Three games in three days. That is what is on tap for Quitman and Weston High Schools, both trying to move another step closer to a Class B state title. Both Quitman and Weston’s baseball teams will be playing at home, hosting regional round playoff games, while the Quitman softball team is back at their home-away-from-home, at the site of the LHSAA state softball tournament, Frasch Sports Complex in Sulphur, LA.

Class B Baseball Regionals
Quitman vs Stanley
Wednesday, April 29th
6:00 pm

The action begins at 6:00 pm on Wednesday, April 29th, when Quitman hosts Stanley in a Class B regional baseball game. The #7 seed Wolverines, which finished second in District 1B, enter with a 17-14 record, while the #10 seed Stanley, the District 3B champion, has a 19-10 mark.

Both teams drew first-round byes, and both are looking to break losing streaks with Quitman having dropped their last three of the regular season and Stanley, even worse, having lost their last four.  

Kace West leads the offensive attack with a .433 batting average and a team-leading 13 doubles and 24 RBI. Maddox Duck is next at .407, and a team best 35 runs scored, while Hudson Pullig is hitting at a .319 clip with the most home runs and triples. 

The pitching staff is basically handled by three hurlers, with West having started 10 games and both Pullig and Zach Smudricks starting 7 games each. All three have fine ERA averages with Smudricks sitting at 2.710, Pullig at 2.725, and West at 2.982, with the trio combining for 189 strikeouts.

Class B Baseball Regionals
Weston vs Anacoco
Thursday, April 30th
4:30 pm

The Class B baseball playoff scene shifts slightly east but remains in Jackson Parish when #4 seed Weston, with a 21-12 record, welcomes #13 Anacoco to Mike Staples Field for the first playoff game in several years to be played on the WHS campus on Friday, April 30th. First pitch is scheduled for 4:30 pm.

The District 1B champion Wolves drew a first-round bye, while Anacoco, the third-place finisher in District 4B with a 14-10 overall record, moved into the second round by beating #20 Avoyelles Public Charter 18-8 in the opening round. 

 A strong offensive juggernaut with seven starters hitting .300 or better and holding a .297 team batting average, the Wolves enter averaging a little over 8 runs per game. Colton Blundell, who missed several games late due to a knee injury but is now back, leads WHS with a .407 average and in triples. Drew Browning has the most prolific stats, having earned the distinction of being in the 40-40 club with 42 runs scored and 40 RBI. The South Arkansas CC commit also leads the team with 16 doubles and 4 homeruns, and has the second-highest batting average at .396 on the year. Ty Henderson (.375) and Jase Borders (.294) both have scored 30 runs this season, while Liam Weaver is hitting .307 and has 23 runs scored and 22 RBI. Browning and Henderson have both made 7 starts on the mound, with Jase Borders just one behind. 

Class B State Softball Semifinals
Quitman vs Hicks
Friday, May 1st
12:00 PM

Having made the “Dash to Frasch,” the two-time defending state champion Lady Wolverines, seeded #2 after having navigated through one of the toughest schedules in the LHSAA to earn a 23-9 record, play #3 seed Hicks in the semi-finals of Class B.  While the Frasch sports complex in Sulphur, LA is like a home-away-from-home for Quitman, being that this is the fourth year in a row that the Lady Wolverines have made the state tournament, it is the first time that Hicks, who has an impressive 20-3 record, has ever played at the home of LHSAA state softball championships.

With an incredible .363 team batting average that has eight starters sporting a batting average of .300 or better, the Lady Wolverines feature perhaps the most prolific offensive weapon in LHSAA history in Maggie Guyotte. The Louisiana Tech University signee is the LHSAA all-time leader in hits with 304 for her career, which ranks #7 in the nation, while also leading the state in career RBI’s with 275, good for 5th all-time in the entire nation. Her 74 career home runs are also the second-best mark ever in Louisiana. Guyotte leads QHS this season with a stellar .505 batting average, 16 home runs, 52 RBI, and 43 runs scored. 

Also having an incredible season is Hallie Kate Pullig, who checks in with a .444 batting average and is second on the team in home runs (8), RBI (43), and runs scored (35). Kinsley Ponder and Anna Claire Leach are both just a step behind in batting average with .433 and .415 marks, followed by Brenna Lamkin, who is the odds-on favorite for the “newcomer of the year” award. A true dual threat, the Sophomore is hitting .378, has 6 home runs with 33 RBI, and 19 runs scored. While impressive in its own right, her greatest contribution has been in the circle where she has thrown 145 innings to accumulate a 15-7 record, while striking out an even 200 batters against many of the best teams in the state from all classifications.