As the postseason begins, Benton Academy head baseball coach Ty Dean is fairly confident that his Raiders can make a legitimate run at a MAIS Class 3A State Championship.
With a quartet of pitchers that have kept opposing hitters dazed and confused all season long leading the way, why wouldn’t he be?
After winning their district, the Raiders (17-6), received a first-round bye as the playoffs began last week.
They face Kemper Academy in a best-of-three series which began Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Benton. Game two will be held at Kemper Academy Friday at 5 p.m. with the deciding game to follow if necessary.
“We don’t really know much about them, but I know they finished third in their district,” says Dean. “We should be able to take care of business this week if we show up and play like we’re supposed to play, but we aren’t going to overlook anybody.”
“Pitching and defense have been our strengths all season,” continued Dean. “We throw strikes and play pretty clean defense. We make people earn their runs.”
Pitchers Ben Boggan, Landon Lowery, JB Middleton, and Nathan Wilson should all play a pivotal role in Benton’s postseason success.
Leading the way is Middleton. The senior University of Southern Mississippi signee, whose fastball has been clocked in the mid-90s, is looking forward to the playoffs and says there’s no pressure on him and his teammates.
“When I go out to start a game, I don’t put a lot of pressure on myself,” he said. “I just try to relax and get the most out of what I can. I know if I can go about five or six innings, we’ve got a guy that can come in and close it that we rely on.”
One of those closers has been Nathan Wilson. Wilson agreed with Middleton on how he handles pressure on the hill.
“When I come into a game, I really just focus on throwing strikes and try not to let the pressure get to me and just let my defense play,” says Wilson.
Not only have the four pitchers been dominate on the mound, but they’ve been equally as impressive at the plate.
Says Dean, “JB, Ben, and Landon have all been good at the plate this year. They are our top three hitters as far as average, runs and RBI. Nathan has also been tough at the plate. He won’t strike out often.”
Both Dean and Middleton like the position the team is in and expect big results.
“We feel good about making a little run. We have the pitching to hold up against anyone we’ll play,” says Dean. “Cooper Jones is also another arm we can lean on to come in and throw strikes. He hasn’t pitched much but he’ll see some time in these three game series in relief. We feel like we have the pitching to match with anybody. We’ve got a lot of guys that can throw strikes.”
Added Middleton, “We feel really good about our chances. We’re sitting at No. 1 right now and it seems like everybody is coming together as a team right now. We’re hitting the ball really well and playing good defense. For the pitchers, we’re trying to get our job done on the mound. It’s been working out for us.”
Should the Raiders win their first series with Kemper, they advance to face the winner between Porter’s Chapel and Calhoun Academy.
