Three local teams vie in state baseball tourney

Three Garland County teams begin their quest for a state baseball championship today, but each one faces a difficult road to Baum Stadium in Fayetteville.

Advancing to the Class 5A tournament for the second-straight season under coach Leighton Hardin, Lakeside battles 5A-Central No. 1 seed and tournament host Sylvan Hills at 10 a.m.

With 10 seniors on last year’s team, many Rams will be making their postseason debut but Hardin isn’t worried about his team’s inexperience.

“Last week (5A-South tournament) probably helped a lot,” Hardin said. “We’ve been there now, and we know how good the teams will be from here on out. We just have to stay relaxed mentally, and go out there and do what we’re capable of doing.”

Lakeside need not look far to find added motivation. Last year’s 5A-South No. 4 seed reeled off four straight wins and took the Class 5A title, Magnolia besting Sylvan Hills in the championship game.

“It goes with the territory of our conference,” said Hardin. “With Magnolia, Watson Chapel, White Hall and us, we feel like our conference is the best in the state top to bottom. Playing the teams we’ve played has prepared us for this moment.”

Despite limited on-field experience, Lakeside has won in a tournament format. The Rams defeated Smackover, Camden Fairview and Malvern in three days to win the Magnolia spring-break event for the second year in a row.

“When it comes to tournaments, success breeds success,” Hardin said. “As long as we’re winning, it makes it easier to keep winning and keep that momentum going. You have one good game, and then you can build on it and go from there.”

Facing a team with championship aspirations on its home field, Hardin said his team has embraced its underdog role and looks forward to playing loose.

“It will probably be the biggest crowd they’ve had all season, so I’m sure there’s some extra pressure on them,” said Hardin. “We just need to focus on keeping the pressure on them, and maybe we can force them into some early mistakes to get a jump on them.”

The Rams finished the regular season 17-9, including 9-4 in conference. Lakeside finished second in conference last season before falling to Valley View in the first round of the state tournament.

Class 6A Lake Hamilton also advanced to the state tournament for the second-straight season. Bouncing back from a 13-3 loss to Sheridan in the first round of the 6A-West tournament, the Wolves defeated El Dorado and Texarkana in consecutive road matchups to earn the No. 5 seed.

Lake Hamilton (11-14, 7-5) had no shortage of obstacles to overcome, but enters today’s matchup with Marion (10 a.m. at Benton) having won five of its last six games.

“It’s a resilient bunch, and they haven’t quit at all,” Lake Hamilton coach Mac Hurley said. “These are Lake Hamilton kids; they fight until the last minute, and we have a great opportunity to be back in the same spot we were last year.”

Hurley believes competing in the Gulf Coast Classic tournament and against regular-season opponents like Pine Bluff, Shiloh Christian, Sheridan, Arkadelphia and Pulaski Academy has prepared his team for the challenging road that lies ahead.

“The stronger the schedule, the better it makes you as a team,” said Hurley. “I think I’m the only one that gets nervous anymore; these kids have worked so hard and they’ve seen the best teams this season.”

Anchored by Arkansas State signee Korey Wasson and fellow senior Zach Ross, the Wolves have an enviable pitching rotation that’s capable of carrying the team to a deep playoff run.

Wasson struck out 49 batters in 32 innings this season while Ross finished with a 4-1 record and a 2.73 ERA.

“For us, it’s going to come down to playing defense and hitting the ball; we know those guys are going to give us quality innings on the mound,” Hurley said. “We’ll see how it plays out. We’re excited to be here, and we expect to win.”

With a win over Marion, Lake Hamilton would face

6A-West No. 1 seed Greenwood in the second round on Friday.

While Lakeside and Lake Hamilton have become mainstays in the state tournament over the last few years, Jessieville is returning for the first time since winning the Class 3A title in 2011.

The Lions won two of three games in the 3A-4 district tournament and knocked off Elkins in the first round of the 3A-1 regional before losing two straight games.

Seeded fourth, Jessieville meets 3A-4 No. 1 seed Genoa Central at 3 p.m. today on Pippin Wholesale Field at Harrison Parks.

If the regular season was any indication, Jessieville will need a solid pitching performance to pull an upset. The Lions allowed nearly nine runs per game in their 10 losses while surrendering less than three runs per game in their 15 wins.

Dylan Anderson (.341, 5 HR,

13 RBI), Kaleb Moody (.390, 15 RBI, 19 R) and Adam Saveall

(.329, 15 RBI) headline a potent lineup for the Lions that scored more than six runs per game this season.