LUMBERTON — During his time as head coach of the St. Pauls baseball team, Kelly Chavis has grown accustomed to seeing his Bulldogs embrace the underdog role.
But when the NCHSAA 2-A state playoffs begin Tuesday, Chavis’ squad will be looked at as the favorite for the first time in quite some time.
With a 19-4 record, the team’s best mark since Chavis took over the program in 2013, the pain of an 0-21 season in 2015 is a distant memory.
“We have expectations. We look back two years ago and we knew we weren’t a bad baseball team, we were just a young baseball team,” Chavis said.
“We knew once we matured, we could play with anybody. We were playing with freshmen and sophomores. Now, we’re playing with juniors and seniors. That’s truly been the difference between 0-21 and 19-4.”
The fourth-seeded Bulldogs, who won their first Slugfest title since 1998 earlier this year, will welcome Northeastern (9-11) to town on Tuesday for a 7 p.m. first pitch.
A turnaround that started last season with a run to the third round of the playoffs, the Bulldogs have made their mark by playing fundamental baseball and taking advantage of speed on the bases.
“We’ve only talked one time about where we stand. We just try to go out and take care of us,” Chavis said. “We try to stay in our lane and do what we do. … It’s fun getting a little bit of notoriety because these guys have worked hard.”
Like St. Pauls, Purnell Swett is looking to build off of an historic season. The eighth-seeded Rams (15-8) also have the added pressure of extending coach Bryan McDonald’s farewell tour.
After winning their first conference championship in program history, the Rams can give McDonald his first playoff win at Purnell Swett in his fifth and final season when it takes on No. 25 Millbrook (14-9) at 7 p.m. Tuesday.
“I talked with the seniors some today. It really doesn’t dawn on you until the last out is made,” McDonald said. “I told them not to let that happen without truly giving everything you’ve got. Don’t have any second guesses.
“You don’t want to get too emotional, but I had to explain the stakes. The celebration is over with and we need to take care of home field and the first round of the playoffs.”
McDonald hopes to “get rid of the jitters with a couple of early runs” in support of senior ace Ryan Graham.
“We need him to pitch like he has all season,” McDonald said. “They’re a very talented team coming in. …This is a tough first-round opponent.”
For the first time in awhile, Fairmont will enter the playoffs as an underdog. After losing a bulk of the roster from a team that made two straight appearances in the third round of the playoffs, the Golden Tornadoes finished this season with an 11-10 record, snapping a streak of three seasons with 20-plus wins.
Fairmont, the No. 27 seed, will travel to sixth-seeded North Lenoir (18-6) on Tuesday for a 6 p.m. first pitch.
As for softball, Lumberton (19-4) is the hottest team in the county as winners of nine straight games. The Lady Pirates, who earned their first conference tournament championship in program history against Richmond last week, enter the 4-A playoffs as the No. 9 seed.
Lumberton will host No. 26 Millbrook (9-10) at 7 p.m. Wednesday. In 2013, the Lady Pirates earned a 6-5 win over Millbrook in Lumberton.
“We dont want to take them lightly,” Register said. “If we come out and play like we’ve been playing, I think we’ll be alright. We can’t look ahead.”
Red Springs, the No. 24 seed in Class 2-A playoffs, has made the playoffs in each of Robert Dove’s four seasons as head coach. The Lady Red Devils (12-11) will travel to No. 12 Beddingfield(15-4) on Tuesday for a 6 p.m. first pitch.
South Robeson rounds out the county qualifiers. The 24th-seeded Lady Mustangs (11-10), who earned a runner-up finish at Slugfest, will travel to No. 12 Bessemer City (17-4). The Lady Yellow Jackets defeated South Robeson, 6-5, in last season’s first round matchup.
Kelly Chavis, center, leads the St. Pauls baseball team into the NCHSAA state playoffs with a 19-4 record. Accustomed to the underdog role, the Bulldogs enter the playoffs as a No. 4 seed this season.
