Class 7A Preview: Regions 1, 2, & 3

January 14, 2019
By PBR Georgia Staff

Welcome to PBR Georgia’s 7A week!

This week marks the start of our high school coverage, now that we’re about 27 days out from the first pitch of the GHSA season. We’ll open our coverage by examining the 48 programs that make up the state’s 7A class, comprised of some of the most powerful and prestigious programs in the country, including last year’s 7A champs Parkview.

Today, we’ll start our coverage by touching on notes and recaps on the 2018 season for the schools representing GHSA regions 1, 2, 3 in the 7A class.

REGION 1

The Valdosta-area high school Lowndes is back in 2019 as the favorites to win the Region 1’s crown. After going 9-3 in regional play in 2018, the Vikings earned a top seed in the 7A state tournament. After trouncing Campbell by a combined score of 31-6 in the first round, Lowndes had to face a Lassiter team that was fresh off a dismantling of Kennesaw Mountain. Ultimately, it was Lassiter that won the first two games of their best-of-three series, thus ending Lowndes’ season.

Still, the Vikings will be rostering some of this region’s best prospects, including southpaw ace Dalton Smith, a Georgia Tech commit and senior. Tyler Andrews, a junior, lives on the Florida side of the border and will anchor the middle of this infield on defense. And then there’s senior C.J. Rose, a big left-handed-hitting corner infielder who hit over .400 for Lowndes last spring. His middle-of-the-order production should carry over into 2019, allowing the Vikings to improve on their 22-12 record last spring, en route to a round of 16 appearance in the state playoffs.

Elsewhere in Region 1, Colquitt finished just a game behind Lowndes (8-4) in 2018 regional action. In the first round of the playoffs, the Packers shut-out Wheeler in back-to-back games and earned a second-round meeting with reigning champs Etowah. Colquitt took the defending champs to a game three in the round of 16, but fell short of the upset.

However, the Packers graduated quite a bit of talent in the 2018 class and, while talented, will have to deal with inexperience at the varsity level this spring. Head Coach Tony Kirkland will be up to the task, all while juggling a highly skilled group of underclassmen eager to make an early impression.

Given Colquitt’s relative youth and lack of big-game experience in their starting lineup this spring, Camden might be the other team in this region to give Lowndes trouble while they seek out a repeat regional title. Their pitching staff will be buoyed by one of this region’s best arms: senior Aaron Wainwright, a Georgia Southern commit, who led the team in strikeouts last season. Junior lefty Chris Mobley earned a handful of appearances as a sophomore last spring and is a candidate to really support Wainwright’s as the staff’s No. 2.

Finally, for Tift, the Blue Devils will look to improve on a 3-9 finish in this regional last year. Regardless of their 2018 record, there’s at least a few reasons to watch them play. Senior OF Trey Barfield, as well as junior infielders Mason Avant and Owen Manning, could help Tift County rebound in 2019.

REGION 2

After going 15-0 in regional play last year, the Newnan Cougars were one of the top seeds in the state playoffs were they were pit against Roswell, who earned a spot at state with an at-large bid. The Hornets pushed Newnan, surprisingly, to a third game in their series where the Cougars came out on top. Unfortunately for Newnan, the unexpected loss in the previous round was ultimately a forecast into Newman’s future, swept in the second round and outscored 18-4 by North Paulding.

Seniors OF Woody Waters and LHP Jaxon O’Neal (Gordon CC) should lead back to Newnan back to state in 2019. They were two of the best players on last year’s team and should only offer more to the Cougars this year. Waters hit .485 and drove in 16 runs for Newnan and O’Neal was one of the top pitchers across Region 2, leading the Cougars with 80 punch-outs and 1.47 ERA.

Finishing right behind Newnan last spring in the region were the East Coweta Indians, at 12-3. They, too, finished their season a little abruptly. As the home team and higher seed in their matchup against aforementioned Camden, the Indians could only muster three runs in their two games against Camden. They weren’t able to escape the first round last spring, but they’re returning a healthy number of staples, including one of the state’s top-ranked catchers, Ryan Dyal. The Auburn commit is the No. 30-ranked prospect in Georgia’s 2019 class is athletic enough to bounce around the field for his team on defense and has a simple and strong swing from the left side.

