Andrews Nine Looking to Continue Success
By Neill Kirkpatrick
Special to the HSSR
Andrews – The last two years head coach Richie Poston has watched his young squad capture back-to-back region 8 AA titles as they have matured so with a veteran group returning the Yellowjackets have an eye on a third straight region title despite moving into a new region, 6 AA.
Last season the Yellowjackets used their region championship to spring board them into the Class AA playoffs where they captured the district 8 title to advance to the lower state final four.
The Yellowjackets have five returning All- Region selections in seniors Sloan Harper and Khalil Dorsey, juniors Jaxon Baker and Riley Jordan and sophomore Brycen Cannon. Jordan was named All Region in 2023 after his freshman season where he hit .439 with 24 RBI’s and a team high 8 doubles. He was injured during the 2023 football season and sat out last baseball season doing rehab. He has picked up where he left off as he leads the team in hitting with a .375 average in the early season.
Harper and Doresy have had outstanding careers for Andrews. Harper’s All Regions selection was his third in as many seasons. He has a career batting average of .380 after leading the team in hitting the past two years. Last season he had a team high 9 doubles. He has gotten off to a slow this year but expect him to hit up as the weather warms. He also has an .857 career fielding percentage from shortstop.
Dorsey will be playing at the next level but it won’t be in baseball despite making All Region last season. He is a two-time AA All State selection at tight end. He was second on the team in batting last season at .326. He has also gotten off to a slow start this spring.
Baker does it all for the Yellowjackets since he stepped on campus. He hit .340 as a freshmen and has a career average right at .300. In the field he has over a .900 fielding percentage. On the hill he has a career 2.79 career era and this year he has been better with 1.24 era. He has 89 career strikeouts in 72.2 innings pitched.
The team’s top returning pitcher is Cannon. He went 5-2 last season with a 3.38 era. At the plate he is a career .300 hitter but like his teammates he has struggled at the plate in the early going.
Seniors Maddox Cooper and Aden Cooper along with Levi Marlowe, Colby Marlowe, Reece Barrineau, Wyatt Bass, Carter Casselman, Caiden Thomas, Avery Durham and Jackson Parmly round out the roster. Barrineau has the team’s lone win this season and has stuck out 10 in 9 innings.
“We have to be a solid defensive team and pitch well to keep other teams off the scoreboard, but for us to contend we have to hit the ball more consistently and we have struggled in the early part of the year,” said coach Poston.
