The data isn't completely in – that will be in a couple weeks or so – but as of now, the spring sports teams at HIES have been playoff perfect, in that all teams have earned a slot or already advanced, while golf will tee their postseason hopes up early this week.
Starting with baseball, our region champ Bears easily swept Savannah Country Day 12-0, 14-0 this past Friday at HI, with both games shortened but long on Golden Bear pitching and hitting. Amaree Griffin and Bryce Floyd were the winning hurlers, while Taylor Fuller was one of many who stood out at the plate.
Coach Jeff Rowland's squad will return to action early this week as the Bears hope to roll on.
In soccer, both the girls and boys coasted to 10-0 wins in Round 1 – the girls topped Prince Avenue Christian while the boys handled Heritage Christian. The girls are no strangers to mercy-rule routes, where the likes of Paige Jacquin, Avery Bennett, and Sydney Williams some of the many that keep the pressure on.
For the boys, Bradlee Williams and Sairis Panah are leading in the scoring department, though Coach Tyler Santee has also been getting great midfield help and solid goalkeeping from the likes of Jackson Mullins and Hudson Stephens.
Both tennis teams also cruised through their first round last week; the girls took care of Whitefield while the boys topped King's Ridge. The girls have depth; the singles are led by Rylee Swain, Maia O'Leary, and Ellison Losin, while the top doubles team of Maddie Lawrence and Auldyn Patak have also been solid.
The second doubles slot has also been strong; Coach Jeri Finlay has used several different combinations there and usually with success.
The boys move on behind good singles play from Jay McKown, different singles stars, and some depth at doubles led largely by the duo of Grant Heerin and Will Vinci.
Looking ahead, the boys will travel to Wesleyan Monday; the girls will take to the road to take on Darlington Tuesday.
Moving to track, 14 individuals and one relay team got through the Area Meet last Friday and will travel to Trinity Christian this Saturday, where the top eight in each event will move on to state. Colt McNamara is the defending state champ in the shot – he won the shot and the discus last week.
Others were impressive, some of which include jumpers Bryce Smith, Zion Tillis, A.J. Donnelly, and Andrew Forgione. Olivia Sharper and Brendan Ganucheau have led the hurdlers; Caden Page and Brayden Bailey lead the sprinters, Harris Bradford the distance runners, and several others also punched their tickets to Sectionals.
The lacrosse teams just ended regular season and will begin postseason this week. For the girls, Fallon Kaufman, Byrdie Chartrand, Evie Price, keeper Sophia Ocampo have been some of the many stars, though Coach Brittnee Devries has had many and plenty leading at midfield and on defense.
The boys finished a good regular season and have a good crop of youth mixed with veteran talent. Jack Chaloupek, Dallas Strickland, keeper Braiden Lynn, Bennett Burroughs, and Matthew Mikita are some of the many who have stepped up.
As for golf, the girls will tee up it this week as defending state champs, and they are led again by sophomore Molly Spector and junior Brooke Benedict, both who have continued to prove one of the top one-two combos in Georgia.
The boys, according to Coach Jason Rutledge, has perhaps the deepest team he's ever had that's been led by many. Logan Skaggs, Sammy Herd, Nick McKay, Matt Binney, Marshall Flack, and James Carper are a few of the 13 on the roster who have shown.
All in all, stay tuned to our sports media outlets as we follow what hopes to be deep playoff runs for all involved.
