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The Winder-Barrow High School baseball team fell behind early in Monday’s road game against Madison County, but in the end, the Bulldoggs simply had too much firepower to be denied a victory.

WBHS took a 12-6 win in Danielsville as the Bulldogg batters combined for five homers, including two from Travis Demeritte.

Ryan Brown and Dalton Carter also added solo homers while Drew Davis connected on a three-run blast. [Full Story »] 

Brian Smith doesn’t believe in messing around in the early stages of a baseball season.

The Winder-Barrow High School baseball mentor wants his team to play the toughes compeititon possible when it comes to non-region foes. This year has been no exception as the Diamond Doggs have taken their lumps at times but, in the end, should be better prepared for their upcoming subregion slate.

In fact, Smith said last week’s 6-4 win against Dacula may have been the turning point he was looking for during the non-region portion of the schedule. [Full Story »] 

Winder-Barrow High School baseball coach Brian Smith has a simple plan.

The veteran Bulldogg mentor knows his team will face a brutal region slate when the 8-AAAA schedule arrives. Therefore, Smith has always believed in playing a strong non-region schedule to help his team prepare for that slate of upcoming region foes.

The 2012 season began with a game against Stephens County which was followed by two games in Augusta Saturday. While WBHS fell to South Effingham 6-3 and Evans 13-7, Smith believes the experience at this juncture is more important than his team’s non-region record. [Full Story »] 

In most ways, it was a typical season opener for the Winder-Barrow High School baseball team Tuesday.

The Diamond Doggs saw some positive things, some things they need to work on and perhaps some glimpses of what the 2012 campaign will be like. In the end, WBHS dropped a 2-1 decision to visiting Stephens County High School leaving Bulldogg coach Brian Smith with at least some level of disappointment.

“Our pitching was definitely a bright spot,” Smith said after the game. “(Blake) Marbut was probably not even at his best despite throwing well. He went out there and got out of some tough situations. We still have to take advantage of opportunities when we have them. This one got away from us. I would like to see us play with more intensity. I always want our team to play like the region championship is on the line. When you do that, you will usually be O.K.when it comes to your effort level.” [Full Story »] 

Taylor Hinshaw went through the usual adjustments for a college freshman, but the former Winder-Barrow High School standout is now settled in and even looking to the future.

Hinshaw recently completed his first season for Chattahoochee Valley Community College in Phenix City, Ala., and has set a goal of helping lead his team to a conference title next spring. [Full Story »] 

Considering the Texas Rangers are one of his favorite teams, it was almost like a movie script Tuesday afternoon when the club selected Winder’s Max Pentecost in the seventh round.

Pentecost, who graduated from Winder-Barrow High School this spring, was not overly surprised by the pick since he visited Texas last week, meeting with team officials and touring the stadium. [Full Story »] 

When all was said and done last week at Pope High School, the Winder-Barrow High School Diamond Doggs, while disappointed they would not be advancing, knew they had accomplished quite a bit during the 2011 campaign.

WBHS fell to Pope 4-3 in nine innings in the opener before seeing its season end with a 10-0 setback in the second game. The first game, which saw the Bulldoggs miss opportunities to win, ended up getting away from WBHS. [Full Story »] 

Loganville High School swept Winder-Barrow Thursday afternoon to claim the Region 8-AAAA title and a No. 1 seed for the upcoming state tournament.

The host Red Devils (22-2-1) took an 11-1 win five innings in the opener and then held on for a 10-9 win in the second game to seal the championship. The two teams are playing again Friday since both schools' schedules allowed for another game.

The Diamond Doggs (18-7 overall) will still host an opening-round state series next week as a No. 2 seed.

See the April 4 print edition of the Barrow Journal for a complete series recap and look ahead to the state playoffs.

In baseball, coaches often speak of the need to have quality pitching, defense and timely offense in order to have a chance to win.

However, when Winder-Barrow and Loganville clash this week to determine the No. 1 seed from Region 8-AAAA, will the best-of-three series come down to those simple things. Will other elements play a factor? [Full Story »]