THOMASVILLE —
One's a power right-hander. The other's a crafty southpaw.
Together, they form one of the most effective pitching tandems coach Chad Parkerson's had during his tenure at Thomas County Central.
Kyle Riley and Kris Lee are key reasons the Yellow Jackets are this weekend's Class AAAA first-round playoff series against Greenbrier. Both are why the Yellow Jackets could play spoiler against the top-ranked team in the state.
"Collectively, while we've had some really, really good players and really, really good pitchers to come through here — Gary Smith comes to mind, Tyler Wooten, Josh Gobble, Oki Teo was pretty strong, too — collectively, starting pitcher wise, this is one of the better 1-2 punches that I've had since I've been here," Parkerson said. "I kind of classify them as big game pitchers.
"Kris going up and beating Whitewater last year was huge. Riley, in this last series, Warner Robins is a very good offensive team, and he went complete-game shutout. The next day, before we started, I said, 'Hey man, can you give me three outs if I need you?' He just said, 'Oh yeah.' He was begging for it in the latter innings."
Riley, a power right-hander, also mowed down Bainbridge's offense in the regular season. With home field on the line in the upcoming Region 1 playoffs, Riley allowed just one hit and fanned nine in a 5-0 victory.
"We had to win those, too," Parkerson said. "That's what you want. You want the guys that aren't afraid of the moment and want the ball in their hands."
For full details, see Friday's edition of the Times-Enterprise.
Probe Begins After Conn. Commuter Trains Crash
NTSB Begins Investigation Into Conn. Train Crash
Lotto Fever Sweeps the Country
Conn. Commuter Trains Collide; 60 Go to Hospital
Coffee Run Leads to Hatchet Hitchhiker Arrest
Fmr. IRS Head Insists No Politics in Targeting
CDC: Fecal Bacteria Common in Swimming Pools
$1 Million in Jewels Stolen at Cannes Film Fest
NM Mom Chases Down Child Abductor
Raw: Crash Sends Car Into Fla. Pool
Raw: Obama Sits Down With Elementary Kids
Raw: Bear Falls From Tampa Tree
Ousted IRS Chief: Errors Not Caused by Politics
Terror Suspect Due in Court in Idaho Friday
Raw: Driver Ejected From Truck, Over Bridge
Could Tobacco Be the Next Biofuel?
Wash. State Releases Draft Rules for Legal Pot
Dying Man's Blinks Lead to Murder Conviction
Officials: Texas Tornado Likely Had 200 Mph Wind
Brothers Arrested in NOLA Parade Shooting
