Central baseball team making run at Region 5-AA championship
Eagles can claim region title with victory over North Central in 2-game series next week
Pageland – The Central High School baseball team finds itself in a position it hasn’t been in in a while: battling for a region title coming down the homestretch of the season.
While the Eagles are just 11-9 overall, they are 8-2 in Region 5-AA, which is good for first place.. Central just swept Buford, whcih also had just two losses prior to the series. Chesterfield is in second with a 5-3 recor, and the Eagles swept it as well.
The Eagles can win the region title with a victory over North Central next wee. Central plays host to North Central on Tuesday, April 21, before traveling to Kershaw on Friaay, April 24.
Cody Branham is leading the offense with a .488 batting average. He had five home runs, 17 runs scored and 18 runs batted in, all team highs.
Logan Olney was hitting .365 with five doubles and 14 RBI. Dylan Tomberlin had a .286 average with seven doubles, 11 RBI and 16 runs, and Aidan Welch had 10 RBI and a homer with a .222 average.
Landon Crawford has been Central’s top pitcher. He had worked 27 2/3 innings and owned a 2.53 earned run average.
Olney and Welch were also getting regular work. Olney had a 4.20 ERA in 13 1/3 innings while Welch had a 2.56 ERA in 13 2/3 innings.
Kingston Jackson, Cohen Phillips, Lawson Hicks and Tomberlin had each worked at least six innings.
CENTRAL SOFTBALL 8-11
It has also been a long time for the Central softball team to have a season as good as this one. The Eagles were 8-11 overall even though they were just 1-5 in region play.
“We have won more games this season than Central has won since 2019,” said D.J. Middleton, who is in his first season as head coach after having helped his father, former head coach Steve Middleton. “We've gotten better each game, and we are learning to find a way.”
Central plays in a region which had four teams ranked in the High School Sports Report AA Top 10 poll in No. 4 Buford. No. 5 Chesterfield, No. 6 Andrew Jackson and No. 8 North Central. That’s where the four region losses have come from, while the Eagles own a win over Cheraw.
They were going back through the region after spring break. Any victory would more than likely secure another trip to a district tournament in the state playoffs.
A return to the playoffs would give Cemtral a chance to reach a goal.
“Our end goal this season is to win a playoff game and establish our program as committed and on the rise,” D.J. Middleton said. “I'm extremely proud of the way our team has played so far this season and I look forward to the future.”
Senior Tashia Quick was leading in hitting with a 333 average. The Florence-Darlington Technical College commitment had four doubles, two triples, two homers,p 18 runs and 12 RBI.
Junior Ashanya Myers was batting .278 with a homer, 10 stolen bases and 14 RBI, junior Blaire Butler was hitting .250 with a team high 14 RBI and two homers, and senior Jasmine McMillan was hitting .250 with a homer and 12 RBI.
Butler is handling the pitching. She had 63 innings pitched and a 3.56 ERA.
Centerfielder Myers bats leadoff, Butler handles the 2 hole and righfielder McMillan bats third. Quick plays shortstop and bats cleanup. Junior catcher/designated player Johniya Hough hits fifth.
Rounding out the order is junior first baseman Farrah Price, senior second baseman Rielyni Chambers, freshman leftfielder Bentlee Doste and either freshman third baseman Arianna Wilson or freshman rightfielder/shortstop McKeena Lowry.