While Newnan and East Coweta are likely to be the ones duking it out for the top spot in this region, the remaining four programs each have talents that could help pull out an upset – in either the state tournament or in regional action. Westlake’s Myles Austin is the No. 10-ranked prospect in the state’s senior class. The Alabama commit is beaming with athleticism and projection and looks like he has the makings of becoming a gifted shortstop. Campbell righty Michael Braswell is committed to South Carolina and is a top-25 ranked sophomore nationally, already capable of touching the upper 80s with his fastball.

Michael Braswell (15U WWBA, 10/6/18)

For Wheeler, there are three prospects that should be on your radar: uncommitted seniors RHP Jeff Norman and INF Noah Welkis, as well as junior OF Mike Musser. The Wildcats were the only team not named East Coweta or Newnan to finish above .500 in Region 2, and given the state of their 2019 class, they could be primed for a surprising run in the region and at state.

Finally, there’s Pebblebrook. After an embattled 2-21 season (0-15 in their region), the Falcons will look to build onto 2018 with the help of junior INF Illdyla Maddox. In a brief stint at the varsity level last spring, Maddox made a big impression with his bat.

REGION 3

Despite a 15-1 record, Hillgrove was handed a tough task as Region 3’s No. 1 seed in first round at state. The Hawks were matched up with Etowah, the 2017 state champions, and the Eagles were able to prove that 2017 was no fluke in their attempt to defend their state title. They pushed past both Hillgrove and Colquitt before meeting eventual champs Parkview in the quarterfinals. It’s hard to say if Hillgrove is the favorite to win the region again this spring. Still, the Hawks have RHP Max DeJong. The Georgia commit is the No. 22 prospect in the state’s junior class and should bolster Hillgrove’s efforts to redeem themselves from an abrupt halt to their otherwise successful 2018.

Seniors 1B Reid Brown (Austin Peay commit), OF Alex McCay (Mercer), INF Wade Richardson (Columbia State), and LHP Ethan Wright (Flagler College) should be able to combine their efforts to make Hillgrove formidable once again in 2019.

After going 8-7 last spring, North Paulding might have the most buzz to come out on top of this region in 2019, ending Hillgrove's three-year run as champs. A plethora of starters return, including an ace in the making, RHP Zach Maxwell. The Georgia Tech commit has premium arm strength and is the No. 28-ranked senior in this state’s class. Three other seniors could pull their weight, too: OF Mickey McGuire, INF Cole Dunn, and RHP Chandler Wood (Chattahoochee Valley CC).

It was Kennesaw Mountain that actually finished second (9-6) in this region last spring. They have a chance to finish first this time around, though they’re going to miss 1B Ryland Goede. The 6-foot-7 first baseman is a top football prospect too and was a hulking presence in the middle of the Mustangs’ lineup. He decided to enroll at Georgia a semester early, meaning he won’t be a part of the Mustangs’ plans this spring. Seniors OF Jarrett Guest and INF Will Crumb will have to do their best to fill in the voided production left by Goede’s massive absence.

North Cobb, McEachern, and Marietta finished fourth, fifth, and sixth in this region in 2018 but these programs contain prospects capable of lifting them to greater heights this season. North Cobb sophomore Harry Ford is an advanced backstop and is an excellent athlete, regardless of position, allowing him to roam the outfield, too. McEachern’s Victor Scott is returning for the final spring of his prep career before heading off to West Virginia. He’s a top-20-ranked prospect in his state’s senior class and is a premium defender in center field and also has some sneaky pop, too. And don’t let last season’s record fool you, Marietta has a couple seriously talented players in their dugout: senior 1B/LHP George Krivsky and the multi-positional junior William Underwood.

Victor Scott (6/19/18)

Stay tuned when we break down the next set of regions tomorrow. We’ll also start rolling out more detailed team-by-team previews as we gear up for what’s bound to be another exhilarating high school season.