Aynor baseball slugging its way toward Region VIII-AA crown

Chad Sarvis said the Aynor baseball team has all the feel of a family.

It’s one run-producing, steam-rolling family.

The Blue Jackets’ offense has propelled the team to a 10-3 record bolstered by a 7-0 mark in Region VIII-AA. Sarvis’ team can lock up a top-two finish in the division as early as Tuesday when it heads to Loris. And even though Aynor also has home games against Dillon and Waccamaw next week to wrap up the regular season, the Blue Jackets would have to stumble considerably not to win the crown.

It’s a noticeable difference from a year ago, when Aynor finished fourth in the division before getting hot in the playoffs and advancing to the Lower State finals.

“I just think our kids have worked hard every day at practice trying to get the most out of every rep,” Sarvis said. “We’ve had some timely hitting in situations that have allowed us to score some runs. Baseball is all about getting that timely hit in situations. One of the areas we felt we could improve upon after last year was at the plate.”

It’s safe to say that has happened.

Through 13 games, Aynor has scored 127 runs, an average of 9.8 per game. The overall figures can be partially credited to four double-digit games against Marion and Mullins.

However, the Blue Jackets also averaged more than five runs per game in the first round of games against Loris, Waccamaw and Dillon. In fact, the team has scored fewer than five runs in a game all season just three times.

The production has been a bit of a surprise. Aynor was expected to be good before the season, but that didn’t erase the fact that Sarvis lost seven seniors and five starters from last year’s team.

It set the tone for this year’s approach.

“Any time you have that type of success, it can carry over,” Sarvis said. “We’ve got a real close group here that has played a lot of baseball together. It’s a real tight-knit group. If you go out there and don’t get things done, someone else will step in and do it.”

FIVE TO WATCH

The final push toward region championships on area diamonds begins this week, as teams begin to wrap up the most crucial parts of their regular seasons. Here are five of biggest games on the docket.

St. James at Georgetown softball, Tuesday: Will the round-robin between St. James, Georgetown and North Myrtle produce a clear-cut winner?

Aynor at Loris baseball, Tuesday: Loris has quietly put itself back in the mix of Region VIII-AA’s top teams and can shake things up with a win over Aynor.

Sumter at Carolina Forest baseball, Tuesday: The Panthers are looking to keep their winning region ways going against the team that dominated it for some time.

North Myrtle Beach at Georgetown softball, Friday: Another night, another top-notch matchup that will ultimately help determine playoff seedings.

Myrtle Beach at St. James baseball, Friday: Seahawks aren’t out of the running in a cluttered Region VII-AAA, not by a long shot.

STATE SOCCER RANKINGS

All six area soccer teams that were included in the South Carolina High School Soccer Association state polls remained in the same position in the updated rankings, released over the weekend.

The Socastee boys checked in against at No. 10 in Class AAAA, while the Myrtle Beach boys remained No. 2 in Class AAA and Waccamaw was again at No. 9 in Class AA.

Local girls teams North Myrtle Beach (No. 8), Myrtle Beach (No. 9) and St. James (No. 10) remained in the same spots for the third consecutive week.

SCHSSCA STATE RANKINGS

BOYS

CLASS AAAA

1. Wando

2. River Bluff

3. Mauldin

4. J.L. Mann

5. Nation Ford

6. Blythewood

7. South Aiken

8. Riverside

9. Wade Hampton

10. Socastee

11. Bluffton

12. Fort Mill

13. Clover

14. Ashley Ridge

15. Northwestern

CLASS AAA

1. Chapin

2. Myrtle Beach

3. Berea

4. Eastside

5. Derher

6. A.C. Flora

7. Brookland-Cayce

8. Daniel

9. Hilton Head

10. Gilbert

11. Walhalla

12. Airport

13. Hanahan

14. Chapman

15. Beaufort

CLASS AA

1. Bishop England

2. Indian Land

3. Academic Magnet

4. Mid-Carolina

5. Newberry

6. Saluda

7. Powdersville

8. Pendleton

9. Waccamaw

10. Wade Hampton

CLASS A

1. Christ Church

2. St. Joseph’s

3. Dixie

4. Bamberg-Ehrhardt

5. Southside Christian

GIRLS

CLASS AAAA

1. Lexington

2. J.L. Mann

3. Fort Mill

4. Wando

5. Wade Hampton

6. Fort Dorchester

7. James Island

8. South Aiken

9. Mauldin

10. T.L. Hanna

11. Blythewood

12. Irmo

13. River Bluff

14. Dutch Fork

15. Clover

CLASS AAA

1. Dreher

2. Chapin

3. Eastside

4. Swansea

5. Brookland-Cayce

6. Hilton Head

7. Blue Ridge

8. North Myrtle Beach

9. Myrtle Beach

10. St. James

11. Wren

12. A.C. Flora

13. Airport

14. South Pointe

15. Gilbert

CLASS AA

1. Bishop England

2. Academic Magnet

3. Indian Land

4. Batesburg-Leesville

5. Wade Hampton

CLASS A

1. Southside Christian

2. Christ Church

3. St. Joseph’s

4. Brashier MC

5. Governor’s Math & Science

This story was originally published April 11, 2016 at 6:00 PM with the headline "Aynor baseball slugging its way toward Region VIII-AA crown."