AAA softball lower state tournament could be another Region 7 party

           Sumter – The lower state tournament of the AAA softball state playoffs is shaping up to be another party for Region 7.

           Defending state champion Aynor, Loris and Dillon each won their respective district tournaments last season to advance to the 4-team, double-elimination lower state tournament. Each is in position to do the same this season.

           Each of them had advanced to the championship round of their 4-team, double-elimination district tournaments – Aynor in District 8, Dillon in District 5 and Loris in District 6. Each is waiting to play at home on Wednesday, May 8, needing to win just one game while their foes will have to beat them twice in order to advance to the lower state tournament.

           Let’s take a look at each of the eight district tournaments and check out the possibilities.

           DISTRICT 8

           Aynor is 18-4 on the season after going 10-0 in winning Region 7 and its two playoff games. The Blue Jackets beat both Philip Simmons and Marlboro County, which was the fourth team in last year’s lower state tournament, by 15-0 counts.

           Aynor is led by junior pitcher Maddie Johnson, who is committed to Clemson.

           Aynor is waiting to face either Marlboro County or Dreher. Marlboro County beat Dreher 10-0 in the first round.

           DISTRICT 6

           Loris finished second in Region 7 and owns a 22-6 record.  The Lions beat Battery Creek 11-1 in their opening game before beating Region 6 champion Camden 6-2 in the winner’s bracket game.

           The Lions have a potent offense, batting .371 as a team. Sophomore Haley Spence is the offensive leader. She owns an even .500 batting average and leads with 36 runs batted in. She’s tied for the team lead in triples with three and also has 11 doubles, two home runs and 34 runs scored.

           Sophomore Caitie Black leads in homers with three and is tied for the lead in runs with 37 while batting .466. Sophomore Kenzie McCoy also has 37 runs and three triples to go with a .411 average, eight doubles, two homers and 23 RBI.

           Senior Karley Hand leads in doubles with 12 and has a .429 average with 23 RBI. Freshman Jessie Cartrette is batting .384.

           Black has 32 stolen bases while McCoy has 18, Spence 16 and Cartrette and Hand both have 11.

           Loris has three pitchers who have pitched many innings. Hand has a 10-4 win-loss record with a 1.26 earned run average in 77 2/3 innings. Cartrette is 6-2 with a 0.73 ERA in 47 2/3 innings and freshman Bellamie Gore is 6-0 with a 1.62 ERA in 43 1/3 innings.

           Hand has been selected to play in the North-South All-Star Series.

           Camden is scheduled to play host to Battery Creek on May 6 to get another shot at Loris.

           DISTRICT 5

           Dillon finished third in Region 7 with a 6-4 record and is 14-5 on the season. The Wildcats advanced to the championship round by going on the road to beat Beaufort 6-3 in the first round.

They got to play at home in the second round after Lake City whipped Region 5 champion Swansea 16-5 in the other first-round game. Dillon beat Lake City 6-0 thanks to a 1-hit shutout by pitcher Paige Sherman.

Sherman and Cierra Grice are the offensive leaders for Dillon.

Lake City and Swansea are to meet on May 6 for the chance to advance to the championship round.

DISTRICT 7

The winner of this district will be the fourth team in the lower state tournament. It is Gilbert that is in the driver’s seat.

The Indians, who finished second in Region 5, beat Region 6 No. 3 Darlington 2-1 in their opening game. They followed that up with a 6-1 triumph over Region 8 champion Hanahan.

Gilbert’s Ayden Leaphart is a North-South selection

Hanahan will play host to Georgetown in an elimination game on May 6 to get back to Gilbert. Georgetown, the fourth-place team from Region 7, lost to Hanahan 7-3 before beating Darlington 5-4 in an elimination game.

DISTRICT 1

Woodruff is sitting in the driver’s seat in this district. The No. 2 team from Region 4, Woodruff beat Powdersville 3-0 in its opening game before knocking off Region 1 champion Pendleton in the winner’s bracket contest.

Woodruff will be meeting one of those two teams in the championship round. They face off on May 6 at Pendleton.

DISTRICT 2

Crescent, the defending upper state champion, is in position to win this district. However, it is doing so as a No. 2 seed, not a region champion.

The Tigers finished second to Pendleton in Region 1. They are 18-4 on the year after beating Blue Ridge 9-1 in the first round and edging Region 4 champion Union County 10-8 in the winner’s bracket contest.

Crescent has two North-South picks in Brantley Davis and Jaylin Hart

Union County will play host to Blue Ridge in an elimination game on May 6.

DISTRICT 3

Belton-Honea Path is another No. 2 seed in the championship round. BHP, the Region 2 runner-up, opened with a 14-2 victory over Chester. It got to play at home in the winner’s bracket game after Region 1 No. 4 West-Oak beat Region 3 champion Chapman in the other first-round game. Belton-Honea Path squeezed out a 2-1 win over West-Oak.

BHP also has a pair of North-South selections in Chloe Maness and Chaney Crosby.

Chapman beat Chester 10-0 in an elimination game and will again play host to West-Oak on May 6 in a game that decides who takes on Belton-Honea Path.

DISTRICT 4

Palmetto has been pretty stout in reaching the championship round. The Region 2 champion beat Clinton 11-1 in the first round before taking down Region 1 No. 3 Daniel in the winner’s bracket contest.

Daniel, which blanked Travelers Rest 6-0 in the first round, will meet Travelers Rest again on May 6 in an elimination game.

So for a recap, if the undefeated teams come through, you will have Aynor, Loris, Dillon and Gilbert in the lower state tournament and Palmetto, Crescent, Belton-Honea Path and Woodruff battling in the upper state tournament.

HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS REPORT AAA POLL

1.  Aynor

2.  Belton-Honea Path

3.  Palmetto

4. Loris

5.  Dillon

6. Crescent

7.  Chapman

8. Gilbert

9. Woodruff

10. Travelers Rest

11. Union County

12. Pendleton

13. Powdersville

14. Daniel

15. Hanahan