Pee Dee teams ready for lower state finals

On a mission since the start of the season, the Johnsonville baseball team is right were it wants to be.

Now the Flashes have two chances to make sure history doesn’t repeat itself.

Johnsonville faces Bamberg-Ehrhardt today at 5:30 p.m. as the baseball and softball lower state championships begin.

The Red Raiders ended the Flashes’ playoff run each of the last two years. Johnsonville gained a small measure of revenge Tuesday with a 9-8 win over Bamberg.

Down 7-5 late, the Flashes scored four runs to pull away from Bamberg. Junior Josh Powell collected his 100th career hit in the inning as the heart of Johnsonville’s lineup came through.

“It was a great high school baseball game with a state championship atmosphere,” Johnsonville coach Scott Cook said. “Either team could have won, and it’s always big to get a win over a program like Bamberg’s.”

Cook said his team is pleased with where they are, but hasn’t lost sight of the main goal.

“They know what they want, and that’s three more victories,” Cook said. “Bamberg’s a good team, and they’re not going to go down easy.

“But our guys have a confidence and a toughness about them. They never believe they’re out of any game or can’t battle back against any situation.”

While the baseball team is used to the lower state limelight, the Flashes’ softball program will host its first title game ever, coach Ryan Poston said.

“This is new to the girls softball-wise, but a lot of them have played on lower state championship teams in tennis and volleyball,” Poston said. “So they are used to succeeding athletically.”

Johnsonville will face East Clarendon at xx p.m., the same team the Flashes beat 2-0 on Saturday.

A pitcher’s duel for 5 1/2 innings, Taylor Prosser drove in the only runs with a two-out, two run double in the bottom of the sixth for Johnsonville.

“I think both teams have good pitching, and both expected to be here,” Poston said. “Over the last five years, we’ve tried to develop the mentality that we’re supposed to be here and supposed to succeed.”

For the Wolverines, it’s a now-or-never situation for a lot of the players. The four seniors and five juniors have played together for more than three seasons.

“It’s crunch time now, and I think the girls have matured enough over the last few seasons to handle the situation,” East Clarendon coach Judy Coker said. “They’re not going to give up easily.”

With the two squad coming from different regions, Coker hopes Saturday’s matchup against Johnsonville ace Rachel Gaster will prove useful.

“We worked on some different things, worked on being more patient at the plate,” Coker said. “Now that we’ve seen her, we’re looking forward to seeing if we can adjust.”

In Class 4A, the South Florence Bruins will play in their eighth straight lower state championship.

The Bruins are going for their third state championship in the last four seasons. They’ll host Stratford at 5:30 p.m..

“Basically, we’re playing well at the right time and have good team chemistry,” South Florence coach Bobby Jones said of his 25-1 Bruins. “We’ve had good pitching all year and good defense behind the pitching, so that’s a big key for us.”

South defeated Stratford 3-1 on Monday behind seven strong innings from starter Kaiti Harper. Stratford is the defending lower state champion and the team that ended the Bruins’ quest for a three-peat last season.

“They’ve got seven starters back, so obviously they’re still a very good team,” Jones said. “We just have to make sure we continue to execute and play fundamental softball.”

The Cheraw softball team will vie for the Class 2A title against Waccamaw. The Braves lost to Waccamaw in the first round of the lower state playoffs, 6-0.
But Cheraw responded with wins over Barnwell and Hannahan to earn a rematch with the Indians.

today’s games
Baseball
Class A
Bamberg-Ehrhardt at Johnsonville, 5:30 p.m.
Softball
Class 4A
Stratford at South Florence 5:30 p.m.
Class 2A
Cheraw at Waccamaw,
5:30 p.m.
Class A
East Clarendon at Johnsonville, 5:30 p.m.