The Briarwood Diamond Buccaneers opened their Region 1AA schedule with wins over Piedmont Academy in Monticello and Edmund Burke Academy at Briarwood to continue their unblemished record at 4-0.
"I don't think anybody is going to run away with our region," Coach Charlie May said. "There's nobody who is head and shoulders above anyone else. It's going to be a situation where you have to show up every day to play."
Bad weather has already affected the Bucs this season with rain causing the cancellation of two games and a scheduling error forcing the cancellation of the Bucs first region game, which was scheduled for Thursday, March 10, against Brentwood. The game will be made up at 3 p.m. on Thursday, March 24, at Briarwood.
"Considering the conditions," the Bucs played well in their first region contest, a 5-3 win over Piedmont, according to Coach May.
"It was brutal," he said. "The wind was blowing so hard, anywhere from 20-25 mph. It was gusting. It was blowing dust all over the place. It was hard to hit the ball, and it made fielding tough, too."
Junior Blake Stitcher pitched a no-hitter until the fifth inning when he had to come out of the game because of a blister.
Stitcher's injury plus the Bucs' first errors in the field led to the tying run being at the plate when senior Jason Holley came into the game. Holley threw to Seth Williford at second to pick off the runner and end the inning. Holley was credited with the save.
Not only did senior Zack Henderson play "an excellent defensive game," he was two-for-three at bat and drove in two runs. Shortstop Joseph Batrous also played an excellent defensive game, according to Coach May.
The Bucs took their second region win of the season on Monday, an 11-3 victory over Edmund Burke Academy at Briarwood.
