The Long County softball team picked up its first region win Tuesday since moving up to a 2-AAA schedule.

Playing in Ludowici, the Lady Tide beat Tattnall County 8-0 to improve their overall record to 5-10 and their region mark to 1-4. Head coach Brian Thomas said he was proud of his players.
“It felt good to get the win,” Thomas said. “Our girls have been working really hard over the last couple of weeks.”
Rylie Poppell got the start for the Lady Tide and pitched the entire game. Over six innings, she shut out the Lady Warriors, striking out four and giving up four hits.

The leading batters for Long County were Bailey Harrison and Tityanna Wilson. Harrison went 2 for 4 with a two-run homerun and Wilson went 1 for 2, also slamming a homerun. Other notable Lady Tide hitters were Chante Thomas and Ch’Hyya Wright, who both went 2 for 3.
Thomas was pleased with his entire team’s effort, but had special praise for two of his players.
“I thought that Rylie Poppell did a great job in the circle and Bailey Harrison did a great job behind the plate,” the coach said.

Thomas also said that improvement in two key areas made the difference against the Lady Warriors.
“I thought that we played better on defense today,” he said. “That, plus timely hitting, helped us pull out the win.”
Thursday, Long County hosted Liberty County, and on Monday, Liberty County hosts Long County in two big region matchups for both schools. Pick up a Wednesday paper to see how they fared in the rivalry games.