Banks County Lady Leopards on Friday. vs. Gordon Lee
The Lady Bulldogs started strong against Gordon Lee in a game where they out-hit the Lady Trojans 11 to 10, but ultimately could not hold onto an early lead.
Toombs County jumped on the board in the top of the first inning when Cyleigh Ennis singled, driving in the game's first run. The offensive surge continued in the second when Emerson Powell crushed a 2-run homer to center field, giving Toombs a 4-0 lead.
Gordon Lee, however, answered in the bottom of the second with a 3-run home run to close the lead to 4-3. The game flipped entirely in the bottom of the third, as the Lady Trojans exploded for 5 runs on 4 hits, capitalizing on a Toombs County error that drove in 2 runs, ultimately taking an 8-4 lead.
Toombs plated 3 more runs in the top of the fourth inning to make the score 8-7, but 2 more from Gordon Lee in the bottom of the frame pushed their lead back to 10-7. The Trojans added 1 more run in the sixth inning to go ahead, 117.
Despite the loss, the Lady Bulldogs showed strong offensive firepower. Natalie Quintero led the team with 3 hits, while both Taylor Bland and Emerson Powell drove in 2 runs each. Cyleigh Ennis also collected 2 hits in 4 at-bats.
Taylor Bland took the loss in the circle, giving up 11 runs (8 earned) on 10 hits over 6 innings. vs. Banks Co.
Hoping to bounce back on Friday, the Lady Bulldogs had trouble keeping up with the Banks County Lady Leopards and ultimately fell 13-1, ending their tournament run and their season.
Toombs County once again scored first when Taylor Bland doubled in the top of the first to drive in a run. However, an error in the bottom of the first allowed the Lady Leopards to quickly tie the game at 1-1.
Banks County then took control in the bottom of the second inning, scoring 6 runs on 4 hits, highlighted by a grand slam to left field, making the score 7-1. The Lady Leopards effectively put the game away with another 6-run outburst in the bottom of the fourth inning, with only 4 of the runs being earned due to more fielding issues by the Lady Bulldogs.
Taylor Bland took the loss, allowing 13 runs (0 earned) on 10 hits over 3 2/3 innings. Offensively, Bland and Cyleigh Ennis were the only Lady Bulldogs to collect a hit in the game, with Bland also tallying the team's only RBI.
The Toombs County Lady Bulldogs fought hard in Columbus, finishing their 2023 campaign at the State Tournament.
