Saluda win away from reaching AA upper state tournament

           Sumter – The Saluda High School softball team Is back in the championship round of a district tournament in the AA state playoffs. Only this time the Tigers are doing it as a region champion and are waiting for an opponent as an undefeated team.

           Saluda made the playoffs as the No. 4 seed from Region 2 last year and managed to advance to the championship round of their district tournament to finish with an 8-17 record. The Tigers will take a 20-3 record into the championship round of the District 2 tournament on Wednesday, May 8.

           Saluda will play host to either Batesburg-Leesville or Blacksburg in the championship round, needing just one win while having to be beaten twice. The Tigers edged Batesburg-Leesville, the No. 4 team from Region 3, 5-4 in the first round. They followed that up with a 6-3 triumph over Blacksburg, the No.3 team from Region 3.

           Saluda is led by senior pitcher Samantha Minick, a Newberry College signee who has been selected to play in the North-South All-Star Series. Minick has worked 100 1/3 innings and has 120 strikeouts to go with a 1.74 earned run average. She’s also batting .319 with two doubles, a triple and a home run.

           Ella Gentry and Jayme Sheaffer lead the offensive attack. Gentry owns a .362 batting average, four homers, six doubles, a triple, 29 runs scored and 28 runs batted in. Sheaffer is batting .391 with three homers and 21 RBI. Senior catcher Jana Pou is batting .352.

           Let’s take a look at how the other districts are shaping up.

           DISTRICT 1

           Region 1 champion Chesnee is sitting in the cat bird’s seat with a pair of comfortable victories. Chesnee beat Region 2 No. 4 Abbeville 13-6 in the first round and knocked off Region 3 No. 2 Fox Creek 9-2 in the winner’s bracket game.

           Abbeville and Fox Creek are scheduled to meet on Monday, May 6, in an elimination game to determine who Chesnee will face.

           Abbeville’s Garianna Burton is a North-South selection.

           DISTRICT 3

           Region 3 champion Strom Thurmond is 18-4 after beating Keenan 15-0 and following it up with a 3-0 win over Landrum in the winner’s bracket contest.

           The Rebels bat .370 as a team. They are led by Lawsyn Lowe with a .493 average followed by Emmy McKie at .419 and Addyson Harrison at .405.

           Mckie and Madison Rodriguez share the pitching duties. Prior to the Landrum game, Mckie had a 9-2 win-loss record with a 2.19 ERA in 67 innings. Rodriguez was 8-2 with a 1.92 ERA in 58 1/3 innings.

           Landrum and Mid-Carolina, the defending upper state champion, will be playing on May 6 to face Strom Thurmond.

           Landrum’s Sydney Price is a North-South pick.

           DISTRICT 4

           Gray Collegiate Academy, which is atop the High School Sports Report AA poll, rolled to the championship round with a pair of easy victories. The Region 4 champion War Eagles beat Liberty 17-3 in the first round then whipped Region 2 runner-up Ninety Six 16-0.

           Gray is batting .418 as a team and has hit 39 home runs. Aspen Boulware owns a .638 average with 14 homers, 10 triples and 28 RBI. Maddox Long is batting .574 with 10 homers and 34 RBI. Kaylan Boudreau is hitting .413 with 11 doubles, a triple and four homers.

           Peyton Hendrix has seen the most time in the circle. She has worked 57 innings and has 99 strikeouts and a 1.23 earned run average.

           Ninety Six will play host to Pelion in an elimination game for a spot in the championship round.

DISTRICT 5

           Region 5 champion Buford got a first-round bye and then beat Timberland 8-0 in the winner’s bracket game. Buford is led by North-South selection Laney Allen.

           The Yellow Jackets will meet either Kingstree or Timberland for the title. Timberland beat Kingstree 17-0 in the first round.

           DISTRICT 6

           North Central is the only non-region champion positioned as the last undefeated team in one of the tournaments.

           The Knights, the No. 3 team from Region 5, were on the road for both of the first two games. They beat Region 8 No. 2 Andrews 1-0 before taking down Region 6 champion Barnwell 4-2.

           Barnwell, which is 21-3, is scheduled to play host to either Andrews or Lake Marion in an elimination game on May 6.

           DISTRICT 7

           Region 7 champion Oceanside Collegiate Academy is the last undefeated team. OCA rolled over Lee Central 17-0 in the opener before knocking off defending state champion Chesterfield 7-5 in the winner’s bracket contest.

           Chesterfield, the No. 2 team from Region 5, will play host to Edisto on May 6. Chesterfield beat Edisto 11-0 in a first-round game.

           DISTRICT 8

           Marion won its district tournament last season and was the last undefeated team in the lower state tournament. However, it lost twice to the aforementioned Chesterfield, which went on to win state.

           Needless to say, the Swamp Foxes feel like they have unfinished business. They can get back to the lower state tournament with a win over either Andrew Jackson or Woodland on May 8. The beat AJ 12-2 in the first game and followed it with a 10-0 win over Woodland.

           Marion, which is 18-2, has two North-South players in Hailie Lebiedz and Anna Grace Page. Lebiedz is a standout pitcher who was batting over .600 entering the playoffs and Page was hitting just under .600.

           As a recap, if the undefeated teams all win, you’ll have Chesnee, Strom Thurmond, Gray Collegiate and Saluda playing in the upper state tournament and Buford, Oceanside Collegiate, Marion and North Central battling in the lower state tournament.

HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS REPORT AA POLL

1.     Gray Collegiate

2.  Saluda

3.  Strom Thurmond

4.  Marion

5. Barnwell

6.  Buford

7.  Oceanside Collegiate

8. North Central

9. Ninety Six

10. Chesnee

11. Mid-Carolina

12.  Fox Creek

13. Blacksburg

14. Pelion

15. Chesterfield