Abbeville comes off spring break focused on postseason
By David Shelton
Senior Writer
Abbeville – A spring break trip to Myrtle Beach helped the Abbeville High baseball team take a break from the regular season with plenty of sun and baseball.
The Panthers used the trip to see different competition, from out-of-state, winning one of four games but competing well. Now it’s back to work in the regular season and the Panthers are looking forward to being a factor in the Class A state playoffs later this month. Abbeville sports an 11-4 overall record coming out of spring break, this after a 7-0 start.
“Expectations are high,” coach Daniel Little said. “We have a chance to be in the hunt. This team will be good enough to compete with any team on the schedule, if we bring our best effort and attitude. We will face some major competition, especially in the playoffs, so we hope to be at our best in the end.”
Many of this year’s starters are third-year starters and several are having a good season offensively through 15 games.
One of the top returning leaders is catcher Ben Overholt, back for his third season in the lineup. He hit .324 with 11 RBI in the first 15 contests. Senior outfielder Lohen Nickles is setting the pace offensively, hitting .452 with 14 runs batted in. Senior leftfielder Dayne Botts is hitting .344 with nine RBI.
Junior Grady Overholt is hitting .400 and senior Adam Beiler is hitting .355 with 16 RBI. Beiler also is one of the top pitchers with a 1.67 earned run average in 29 innings. Overholt also rates as one of the top pitchers.
Trey Deason also has been solid on the mound while hitting .300 with 11 RBI. Staten Rice is hitting .308 with nine RBI and Easton Townsend is hitting .290 with 13 RBI. Jake Clemmons has posted a .312 batting average through 15 games.
Abbeville’s softball team began the 2025 season with seven consecutive losses, then rebounded to win seven straight games heading into spring break.
The Panthers will be headed for the state playoffs but where they finish in the region standings is yet to be determined.
Handling most of the pitching this spring is Maddie Beiler, who also plays at third base. Mayson Ashley and Reese Jones also have been in the circle.
Kaylee Bundrick has played shortstop and catcher this season with Audrey Graham also seeing time at both positions.
Bella Evans plays second base and Jocelyn Foster is at first base. Working in the outfield are Ella Atkins, Nadia Kimsey, Ny Jackson and Lillie Stone. Rylee Tiller is a utility player.
The boys soccer team went 4-6 in their first 10 contests, winning two of their first six region matches.
Senior Cameron Allen tallied 20 goals and four assists in those first 10 games. Junior Parker Henderson had six goals and seven assists while freshman Carter Oberholzer had six early goals. Sophomore Yenqui Ortiz chipped in four goals early on.
