Disregarding conference finish, this week’s poll is geared toward projecting postseason success, or order of finish in the area. As a low seed in the first round, it’s likely Lumberton will have to beat another squad’s ace on the road. That isn’t an ideal situation for a team that, at times, is offensively deficient. The same goes for South Robeson’s struggles at the plate. If the Mustangs don’t hit, their playoff trip will be short and sweet.
As the Three Rivers Conference’s third-place team, Red Springs is this year’s wild-card. Could the Red Devils win a playoff game?
Absolutely.
They are the top 1A seed from the six-team league. Is it likely they make it past Round 2?
Probably not.
St. Pauls has been carried by its pitching in the season’s final month, led by all-county shoe-ins Josh Thompson and Jhamel Leonard. As one of the area’s most consistent teams on the mound and at the plate, the Bulldogs are looking ahead with a strong performance in the playoff opener.
Fairmont has continued its winning ways and will most likely capture the conference tournament this week. Regardless of what happens against league-foes, the Golden Tornadoes are focused on a playoff run. They are hitting the ball more consistently at the opportune time.
If I had to guess, Fairmont, South Robeson and St. Pauls are each capable of reaching the third round, but only one will do so.
And that’s likely Sandy Thorndyke’s bunch.
6. Purnell Swett (6-15): The season is finally over for the Rams but this year’s senior class must understand the squad performed better than the record indicates. Taking away positives from a 15-loss campaign is difficult, but the Rams were in a number of games and — with a deeper, more solid bullpen — would’ve probably won at least 10 games. Should head coach Kelly Chavis return next season, he’ll have a talented crop of newcomers and key returnees to help Swett climb out of the bottom of the Southeastern Conference.
5. Red Springs (10-9): Red Springs battles West Columbus today at 4:30 p.m. in the opening round of the conference tournament at Fairmont. Red Springs is one of those teams that, with the right matchup, can win a playoff game based on its starting pitching alone. The Red Devils open the state playoffs with a home game on May 11.
4. St. Pauls (9-9): If the top of the order continues to produce for the Bulldogs, you have to look at St. Pauls as a playoff threat who could make noise in the first few rounds. As the league’s No. 2 seed, the Bulldogs have a first-round bye in today’s Three Rivers tournament. They’ll play a semi-final game on Thursday against the winner of Red Springs and West Columbus.
3. South Robeson (16-8): The Mustangs played well in Monday’s win over East Columbus and take on the Gators again today in the opening round of the conference tournament. Should South Robeson continues its recent span of timely hitting, the fourth-seeded Mustangs have a legitimate shot at capturing a title this week. If not, an early exit isn’t out of the question.
2. Lumberton (15-9): The Pirates saw their two-game, Purnell Swett-winning streak snapped Tuesday in Laurinburg but still hold strong in the two hole this week. Defensively, Lumberton folded against the Scots with five errors in the sixth inning that led to eight runs. Giving quality teams extra outs isn’t going to win many ballgames and that is the reason for most of the Pirates’ nine losses this season. Lumberton is the county’s best team on the basepaths and will use that to its advantage in the postseason.
1. Fairmont (16-4): The Golden Tornadoes host this week’s conference tournament and get a first-round bye this afternoon. Thorndyke is using this week as an opportunity for his team to improve before the playoffs, not necessarily a do-or-die tournament. With a full week lay-off before Fairmont's first postseason game, the time to get more reps is now.
This poll will take a brief hiatus during the state playoffs. Final rankings will be released with all-county content later in May.
