Jun. 13—It’s been a difficult prep sports season all across the board.
Baseball — just like softball, tennis and track — did not get to crown a champion last spring after spring sports were canceled due to the pandemic. This year, roughly three weeks later than normal, three baseball champions will be determined to close out a 2020-21 athletic year no one will ever forget.
Before that, there are 12 regional championships to be decided. That process starts Monday with best-of-3 series across the state.
Here is a look at the matchups for Region 3:
Class A
James Monroe at Charleston Catholic, Monday
Charleston Catholic at James Monroe, Tuesday
James Monroe at Charleston Catholic (if necessary), Wednesday
all games 6 p.m.
James Monroe (16-8) gave up one run in each of its three sectional games and won by an average of 10 runs. Andrew Hazelwood has been a star on the mound for the Mavericks, posting a 1.36 earned run average and 1.09 WHIP. He has 86 strikeouts and 27 walks over 51 1/3 innings. The Mavs also get innings from Brendan Hale, Brady Sizemore and Cody Moore.
Cooper Ridgeway leads James Monroe with a .392 batting average. Moore (.375) has five doubles and 24 runs batted in. Hazelwood (.364) has hit nine doubles and has a 1.011 OPS.
Charleston Catholic (22-8) is seemingly here every year. Jacob Hufford has posted a 10-1 record to go with 65 strikeouts and a 2.42 ERA. Evan Sayre (5-1, 2.59) and J.W. Armstrong (4-0, 3.08) lend depth to the Irish rotation.
Armstrong is batting .438 and has driven in 26 runs to lead Charleston Catholic offensively. Thomas Rennie (.371) has 32 RBIs and Sayre (.360) has driven in 27. Liam McGinley is hitting .406 and Hufford has stolen 23 bases.
Class AA
Bluefield at Independence, Monday
Independence at Bluefield, Tuesday
Bluefield at Independence (if necessary), Wednesday
all games 6 p.m.
With a deep, balanced pitching staff and a lineup that has produced 1 through 9, Independence (21-3) has put together a dominant season.
The Patriots are batting .392 as a team and averaging 10.96 runs per game. While established hitters Michael McKinney (.446) and Atticus Goodson (.409) have been strong like expected, sophomore Clay Basham has emerged in the cleanup spot. Basham is batting .571 and has driven in 50 runs. He also has nine doubles and an OPS of 1.409.
McKinney and Goodson have four home runs each. McKinney also has 12 doubles and 33 RBIs. Junior Elijah Farrington has been hitting at the No. 9 hole and bringing Goodson back around, doing so to the tune of a .448 batting average.
Basham has also been dependable on the mound with a 5-1 record and 1.30 ERA. Senior Hunter Schoolcraft (6-0, 2.86), junior Tanner Sipes (3-1, 2.18), Goodson (3-1, 2.03), Andy Lester (2-0, 2.33) and McKinney (2-0, 1.17) all give Indy the kind of pitching depth necessary for the postseason.
Bluefield goes in as sectional champion for the first time since 2006. Hunter Harmon is batting .517 with 10 doubles, three triples, 44 RBIs and 35 runs to lead the Beavers. Gavin is hitting .500 with 31 runs and 30 RBIs.
Also strong at the plate have been Bryson Redmond (.462, 41 R) and Carson Deeb (.443, 41 R, 33 RBIs). Brandon Wiley is a baserunning threat with 40 stolen bases and 46 runs scored.
Deeb is 6-1 on the mound with a 1.37 ERA. He has 62 strikeouts and 18 walks in 41 innings. Bluefield can also give the ball to Kerry Collins (7-2, 2.80, 58 Ks) and Ryker Brown (7-0, 1.21, 69 Ks).
Class AAA
Oak Hill at St. Albans, Monday
St. Albans at Oak Hill, Tuesday
Oak Hill at St. Albans (if necessary), Wednesday
all games 7 p.m.
Faced with a difficult task, Oak Hill responded. After losing to No. 1 seed Greenbrier East in the sectional winners bracket, the Red Devils had to win three straight elimination games.
That they did, including two straight over the Spartans to secure their second straight sectional title.
Ty Nelson is batting .364 with four doubles, two home runs and 17 RBIs. Zane Wolfe (.324) has five doubles and has scored 29 runs. Jacob Ward is batting .309.
Bradley Lokant (4-3, 48 innings pitched) has been a clutch pitcher for Oak Hill. Wolfe is 2-2 and freshman Jayden McLain 2-1. He struck out six and pitched around 10 walks over eight innings in a 9-6 win over East that forced a decisive second game for the championship.
St. Albans (23-7) has four players batting over .400, led by Tyson Burke’s .495. He also has 30 RBIs. Drew Whitman is at .486 and has scored 37 runs. Will Campbell (.410, 24 RBIs) and Trent Short (.407, 30 RBIs) have been consistent. Garrett Comer is the leader in RBIs with 37 and Carson McCoy leads the way in runs scored with 43.
Campbell leads the pitching staff with a 7-1 record and 1.89 ERA. Joining him are Comer (4-2, 3.41) and Burke (4-4, 6.00).
Steve Keenan contributed to this story.