Greenbrier pounds Grovetown in first meeting

Casey Dees is familiar with Greenbrier High's softball program -- a state title, the 13 consecutive region championships.

//

And Dees, a former Greenbrier coach, knows his first-year Grovetown High softball team cannot measure itself against the Wolfpack.

The new county rivals played for the first time Aug. 20 at Greenbrier, with the Wolfpack winning 15-0 by run-rule.

"This stuff, the state championships and all, it doesn't happen overnight," Dees said, pointing to a sign behind the Wolfpack's fence commemorating Greenbrier's 2004 state title. "You got to keep working."

Dees said many of his players are playing for the first time, and that he expected some growing pains. The Warriors started with a slow-pitch tournament during the summer and began practice the first day Georgia High School Association rules allow.

The Warriors will play a full Region 3-AAAA schedule their first season. Dees said he was optimistic about the Warriors' outlook.

"We're trying to get better every single game," Dees said. "That's our goal right now -- improve every day. If we do that, I can live with the results right now."

The game with the Wolfpack was the first meeting between former Greenbrier colleagues Dees and Wolfpack softball coach Garrett Black since Grovetown opened.

The game originally was scheduled to be played at Grovetown, but delays in completing the Warriors' softball field forced the game to Greenbrier. The umpires assigned to the game failed to show after the scheduling change. An "off-duty" umpire was brought in from the stands and the game was held with one official.

Greenbrier, which opened the season with the top ranking in Class AAAAA, dropped its season opener to 2-1 to Union Grove, which the Wolfpack expect to be their top opposition to a 14th consecutive region softball title.

The Wolfpack will have another shot at Union Grove on the road later this season.

Black said the Wolfpack were still dealing with injuries and trying to find who fits best in certain positions. And the Wolfpack's first game was Union Grove's sixth of the season.

But Black said he is confident Greenbrier will rebound as it moves through the schedule.

"Hopefully we can keep getting better and put ourselves in position to win the region again," Black said. "That's all we care about right now."

Grovetown's first softball team

6 -- Carrie McKenzie

2 -- Hannah Bright

12 -- Gabi Medina

1 -- Chelsea Schleenbakeer

4 -- Tyranny Todd

10 -- Alecia Ferguson

16 -- Brooklyn Wilkerson-Hadley

9 -- Megan Murphy

8 -- Kayla Saiton