When to watch, who to watch, keys to Blythewood-Dutch Fork Class 5A baseball championship series
Class 5A Championship
Blythewood (25-8) vs. Dutch Fork (22-10)
Series schedule
Game 1 (Saturday) at Blythewood, 1 p.m.
Game 2 (Tuesday) at Dutch Fork, 7 p.m.
Game 3 (May 18, if necessary) at neutral site, TBA
All games will be carried on 102.7 FM or WPUB app
Blythewood (25-8)
Coach: Banks Faulkner
State championship appearances: 2
State championships: 0
How they got here: Byrnes 4-2; Greenwood 7-0; Riverside 3-5; Riverside 5-2; Fort Mill 13-3; JL Mann 6-5; JL Mann 3-0
Team Batting Average: .328
Home Runs: 23
Runs per game: 7.0
ERA: 1.54
Individual Leaders (Hitting): Landon Lucas .409, 6 HR, 33 RBI; John Lanier .381 9 HR, 36 RBI; Zach Bailes .372, 13 RBI, 33 runs; Jansen Stokes .263, 5 HR, 23 RBI; Nate Hinson .348, HR, 20 RBI
Individual Leaders (Pitching): Landon Lucas 7-0, 1.36 ERA, John Lanier 9-2 0.68 ERA, 61 Ks; Josh Cowan 0-0 0.72 ERA 4 SV, Davis Wright 6-2,1.44 ERA
Keys to series according to Blythewood coach Banks Faulkner:
1. “Winning the free base battle. They are very talented offensively and we need to make them earn everything they get. On the other hand, we thrive offensively when we can get runners on and do the things we like to do.”
2. “Details. The things we pride ourselves on daily will be key for us to win the series against a very good baseball team.”
Dutch Fork (22-10)
Coach: Casey Waites
State championship appearances: 2
State championships: 0
How they got here: South Florence 10-1; Fort Dorchester 17-5; Fort Dorchester 12-2; River Bluff 3-4; St. James 7-1; Summerville 8-4; River Bluff 4-2; River Bluff 6-2
Team Batting Average: .327
Home Runs: 14
Runs per game: 7.1
Team ERA: 3.33
Individual Leaders (Hitting): Bryan Helms .344 10 doubles, 2 HR, 29 RBI; Crosby Jones .242 HR, 21 RBI; Hugh Ryan .415 2 HR, 24 RBI; Lance Fuhr .372; 4 HR, 29 RBI; Noah Jackson .450 2 HR, 35 RBI; Ty Oenchuk .341, HR, 13 RBI, 29 runs
Individual Leaders (Pitching): Doug Webb 5-3 2.40 ERA, 60 Ks; Ty Olenchuk 5-1, 1.37 ERA, 61 Ks
Keys to the series, according to Dutch Fork coach Casey Waites:
1. “We just need to throw strikes and make them hit early in the count.”
Other SCHSL Baseball Championship Series
Class 4A
Eastside vs. Midland Valley
Saturday: at Eastside, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday: at Midland Valley
May 18: Neutral Site, if necessary
Class 3A
Crescent vs. Bishop England
Saturday: at Crescent, 2 p.m.
Tuesday: at Bishop England
May 18: Neutral Site, if necessary
Class 2A
Landrum vs. Oceanside Collegiate
Monday: at Landrum, 6 p.m.
Wednesday: at Oceanside Collegiate, 6 p.m.
May 18: Lexington Blowifish Stadium, if necessary
Class A
McBee vs.Green Sea Floyds
Saturday: at McBee, 6 p.m.
Tuesday: at Green Sea Floyds, 6 p.m.
May 18: Neutral Site, if necessary
This story was originally published May 10, 2019 at 4:37 PM.