Stallions Reach SCISA Class AAA Baseball Title Series In Morris’ First Year
Williamsburg runners makes diving slide for the plate in the playoffs. (Photo by Mara Feagin)
By Dennis Brunson
hssr.com Associate Editor
Kingstree – Britton Morris couldn’t have asked for a much better first season as the head coach of the Williamsburg Academy baseball team. Well, he could have and the Stalliosn almost gave it to him.
Williamsburg reached the best-of-3 state championship serie s in the SCISA AAA state playoffs. However, they came up short, getting swept by Calhoun Academy.
The Cavaliers rolled to an easy win in the opener by a 10-2 count. However, the second game went into extra innings with Calhoun winning 6-4 in eight.
“We came so close,” said Morris, who is just 22 years old. “I felt like if we could get to Thursday (and the third game) we could have done it. I think we were definitely clearly at least the second best team in AAA.”
The Stallions finished the year with a 20-4 record. They swept through their 5-team, double-elimination in three games. They opened with a victory over Spartanburg Christian Academy before taking two games from defending state champion Hilton Head Prep to advance to the title series.
Williamsburg had seven players named to the All-Region 3-AAA team. They were Sammy Tomlinson, Caden Morris, Grant Small, Hall Dukes, Jay
Kellahan, Connor Morris and Ethan Jones.
Connor Morris led the Stallion in hitting with a .427 batting average and shared the lead in on-base percentage with Caden Morris at .516. Caden was just behind him in batting average at .419. They also shared the lead in runs batted in with 26 and doubles with seven.
Connor led in home runs with four, while Caden led in triples with three.
Kellahan had a .333 batting average to go with a .495 OBP and a team high 34 runs scored and nine stolen bases. He also had three doubles, a homer and 12 RBI.
Dukes batted .307 to go with a .329 OBP, three doubles, one triple, 18 RBI and 16 runs, while Small batted .262 but with a .416 OBP, four doubles, three homers 11 RBI and 14 runs.
Jones batted .205 and owned a .304 OBP. He had a double, four RBI and nine runs. Tomlinson batted .204 but had a .461 OBP to go with two doubles, six RBI and 16 runs.
Dukes, Jones and Tomlinson were all key contributors on the mound. Dukes had a 7-0 win-loss record with a 1.71 earned run average in 49 innings pitched,. He struck out 46 batters while walking just 25 and allowing 37 hits.
Jones finished with a 6-2 record in 42 innings. He struck out 39 while walking just 15 and allowing 45 hits to go with a 1.59 ERA. Tomlinson was the closer, recording five saves in five opportunities. He had a 2.39 ERA and worked 26 1/3 innings in 11 appearances, striking out 38 while allowing just 17 hits and nine walks.
Coach Morris, who is not closely related to any Morris on the squad,l thinks all in all everything worked out fine in his first season.
“It was a weird type of year in that we only had two seniors,” the head coach said in reference to Kellahan and Connor Morris. “We were not quite as experienced, but these guys knew how to win. They are very talented kids, and it took a little bit to get it out of them. It was almost as good as you could ask for.”
The fact that the roster was filled with so many young players may have worked to the Stallions’ favor as far as the coach/player relationship goes. While Coach Morris had coached some of his players in youth sports, he is only four years older than Kellahan and actually were members of the same church youth group.
“They trusted me,” said Coach Morris, who played on Laurence Manning Academy’s 2022 state championship team. “They didn’t have to, but they did.”
WA SOFTBALL FINISHES 15-11
The Williamsburg softball team finished with a 15-11 record and reached the championship round of its bracket in the AAA state tournament at Patriot Park SportsPlex in Sumter.
The Stallions went 2-2 in the tournament. They lost to Colleton Prep Academy 8-7 in the opener before beating Dillon Christian School 14-12 in an elimination game. Williamsburg then beat Orangeburg Prep 8-7 to get to the championship round against Colleton Prep. CPA won that game by a 7-3 count.
Second-year head coach Jada Cox was proud of how her squad grew throughout the season.
“I think we started out very unsure and not confident with ourselves and how we played the game, and it definitely showed when we stepped on the field,” Cos said. “As the season wen on it got better, and we became more confident as a team and as individuals.
“When the state tournament came around we played as a complete team. Everyone was giving everything they had every game, and the girls never backed down. WE were playing for each other and not just for one person. Again, it showed on the field. Looking into next season, that’s how I want to start out, playing for each other and not just for one.”
Williamsburg had four players selected to the All-Region 3-AAA team. They were Preslee Cooper, Sophia Jacobs, Krisalyn Hanna and Abby Ward.
Jacobs led the Stallions in hitting with a .484 average to go along with a tam high 23 stolen bases. Hanna owned a .463 average, while Cooper was in the .300s.
Ward was a standout both at the plate and in the circle. She had a .367 batting average while striking out 207 batters in 102 innings to go with a 3,22 ERA.
