CHICKAMAUGA, Ga. — Can a baseball team break a collective slump by just having fun?
The Gordon Lee Trojans believe so, and they offer Thursday’s 10-0 Region 7-AA win over Dade County as proof positive. Gordon Lee, which was state-ranked early in its first season in Class AA, entered the game 3-6 and trying to solve the mystery of its poor play.
Coach Mike Dunfee saw signs before the first pitch that the day after an extra-inning loss to Sylacauga, Ala., was going to be different.
“The guys had a little different attitude today,” Dunfee said following the five-inning game in which his team out-hit the Wolverines 11-1. “This was a solid game with strong pitching, strong defense and big hits. I felt like before the game even started they were cutting up with each other, and that’s big with this team. This team plays its best when they are loose and having some fun.”
Leadoff man Tucker Bradley was the pacesetter of the fun brigade. He led off the bottom of the first inning with a single off Dade ace Josh Core, eventually scoring on a wild pitch as the Trojans took a 2-0 lead. Bradley made it 4-0 in the second with a two-run home run to right field. Like his coach, Bradley saw a different team in more ways than one.