Lake City – On the surface, a 15-16 record is not much to write home about. But the final record of the 2023 Carolina Academy baseball team is a lot better than it has been of late.
Lindsey Robinson just completed his first season as the head baseball coach at Carolina Academy and admits he and his team went through some growing pains. But, they came out on the bright side of the tunnel.
The Bobcats got hot at the right time, playoff time. Included among their playoff wins was a victory over SCISA AAA favorite Hilton Head Prep. The Bobcats advanced to the semi-final round of the AAA playoffs before a loss to eventual state champion Pee Dee Academy ended their season.
“I thought we finished well, playing to our potential,” Robinson said. “From where we started to where we were as a team at the end, I’d say it was a successful season. I thought we as coaches improved and the players improved. It took a while but we became more of a team. It wasn’t about ‘me’ anymore.We grew up a lot and we played really hard.”
With that final record, it is important to note that the Bobcats were 3-10 in one-run games this spring. A lot of those losses came early on in the season.
“We figured out how to win some of those games,” the coach said. “I’d like to imagine if those games were turned around. If we’re 10-3 in those close losses. We would be looking at 25 wins instead of 15. There are small differences between winning and losing.”
Carolina Academy was led by strong pitching this season. While the bats were hot and cold. Robinson says pitching and defense kept the Bobcats competitive.
Junior Walker Joyner was a leader at the plate and on the mound. He led the team in hitting with a .457 batting average. David Driggers, a sophomore lefty, and senior Jason Grantham were two other key pitchers.
Another senior, third baseman Peyton McCutcheon, was the top offensive threat in the playoffs. McCutcheon was nine-for-18 in the playoffs.
“He had a lot of big hits in the playoffs and its great to see a senior finish out so strong,” Robinson said.
Catcher Tucker Kirby also got hot in the playoffs, delivering seven RBIs down the stretch. Shortstop Dyson Lamb was another hitter who struggled for most of the season but found his stroke in the playoffs.
“We relaxed a lot better at the plate in the playoffs,” Robinson said. “We simplified things, told our guys to just relax and play loose. We told them to play every day like it’s their last. It seemed to work. We went back to basics and just tried to put balls in play more.”
Other members of the team this spring included outfielder Cameron Tilton, freshman Walker McCutcheon, sophomore Cole Bailey, seniors Blake Moore and Ellis Bradley, juniors Micah Springs, Jackson Altman, Tyler Smart and Hunter Irwin; sophomore Connor Coker and Jayden Bunton.
As a first-year head coach, Robinson says he learned a lot about running a team and managing a game.
“Stay consistent but also be open to change if its going to help the team,” he said. “I feel ike this team responded well to me. I feel like we set in place the core values that we want to have as a program.
“The big thing is making the kids understand my vision for the program and how we want to change the culture. We want to raise the bar in terms of our own expectations. We’re competing now but the goal is to win.”
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