Choctaws improbable run comes to and end

MILLINGTON -- Brandon Ballinger spent the previous two season watching the Dyer County baseball team make it out of the district tournament, but go no further than that. After consultation with coach Preston Ozment, Ballinger decided to rejoin the Choctaws as the only senior on the squad.

However, when the season had started if someone had asked Ballinger what he would be doing on May 26, pitching in the state tournament would not have been his answer. But that is where Ballinger found himself as his Choctaws took on Grundy County at USA Stadium in Millington.

The left fielder and reserve hurler was thrown into action in the first inning with Dyer County trailing 3-0. Despite Ballinger holding the Yellow Jackets scoreless for four innings, Dyer County lost 7-2 and was eliminated from the TSSAA Class AA state tournament.

The loss ends Ballinger's short career with Dyer County, but he knows he couldn't have picked a better year to make his return to the orange-and-white uniforms.

"It has been real special," Ballinger said. "We are the only team to have ever won a game in the state tournament. It's pretty special. I am proud of the team."

But if not for one bad inning, Dyer County might have still been playing today.

For the latter part of the season, the Choctaws have relied on a small pitching rotation. In key games it included Brad Davis as the starter and Dylan Cupples coming in to close. But with both pitchers having started games on Tuesday, it was up in the air on who the DC coaches were going to send to the mound in Wednesday's elimination game.

Dyer County coach Preston Ozment decided on Davis, who had shown in the past he could still be effective on little rest. Unfortunately for the Choctaws, this was not one of the times.

After getting the first batter out, Davis allowed three runs before being replaced by Ballinger. Two more runs scored in the first to put DC down 5-0 before they even picked up a bat.

"Brad has been our guy all year," said Ozment. "He's pitched with that kind of rest before. I am thinking, come back after that game the other day, come out, be on fire. But he didn't have it again today. They happened to hit him. We got him as quick as we could."

Ballinger went the rest of the way and gave up five hits and three runs while fanning three.

"He told he was going to bring me in if Brad got in trouble," Ballinger said. "But I didn't know he was going to get in trouble that early. I was ready. My arm was feeling good. I had to use a lot of Icy Hot though. I was hitting my spots pretty good. Curveball wasn't doing what it was supposed to. But I was hitting my fastball pretty good."

While the Yellow Jackets wasted no time in getting its offense rolling, Dyer County was not so effective.

Grundy County's T.J. Arbuckle held DC scoreless until the bottom of the third. Hits by Shawn Sawyers and Josh Ozment put runners on first and third with Ballinger at the plate. A double steal allowed Sawyers to score before Ballinger ripped a single to plate Ozment.

"We just started staying back on that slow curveball and just hitting it," Cupples said. "We were trying to put runners on base and make things happen."

Dyer County closed to within three runs with four innings left. But that was all the success they would have. Arbuckle pitched his way out of several jams by forcing the Choctaws to swing at bad pitches.

The Choctaws didn't help the situation by committing four errors, which led to two more runs late in the game.

"We closed the gap," Ozment said. "But we give up another run. That starts getting tough because that gap starts opening up again. That puts pressure on the kids to get more hits, get more guys on base. And that is something we weren't doing all day."

Arbuckle got the win as he went seven innings, allowed three hits, two runs and struck out 10 Choctaws. He also helped himself at the plate by going 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs.

Ballinger, Cupples and Cody Hammond accounted for Dyer County's three hits.

"You give up a five-spot in the first inning its tough to come back," said Ozment. "But we've had our chances. You get three hits and four errors, you can't win many ball games like that."

Despite the defeat, the players and coaches feel that the entire season was special. To go from where they began the year to making it to the second day of the state tournament was quite an accomplishment for such a youthful squad.

"We had a slow start, then we picked it up," Ozment said. "At the end of the season we turned it on and put us in a chance for a state championship. Something nobody has done around our town. First win for our school in a state tournament. Second time being here. We start next week on trying to get back here."