DUNN – Four East Bladen players – seniors Evan Pait, Zamar Lewis and Garrison Tatum and junior Jake Futrell – and 3 West Bladen sophomores – Garrett Dunham, Brady Durden and Cade Allen – have all been named to the All-Southeastern Athletic Conference baseball team.
Pait batted .379 with 27 hits and 16 runs scored. The pitcher/shortstop slammed 2 doubles, 2 triples and a home run while driving in 9 runs. On the mound, Pait posted a 4-2 record with a 4.18 earned run average and struck out 76 batters in 45.2 innings. Highlights included: 14 strikeouts in 11-3 win over Western Harnett; 15 strikeouts in a 2-hit shutout of St. Pauls and 4.2 innings of relief with 9 strikeouts in playoff win over East Duplin.
Lewis led the Eagles in most offensive categories batting .476 with 30 hits, 29 runs scored and 18 runs batted in. The speedy firstbaseman slugged 3 home runs, 5 doubles, 3 triples and stole 17 bases. Lewis knocked in 5 runs with 3 hits against Clinton and walloped a home run and a triple at West Bladen.
Tatum batted .309 with 17 hits, 8 RBIs and 8 runs scored. The Eagle catcher hammered 4 doubles and a home run and stole 8 bases. His 8th inning home run proved to be the game-winner in a 5-4 win at Clinton.
Futrell posted a 5-3 record and a 3.59 earned run average on the mound for the Eagles. At the plate the junior infielder batted .353 and drove in 14 runs with 18 hits, 10 runs scored and 3 doubles. Futrell struck out 61 batters in 50 innings. Key performances included 9 strikeouts in a tournament win over Richmond and a complete game win at Fairmont.
Dunham led the Knights with a .414 batting average, 29 hits, 28 runs scored and 4 doubles. The pitcher-shortstop also knocked in 16 runs, stole 10 bases and hammered 2 triples. On the mound, Dunham had a 2-2 record with 1 save. Highlights included pitching 6 innings in 5-4 win over East Bladen and driving in 3 runs with 3 hits in the Knight wins over East.
Durden topped the West Bladen pitchers with a 7-2 record, 2 saves and a 2.32 earned run average. The pitcher-outfielder struck out 55 batters in 45 innings, recorded 7 strikeouts in a complete game win at East Bladen and earned the save in the other East Bladen game. He pitched 5 innings of relief to pick up the playoff win at Heide Trask. Durden batted .286 with 12 hits, 8 RBIs, 7 runs scored and 3 doubles.
Allen batted .394 with 28 hits, 25 RBIs, 19 runs and 4 doubles. On the hill Allen had a 1-1 record with a 4.74 earned run average and struck out 10 batters in 10 innings of work. The pitcher-outfielder belted 4 hits and drove in 3 runs in the playoff win at Trask, knocked in 5 runs with 2 hits in a win at West Columbus and was 2-3 with 3 RBIs in 7-2 win at East Columbus.
Midway was the conference champion and had the Player of the Year in John Nelson McLamb and the Coach of the Year in Justin Carroll.
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