Expectations heading into the 2018 season were unusually high for a group of northwest Georgia high school baseball teams, and while the recently completed nonregion portion of the season didn't dampen the enthusiasm, it did reveal some areas of need.
One year after three area teams, Heritage in Class AAAA and Calhoun and Coahulla Creek in Class AAA, reached the semifinal round of the state playoffs and Gordon Lee was the Class A public runner-up, there are lofty goals everywhere.
"We want a state championship," said Ringgold senior pitcher and shortstop Nathan Camp. "We know we have the team to do it, but we've got some work to do."
Camp's statement fits several other teams. For his Tigers (10-4, 2-0 in 6-AAA), who were upset in last season's quarterfinal round after earning a No. 1 ranking, the work involves shoring up the defense and getting more production out of the bottom of the batting order.
Ringgold entered the week ranked second by Georgia Dugout Preview and solidified that with a league-opening 6-2 win over Calhoun. The Tigers, who played their usual tough nonregion slate, have solid pitching with Camp and Holden Tucker and a potent top of the lineup that includes junior slugger Andre Tarver.
Calhoun also boasts a pair of pitching aces in Davis Allen and Brett Potts, but the Yellow Jackets' bats, outside of Ben King and Carson Kemp, have not gotten going. The state's top teams, which include defending state champion Blessed Trinity, are loaded with pitching, so Chip Henderson's Calhoun club needs to find ways to score.
Last season's other two strong 6-AAA teams, Coahulla Creek (4-7) and North Murray (3-8), are off to slow starts after suffering heavy graduation losses.
» In 6-AAAA, Heritage (8-5, 5-0) had a rough nonregion go of it but has won six of its past seven games, including a sweep of Ridgeland as the league opened its schedule followed by two wins against Northwest Whitfield this week. A weakness so far has been a lower part of the lineup that hasn't hit much yet.
The Generals have perhaps the area's best pitching staff, anchored by Georgia signee Cole Wilcox and fellow seniors Tripp Church, Johnathan Hickman and Justin Morris. That depth makes Eric Beagles' team, ranked fourth this week, the team to beat in a league that plays three-game series each week.
"I do like the format," Beagles said. "Pitching is the key and doing it this way we have some flexibility with scheduling, which should keep teams from having too many games backed up due to bad weather."
Another 6-AAAA team heavy on pitching, Northwest Whitfield, is off to a disappointing start at 5-9. With Hank Bearden and Ty Fisher, though, the Bruins have the starting pitching to earn another playoff berth.
» In 6-AAAAAA, Dalton's run at or near the top of the Atlanta-area region is in danger. Heavy graduation losses hurt the Catamounts (6-5, 0-4), who are hitting just .286 early on. League foes River Ridge (11-2, 4-0) and Allatoona (9-4, 4-0) are ranked No. 1 and No. 4, respectively.
» In 7-AA, Rockmart (7-5, 3-0), ranked third, is the team to beat, but area programs Chattooga (5-7, 2-1) and Dade County (5-5, 2-1) hope also to make runs at the playoffs. Chattooga's Indians have the pitching to get there in starters Dexter Brown and Brannon Whitlock, while the Wolverines have a senior-laden lineup capable of scoring plenty of runs.
» In 6-A, Gordon Lee (8-2, 4-0) holds the state's No. 1 power ranking and just completed a two-game sweep of North Cobb Christian. The Trojans have an experienced, deep lineup anchored by catcher Dylan Minghini and a pitching staff led by senior Austin Thompson.
Trion (4-2, 1-2) is ranked ninth despite a rocky start that hasn't been helped by several postponed games. In the private school-heavy Region 6, though, the Bulldogs just need to stay in the upper half of the league to earn a public school playoff berth.