MOULTRIE – A bunt or a slap? What will be the call?

It didn’t take long for the crowd at Packer Park to find out. It was Chloe Gould’s slap towards third base on the first pitch she saw with the winning run in scoring position that plated said run and gave Colquitt County High softball a 5-4 walk-off non-region win against Thomas County-Central.

The Packers actually let a 4-1 lead in the top of the seventh get away when the Yellow Jackets scored three times.

With one out, Callie Faircloth, the No. 9 hitter in the order and coming off another start with plays above the routine variety in right field, grounded a single to left field. Durwood Dominy announced earlier that it was senior Kelli Johnson’s birthday, so as the lineup turned over it was her chance to give coach Chance Pitts a big present. Johnson did come through, advancing Faircloth to third base when she reached on a throwing error.

So there was the obligatory discussion on what Gould should do as the next scheduled hitter. The slap – or swinging – bunt she put in play went to the third baseman, and Faircloth froze halfway to home plate. The Jackets opted for a throw to the plate, and thus committed the second error of the inning. Colquitt County’s win put the Packers at 4-5 on the season.

Kyla Morris was the winning pitcher in relief. She entered the game one batter after Thomas County-Central tied the game, and the potential go-ahead run was on base. One more runner reached via an error, but Morris got a big swinging strikeout of Emily Greek before retiring the side.

Jade Horne was vying for the complete game victory, and she held the Yellow Jackets to one run over six innings despite allowing a long list of hits. She struck out one batter in a key situation while the defense – not just Faircloth – was making clutch outs to help the cause.

Colquitt County’s offense scored two times thanks to two TC-C errors in the bottom of the first inning. Johnson walked to start the game, and Gould reached on an error when she bunted the ball in play. The Jackets tried a pick-off play on Gould, but threw the softball away.

Johnson and Gould stood in scoring position as two outs appeared on the scoreboard, but Abby Plymel didn’t let it be a wasted chance. She ripped a double to left for two RBI.

Thomas County-Central responded with one run in the second inning as Greek led off with a double, the second for her team. Kelsie Shoup then bunted the ball inside the line. With one out, Kaylee Ingram drove home Greek on a long fly-out. That was it as Faircloth dove with her glove out to snag the third out.

The other major defensive MVP for the Packers was catcher Sarah Harrell. She threw out Hannah Greek in an attempt to steal second in a scoreless third inning. Colquitt was lacking in hits through four innings as the only other safety was Kelsey Patel’s third-inning double. Thomas County-Central added two hits with two outs in the top of the fourth, but Faircloth fired the ball to Plymel at third base for the final out.

The fifth inning presented another tough situation for Horne as Kayla Schoup’s pop in front of the plate put her on base, and Hannah Greek bunted her over as the tying run. That’s when Horne fanned Caroline Pope, who got a double in the first inning.

Colquitt finally added to the 2-1 lead in the home fifth when Johnson doubled in the left-center gap scoring pinch-runner Kylie Davis. With two outs, Patel singled in Johnson for 4-1 Packers.

The Jackets did a lot of first-pitch swinging putting the ball in play, and they tried to rally in the sixth with Cyndel Waters’ leadoff single. There were two on with one out when Horne got Kelsie Schoup to fly out on her first pitch and Harrell hit the dirt to get Kelsey Melton’s short pop-up.

But what would fans see in the top of the seventh but two more TC-C runners on with one out and Pope again at the plate. She drove the ball to the wall for a double, and both runners scored as the result of a wild relay throw. Waters then singled home the tying run on a full-count pitch, which gave her team 13 hits.

The Packers have another non-region contest at home today, Bainbridge the opponent with a 5:30 p.m. start.

Packer volleyball match

It may have been another first for Colquitt County High volleyball Tuesday at William Bryant Court. On Tuesday, Valwood School of Hahira defeated the Packers in a best-of-5 match 3-0 led by senior middle blocker Erin Moss. At 6-1, Moss is committed to sign with Georgia Tech, something she did back in her freshman season.

Moss hit both in the middle and outside when Valwood won the opening set 25-3. The visiting Valiants served nine aces, and Moss scored on her first two smashing attempts in the middle. Her first attempt from the outside was dug out by Colquitt’s Shadasia Reynolds, but she made good on the second try.

Colquitt only had a lead early in the second set, but three more kills by Moss (showing a versatile array of touches) put her team up 11-3. She also scored blocking the ball at 17-4.

The Packers were down 20-4 when Reynolds scored the first kill for the home team on a back corner. With Bella Sellers the leader in digs, Colquitt got within 12 at 21-9. Grace McKee scored the first Colquitt ace, and Sellers hit a ball inside the line (23-12) before Valwood pulled away for a 2-0 lead at 25-14.

The Valiants never trailed in the third set after building a 4-0 lead though Ragan Harden and Reynolds each notched aces to keep their team within three points (9-6). McKee aced for the second time at 12-9, and Lyla Roberts added one after Valwood reeled off four in a row (18-13). Roberts and Harden scored the last Packer points of the day, the set and match ending for the visitors at 25-15.

Packer volleyball will look for a second win of 2018 over Early County at home Thursday at 5 p.m.