Brawl leads to forfeit for Lady Bulldogs

Brawl leads to forfeit for Lady Bulldogs

Earle girls’ scrap with Cross County costs team perfect conference record

By Mark Randall

news@theeveningtimes.com Earle’s chances at going undefeated in conference took a hit Thursday when the team was forced to forfeit a game against Marked Tree as a result of a bench clearing brawl last Tuesday in its matchup against Cross County.

Coach Corey Garrett said he was notified by the league on Wednesday that is was suspending six of its players for one game and forcing them to forfeit the scheduled match against the Indians.

“I knew it was coming,” Garrett said. “We accepted it. What else can you do?”

The forfeit resulted in the first conference loss for the Lady Bulldogs (16-3,101). Garrett said although it is unfortunate, the loss won’t hurt them.

“We’ll be okay,” Garrett said.

Earle was on its way to blowing out Cross County 77-33 in what had been a physical game. Both sides complained to the referees about the deliberate Coach Corey Garrett

pushing and shoving and elbowing which wasn’t being called for fouls.

The Lady Bulldogs lost one of its players in the second quarter after N'Kya Mathis was hit on the head and knocked out. She left the game and was sent to the hospital.

Garrett said while his girls did not lose their composure, his repeated calls to the referees about the roughhousing fell on deaf ears.

“I knew sooner or later that something would explode because I was telling the refs about it the whole night,” Garrett said.

The game was called off with 3:54 left to play in the fourth after both benches got into an altercation. The fight started after Kelsey Mathis was kicked twice in the chest after the whistle had blown.

“They started it,” Garrett said. “The girls had taken about all they could all night. It was rough all night. I was constantly telling the ref about it.”

Garrett said the referees should have give each team technical foul following halftime and a warning that further roughhousing would result in foul calls and ejections, but instead did nothing and allowed the roughhousing to continue.

But because the game was called no one was ejected.

Garrett said the league had to instead watch the tape to determine who to suspend.

Three Lady Bulldogs were suspended for leaving the bench while five of the girls who were on the floor were suspended.

“If the refs had ejected two people and called it, that would have been the end of it,” Garrett said.

“But they opted to call the game and didn’t eject anybody.”

The Lady Bulldogs have a to-be-determined non-conference away game on Tuesday and will finish the season at home against Lee County on Feb. 9.