Sports

Lining up a run

• Darton College’s softball team can reach the NJCAA World Series for the first time since 2006 if it wins the Region XVIII tournament, which begins today in Dublin.

Scott Chancey

DUBLIN — The only connection Darton College softball pitchers Britni McCall and Tiffany Timmons have with a NJCAA College World Series is stories they heard as freshmen.

Told by sophomores last season who reached the 2006 Series in Plant City, Fla., those stories had McCall and Timmons looking forward to a return trip.

“They talked about it all the time, just going there,” Timmons said.

To reach the 2007 World Series, however, Darton had to win the Region XVII tournament. That goal was never realized after the Lady Cavaliers were eliminated by Georgia Perimeter. Now as the team’s only two sophomores, McCall and Timmons see this weekend’s region tournament in Dublin as more than just another chance.

It’s their final one.

“We’d love to experience, hopefully, what the sophomores talked to us about last year,” McCall said.

Darton, the No. 2 seed behind none other than Georgia Perimeter, plays at 5 p.m. today against the winner of today’s earlier contest between Abraham Baldwin and South Georgia. Darton and Georgia Perimeter have identical region records (16-4), but the Lady Jaguars earned the top seed because they swept a doubleheader in their only regular-season meeting.

The tournament champion advances to this year’s Series in Plant City May 15-17.

“Two things can happen; either we’re going to win it or we’re going to lose it,” said first-year coach David Dews, who replaced Blake Miller when he left for Texas A&M-Kingsville. “And we don’t plan on losing it.”

Added Dews: We’re going to go in with a positive attitude and give it our best shot.”

Darton (28-13 overall) will be as dependent upon its pitching staff as it is on its lineup. McCall — today’s starter — is 11-5 with a 1.86 ERA, Timmons is 8-5 at 1.94 and freshman pitcher Stephanie Martin is 9-3 with a 1.85 ERA.

“I’m one of those who always believed that in championship-type tournaments, pitching and defense are crucial,” Dews said. “If you had a bad game defensively, or you don’t have your good stuff on the mound, chances are that you’re not going to win. It all reverts back to that. I know the kids will be prepared, their attitudes will be good. Hopefully, at first pitch, we’ll be ready to go and play up to our capability.”

Ten of Darton’s 12 players bat better than .300, and three even top .400.

Tatiana Zhuchkova leads the Lady Cavaliers at .459, followed by Bainbridge’s Heather Crews (.449) and Hannah Layton (.413). Elena Litvinia has the most

RBI (33), Layton has the most doubles with 15 and ex-Colquitt County star Morgan Jones has the most home runs with nine.

“It’s a big tournament for us,” Zhuchkova said. “We’ve been working hard for this every day.”

Georgia Perimeter, however, stands in the way of making a second run to the World Series in three years.

“Georgia Perimeter is good competition, but we can beat them,” Crews said. “In the second game (of the regular-season doubleheader which Darton lost, 7-5), we made some errors, but I think we’ll be able to play better this go-around.”

There are, however, other teams that Darton is vowing not to overlook.

Coastal Georgia, one of the other teams that beat the Lady Cavaliers this year, are in the tournament. Georgia Military is the other one, but it is not participating this weekend.

“Every team has the ability to win region,” Dews said. “It’s just a matter of who gets hot and makes the little key plays here and there.”

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