Baseball: Sosebee returns to lead Warriors

CLEVELAND -- Friday was a welcome change for White County’s David Sosebee.

The junior right-hander made his first start in three weeks for the Warriors and looked like he hadn’t missed a beat in leading them to a nail-biting 3-2 win over North Hall at White County Field.

Sosebee, who missed seven games due a broken left hand, allowed just three hits and fanned 11 in six innings of work to earn the win.

“It felt good to just be a part of the team again and contribute,” Sosebee said. “It was no fun watching. But I felt good out there and it was a game we needed to win.”

Luke Crumley, the Warriors’ No. 2 pitcher, pitched the final inning to get the save. But Crumley had to work out of a jam with runners on second and third with one out to preserve the win.

White County coach John Brown said it was a big win, but more important may have been the psychological victory for his team.

“Having David out there is a big lift for the team,” said Brown, who watched as his Warriors lost their first four games without Sosebee in the lineup. They have won four straight since he returned to the dugout in his uniform.

“He didn’t pitch or play but just having him in the dugout was a lift for the guys. Now, having him back on the mound puts us close to where we were before he got hurt. It’s huge,” he said.

The win kept White County (15-5, 10-4 in Region 7A-AAA) two games ahead of Lumpkin County (7-12, 6-6) in the subregion with the two teams meeting Monday in Dahlonega. The loss for North Hall (10-10-, 7-7) doesn’t eliminate the Trojans from playoff contention but they will almost assuredly need to win out and get some help from both White County and Lumpkin down the stretch.

North Hall’s Jacob Brewster kept the Trojans in the game tossing a solid game of his own. He finished with nine strike outs and walked just two. But the Warriors put together a four-hit third inning that produced all three runs.

North Hall broke a scoreless tie in the third for the early lead. Ryan Pitts doubled to lead off the inning and later scored on a one out, RBI single from Jeff Abernathy.

White County answered right back in the bottom of the inning. Cole Segraves doubled and then scored following a pair of balks from North Hall starter Jake Brewster. Hayden Cummins then doubled and scored on a single by Adam Hooper. Crumley, who walked, scored one batter later on a double by Marcus Rider for a 3-1 lead.

The Trojans closed the gap to 3-2 in the sixth getting an unearned run. Abernathy reached on an error to lead off and then scored on a two-out single from Stevens. The Trojans had a chance to take the lead but left two runners stranded, one in scoring position after a great play by second baseman Dylan Lee to end the inning.