The Harrells Christian Academy baseball, women’s soccer, and softball teams all took care of business in the regular season to gain a spot in the NCISAA Division II State Playoffs.
The Varsity Baseball team enters the state playoffs as a #4 seed and will take on Calvary Baptist on Thursday, May 7th at home. The grudge match is set to begin at 4:30. The Varsity baseball team closed out the regular season with a loss to Parrott Academy in the regular season conference championship game. The Crusaders came up just shy of claiming their third conference title in three years. The Patriots overcame an 3-2 lead after some late inning heroics which led to a 4-3 victory over the Crusaders. The Crusaders have been solid across the diamond led by explosive offense at the plate. Out of the 17 man roster 6 players are batting over .400 and 8 players are batting over .300. Chance Bryant, a standout sophomore from Elizabethtown, is sporting an incredible .525 batting average on the season. The Crusaders are not only swinging the bat with confidence but they are also shutting it down when they toe the pitching rubber. The 8 man squad that shares pitching duties has kept earns runs to a minimum by posting a 2.71 combined era on the year. The Crusader pitching rotation is led by senior Mike Smith who has posted a 5-1 record to go along side 35 innings pitched in eight starts. The senior has also recorded 39 strikeouts on the year contributing to the teams 114 total strike outs. The Diamond Crusaders will look to make a deep run in the playoffs again this year. The Crusaders came up just shy last year by losing to Westchester Country Day School in the state championship series.
The Varsity Women’s Soccer team enters the state playoffs as a #5 seed forcing them to play a first round game against the #12 seeded Gaston Day on Friday, May 8th— Weather permitting. The Lady Crusaders closed out the regular season with a huge 4-0 victory over Coastal Christian to claim their spot as Coastal Rivers Conference Regular Season Runner-up. The closed out the regular season with a record of 12-3-1. The Crusaders exhibit talent all across the pitch. Four HCA players received all conference honors including senior Margaret Clark, senior Natalie Hardin, junior Haley Bowles, and sophomore goalie Emily Benton. Among accolades on the state level senior Margaret Clark and junior Haley Bowles received all state honors. The Lady Crusaders will look to continue their success as they prepare to make a run at a state championship.
The Varsity softball team enters the state playoffs as a #2 seed and will start their playoff run on Tuesday, May 12th at home against Concord First Assembly. The Crusaders closed out the regular season with 8-4 record. The Crusaders clinched a share of the Coastal Rivers Conference Regular Season Title after defeating rival Parrott Academy 12-4. HCA battled back after an early 4-0 deficit to eventually take a demanding lead and a share of a conference title. The Lady Crusaders will look to claim their third state championship title in three years as they make their run in the playoffs. The Crusaders have never been granted a #1 seed even when they have won a state title the past two years— So could the Lady Crusaders 3-peat? Only time will tell!
No comments:
Post a Comment