FAIRLEA (WVDN) – In a season full of ups and downs, the Greenbrier East Spartans baseball team advanced to the regional championship series where they lost two games to the eventual state runners-up George Washington Patriots.
Although not the ending they had hoped for, the Spartans made an improvement from the 2021 season when they were eliminated by Oak Hill in the sectional finals.
What is even more impressive is that the 2021 squad had five players go on to play college baseball, so the youthful ’22 team rebounded nicely after a slow start to move things in a positive direction.
“I’m proud of the growth of the program and the direction we are heading in,” head coach Cory Mann said.
Mann put together a solid lineup that was led by Darris Boswell. Boswell led the team with 33 hits, 21 RBIs, five doubles, two triples and batting average (.317).
Gavin Bennett also put together a strong sophomore season and looks poised to represent the Spartans well over the next two years. He finished with a batting average of .315 on 29 total base hits. He tied Boswell with five doubles and led the team with two home runs. He tied for fourth with 17 RBIs. Bennett has a lot of baseball in his family history, and it shows when he is on the field.
Chris Heaster (.265), Clayton Morgan (.259) and Ian Cline (.258) also stood out on the offensive end at times.
Heaster had several games where he got key hits in critical situations. He totaled 26 hits and five doubles, also tied with Boswell and Bennett for the team lead. He also legged out one triple and drove in 18 runs. Morgan had four doubles, nine RBIs and stole 13 bases, good for second on the roster, plus the only other home run. Cline stole a team-leading 15 bases, drove in 14 runs and had five doubles as well.
The Spartan program also had some wildcard players so to speak.
Isiah Brooks gave them an experienced option that produced 10 RBIs, six stolen bases and 12 hits. Ashton Cochran hit just .237 but had four doubles and tied for second on the team with 18 RBIs. Jacob Roshau, the number one pitching option, also had some good times at the plate. He had 16 hits on the year, but drove in 17 runs so almost every hit he had produced a run.
Peyton DeHaven is another youngster that the program will be fortunate to have for the next few years. He came on strong at the end of the season and finished with 11 hits, four doubles and eight stolen bases. He has strong baseball bloodlines as well.
Gabe Patton (.230, one triple), Henry Goodwin (five hits, five RBIs) and Jonathan Sauls (six hits, four RBIs) also contributed and will return next year.
Roshau did most of the work on the mound, with Boswell next in line behind him.
Roshau pitched 69.1 innings and finished 6-3. He scattered 65 hits, struck out 76 batters and had an ERA of 3.13.
Boswell pitched 65 innings, gave up 76 hits and had 65 strikeouts. His ERA finished at 3.23 and he was 3-3.
Goodwin (23 innings, 1-2, 5.48 ERA) and Patton (20.2 innings, 3-2, 6.09 ERA) also worked the mound with Bennett and Heaster rounding out the normal rotation.
The Spartans will return to action in the spring of 2023.
“I’m looking forward to seeing how we continue to develop,” Mann said.
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