Blue Eagle baseball team primed for tough region

With an active preseason that included the Chester Preseason Tournament, the Clover High School baseball team is ready for the challenges of Region 3-AAAA.

“This region is as good as it gets from top to bottom,” said first-year head coach Hank Wofford. “I think it’s going to be a very competitive region. There are teams like Fort Mill and Rock Hill returning from the upper state.

“We picked up Gaffney, which wasn’t in our region last year.”

Added Wofford: “You talk about 4A baseball anywhere in the state, it’s gonna be super competitive, especially here in the upper state.”

However, Wofford said the Blue Eagles will be equal to the task.

“We’re looking forward to each region game,” he said. “We’re telling our players to be ready to go, knowing it’s going to be a battle”

Stanley Durkin is a second-year senior who transferred his sophomore year.

“The competition is a lot better here than in Philadelphia where I played,” said Durkin, an outfielder and pitcher. “We’re actually in one of the best regions in the state.”

The senior said his pitching has been OK in preseason competition.

“I want to thank my teammates,” said Durkin. “They make me better every day.

Cold and rainy conditions have slowed preseason preparations.

“Every once in a while we go inside for practice,” Durkin said. “We need to get as many reps as we can, even on rainy days.”

Durkin said team chemistry is vital to the Blue Eagles’ success.

“The family portion of it, being together is probably the biggest thing,” he said. “Just playing well together is the key.”

Durkin believes confidence is the key to hitting the ball.

“You have to step back and take a deep breath, realizing that even on an 0-2 count, you have to have that confidence to put the ball in play,” he said.

Durkin embraces the opportunity to provide senior leadership for the less experienced players. “I like being a leader out there,” he said.

Blue Eagle pitcher/third-baseman Jonathan Brakefield is entering his fourth season with the Blue Eagle program.

“We most definitely look forward to the new season,” said Brakefield. “We’re looking pretty good. With help from last year’s JV team, we’re pretty sound fundamentally.”

Brakefield is a right-handed hurler, who throws the knuckleball.

“I have confidence in my knuckleball,” he said. “I mix a fastball and curve with my knuckler.”

Wofford believes the Blue Eagles will be involved in more than their share of down-to-the-wire games this season.

“We feel like if we can be really good in close ball games, we’ll have a good year,” he said. “That’s where our focus has gotta be, winning the tight games, those 2-1, 4-3, 3-2 games.”

Wofford feels the Blue Eagles will be able to reap the benefits of last year’s JV team, which had a winning season.

“We’ve got a lot of players making the transition from JV to varsity,” he said. “It’s a big jump for a lot of those guys. A good many of them were able to play legion ball with us last summer. Region ball is very competitive.”

Wofford said the key to success in the early stages of regular-season play will be the team’s ability to focus.

“We’re talking about base-running, pitching, offense, defense. We’ve got to cover every phase of the game,” he said.

The Blue Eagles travel to Fort Mill Friday in a Region 3-AAAA game slated for a 7 p.m. start.

This story was originally published March 9, 2015 at 3:15 PM with the headline "Blue Eagle baseball team primed for tough region."