Fans, players and T.R. Miller coaches got an early look at what the 2014 T.R. Miller Lady Tiger softball will look like as the Lady Tigers and six other teams took part in the 2013 summer play-date Thursday at the Brewton YMCA Sports Park.
Hillcrest, Thomasville, Elba, Daphne, Jay and Saraland joined T.R. Miller in the round-robin affair that saw each team play four games each. Games were five innings or one-hour time period.
T.R. Miller went 2-1-1 in their four games. The Lady Tigers opened tourney play with a 14-1 win over the Jaguars before coming away with a 5-2 win over Thomasville in their second game of the day. Against Elba, T.R. Miller rallied from a 6-0 deficit in the first inning to tie Elba 6-6.
In their final game of the day, T.R. Miller let a 3-0 lead slip away against Jay and lost 4-3.
T.R. Miller Lady Tiger head coach Greg White say 10 players dress out and play Thursday with four being out for various reasons and others from the 2013 season having quit the team. While his numbers were down, White said he was proud of what he saw Thursday in many ways and accomplished things he wanted to accomplish.
“I was proud of the toughness we showed today,” White said. “I just talked to the girls after the games about toughness and how well I thought they handled the heat today. I thought we handled the heat pretty well today. Our catcher (Molly Jackson) caught all four games for us today and that was tough for her today in this weather and she played fine. What she did in game four is what she did in game one and I was proud of her for that and I was proud of the whole team for handling the heat. I only had 10 folks here today due to vacations, quitting, and injuries. All 10 were able to see a lot of playing time today and got a lot of at-bats today. At some point and time, a lot will be playing here or there. All 10 contributed at some point and time with a big hit or a big play here and there. It was a very, very positive day. I was proud of everyone. I think we accomplished a lot of what I wanted to accomplish today.”
While the 2014 season is still several months away, White said there was one thing that really stuck out to him Thursday that could lead to the success of the team next season.
“The young kids stuck out to me today,” White said. “We got some young kids that we have brought up due to some injuries and such. We brought up five players that were in middle school this past year and are going to the ninth grade. They contributed big time and that is going to help us in the future. I was very happy with those guys.”
Players that dressed out for the Lady Tigers Thursday were: Steel Ruzic, Abbi Roberts, Jessica Allan, Krystal Bell, Moriah Brundidge, Myra Reiss, Taylor Austin, Caitlyn Smith, Grace Ruzic and Molly Jackson.
Others on the team that did not play or who were out due to injuries or vacation were: Ali Taylor, Leslie Holmes, Madison Douglas and Morgan Longmire.
T.R. Miller struggled in 2013, but after failing to make the regional tournament last year, made the trip to Gulf Shores this past season. The Lady Tigers went 15-15 in 2013 and advanced to the second-day of play at the regional tournament in Gulf Shores.

TRM 14, Hillcrest 1
T.R. Miller scored 10 runs in the first inning to cruise to a 14-1 win over Hillcrest. Steely Ruzic earned the win in the pitching circle for the Lady Tigers.
Steely Ruzic, Roberts, Bell, Brundidge, Reiss and Austin all had hits.

TRM 5, Thomasville 2
Down 1-0 after the first inning, T.R. Miller scored two runs in the second and three in the third to go to 2-0 in the play-date with a 5-2 win over Thomasville.
Brundidge earned the pitching win for T.R. Miller. Steely Ruzic, Roberts and Jackson all had hits.

TRM 6, Elba 6
T.R. Miller trailed Elba 6-0 after the top of the first before rallying with two runs each over the next three innings including an inside-the-park homerun from Brundidge in the final inning to tie Elba 6-6.
At the plate, Brundidge and Smith had hits. Austin pitched in the tie.

Jay 4, TRM 3
In their final game of the day, T.R. Miller led Jay 3-0 after the second inning before surrendering four runs in the final inning to lose their only game of the day by a score of 4-3.
Steel Ruzic, Bell, Brundidge, Reiss, Jackson and Grace Ruzic all had hits in the loss.
Brundidge took the pitching loss for the Lady Tigers.