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Welcome to our 2020 VHSL Previews. In each preview, we will give you a brief recap of the 2019 season along with the breakdown of each Region and what the rules are to qualify for postseason play under the new alignment. We will also highlight the top prospects in each Classification, as well as some teams to watch during the 2020 season.

We begin our VHSL Previews for the 2020 season by taking a look at Class 1, Regions A and B. In 2019, Lancaster won the Region A championship over Colonial Beach and Riverheads defeated William Campbell to capture the Region B championship, with all four teams earning State Tournament berths. Both Lancaster and Riverheads advanced through the State quarterfinals, with Lancaster finishing as the State Runners-up, falling to Auburn in the Championship Game.

Realignment hasn't had much impact on these Regions, although Windsor and Stonewall Jackson (Quicksburg) have both been reclassified out of Class 1 and up to Class 2. Both teams will participate in the postseason at the higher class, although they will compete in the Tri-Rivers District and Bull Run Districts, respectively, during the regular season as they have in the past. The Tri-Rivers District teams have also shifted from Region A to Region B.

 

***This story has been edited to correct the Tri-Rivers schools placement in Region B***

 

Top Prospects in VHSL Class 1 Regions A and B

Name	School	Class	Position	Commitment
Holdyn Ambrose	Essex	2021	RHP
Wyatt Bunch	Rappahannock	2022	RHP
Braeson Fulton	Riverheads	2020	C	James Madison
Zachary Gonzalez	West Point	2020	1B	Christopher Newport
Noah Phillips	Central-Lunenberg	2020	3B
Adam Painter	Riverheads	2021	OF
Grant Painter	Riverheads	2020	SS	James Madison
Christian Williams	Mathews	2020	LHP	Texas Christian

 

2020 Region A

Eastern Shore	Northern Neck	Tidewater
Chincoteague	Colonial Beach	Charles City
Northampton	Essex	King & Queen
	Lancaster	Mathews
	Northumberland	Middlesex
	Rappahannock	West Point
	Washington & Lee (Montross)

***Participated in 2019 Region A Tournament

Region A uses power points to rank the teams and the top eight advance to the Region tournament, with their ranking determining their seeding.

 

2020 Region B

Altavista	Appomattox Gov School	Franklin
William Campbell	Carver Career Academy	Surry County
Central-Lunenberg	Cumberland	Sussex Central
Galileo	Riverheads
Rappahannock County

***Participated in 2019 Region B Tournament

Region B is uses Power Points to seed an all-in Region.

 

 

Teams to Watch Regions A and B

Central-Lunenberg
The Chargers finished the 2019 season just under .500 and advanced to the Region tournament, losing a first round slugfest to Stonewall Jackson. Central does have some thump coming back with the return of All-State senior Noah Phillips to the lineup.

Essex
The Trojans narrowly missed a State Tournament trip in 2019, falling in the Region semifinals to Lancaster, ending a strong season with a 15-7 record. Essex does return All-State junior shortstop Tahraun Hammond as well as fellow junior righhanded pitcher Holdyn Ambrose this spring as the Trojans will push to earn a State berth.

Lancaster
The 2019 State Runners-up lose the State Player of the Year with the graduation of Matthew Kleinfelter (James Madison). Their number two arm from last year does return in senior Nicholas Wholeking, so expect the Red Devils to not drop off too dramatically this spring.

Mathews
The Blue Devils fell early in the 2019 Region tournament to Lancaster, ending an up and down season. Look for Mathews to be a threat in Region A as the Devils return senior lefty Christian Williams (TCU) to the top of the rotation while the other aces in the Region graduated.

Riverheads
The Gladiators followed up their 2018 State Championship with another Region title in 2019 before falling in the State Semifinals. Look for them to put together one last run with the group that has been together for three years that is led by the bats of senior infielders Braeson Fulton (James Madison) and Grant Painter (James Madison). Also back this spring will be their top arm in senior Elijah Dunlap. Look for junior Adam Painter to become a more key piece in the lineup as he will attempt to replace some of the production in the outfield from the graduation of Jakob King.