Hampton County baseball eyeing one of the playoff spots from region 5AA
By Neill Kirkpatrick
Special to the HSSR
Varnville – The Hampton County Baseball team is fighting for one of the playoffs spots in region 5AA, they currently sit in third place but are battling Edisto and Lake Marion for the number three and four seed from the region. The Canes split with each team so if on of the teams sweep each other than the Canes are in the playoffs no matte how they fare in the region final series with Bridges Prep who is tied atop the region with Barnwell.
The Canes opened the season with a win against area rival Colleton County before splitting their region series with Edisto and Lake Marion. They lost the opener in both series only to come back and win game two. Next they dropped two to Barnwell before sweeping Whale Branch.
After the series with Bridges Prep they will three games before the AA playoffs begin. All three games are non-region contest.
Head coach Nicholas Hain has a young squad with only two seniors and the rest of the team are sophomores or younger.
The seniors are Malik Terry and Jaz'Mir Goines. Each player is hitting over .300 with Terry at .393 and Goines at .333. Terry leads the team in hits with 10 while Goines leads the team in doubles. Terry has yet to make an error in 77 fielding chances. He was also named to the class AA all state football team as a linebacker.
Sophomores Owen Shaffer and Jakarre Badger are the teams top hitters. While Badger leads the team in batting average at .571 it is Shaffer who leads in almost every other category. Shaffer is hitting .476 and leads the team in runs scored, RBI’s with 10, extra base hits with four and steals with 20. He is also the teams ace on the bump. He has struck out 42 batters in 21 2/3 innings.
The Canes have a 7th and 8th who are already making their mark on the team in Shane Elmquist and Chris Dupree, respectively. Elmquist is currently hitting .320 and is second on the team in RBI’s with six. He is also second in steals with 14 and has seen time on the mound.
Dupree is hitting .400 with 10 steals. He leads the team in hit by pitch with six and is second in on base percentage at .654.
Shaffer and sophomore Landon Malphrus led the pitching staff with rest of the staff being 8th graders and 7th graders. Malphrus struck out 10 batters in just 8 innings.
