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By: Zac Bottoms
Arkansas Scouting Director

The 3A State Finals will be played Saturday, May 23^rd at Baum Stadium. Arkansas High School state championships are won on a consistent bases by a handful of teams in each classification traditionally. This year a new champion will be crowned, with neither Fordyce HS or Mayflower HS have ever won a state title. This is not to say they haven’t been close. Fordyce is making their 3^rd consecutive trip to the finals, coming up just short to Harding Academy and Genoa Central. Mayflower has been a consistent contender since Coach Joe Albritton took the reins.

Pitching

Fordyce HS: Pitching and defense led the way for the Redbugs as they only allowed 5 runs in 3 games to reach the final. Most impressively putting the clamps on a Horatio team that had scored double digit runs in their last 7 games. 2016 RHP Ross Rogers pitched that game and expect to see him in finals. Rogers throws a mid 80’s fastball and compliments his fastball with a curveball he throws for strikes.

Mayflower HS: 2015 RHP Drew Duncan and 2015 RHP Tyler Godwin have led this pitching staff all season. I expect Godwin will get the ball in the finals. He works from a low ¾ arm slot with his fastball 82-85 mph, his out pitch is a sharp slider that he has above average command of.

Hitting

Fordyce HS:  A disciplined group that grinds out at bats and executes their offense. Give credit to Coach Tim Rodgers for molding this group into an effective offense. After back to back runner up finishes the Red Bugs looked to be in rebuild mode this year with just 2 seniors on the 2015 roster.

Mayflower HS: A group that has shown the ability to run balls out of the yard on a consistent basis. The eagles hit home runs in every game in the State and Regional Tournaments. 2015 C Justin Case and 2015 OF Tyler Herrin are consistent threats to get extra base hits.

Defense

Both teams take pride in being sound defensively. It seems to be in each teams DNA to defend, don’t expect this game to be determined by miscues defensively.

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