The regular-season was nothing short of magical at times for Beaufort High’s baseball team, which thrived on thrilling victories en route to a Region 7-4A title.
The postseason had just as many close games, but the Eagles twice found themselves on the wrong end, resulting in an early exit from the Class 4A playoffs.
Beaufort High squandered a dominant outing from Ethan Graham in its opener, losing a 1-0 pitchers’ duel to visiting Brookland-Cayce on Tuesday.
Graham struck out nine and walked six in a one-hitter, but the top-seeded Eagles managed only three hits and Adam Krissinger, who matched Graham’s nine strikeouts in the shutout.
The Bearcats pushed across the game’s only run in the second inning without the benefit of a hit, as P Edwards was hit by a pitch leading off the inning, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt, took third on a passed ball, and scored on a double steal with two outs.
Reed Reichel, Jeffrey Smyth, and Christian Londono each had a hit for Beaufort.
The Eagles scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh Thursday to claim a 2-1 win over visiting Darlington and stay alive in the double-elimination tournament.
Brendan Bowersox delivered a walkoff two-run double with two outs in the seventh to keep the Eagles’ season alive. Wes Graves earned the win, striking out five and walking three while allowing one run and five hits in a complete game.
But Beaufort’s season ended with another heartbreaking loss to Brookland-Cayce, 5-4 on Saturday. The Eagles rallied for four runs in the seventh inning to take a 4-3 lead, but the Bearcats scored in the bottom of the seventh to tie it and won it in the eighth.
Bowersox hit a two-run homer during the four-run outburst in the seventh, and the Eagles retired the first two batters in the bottom of the inning before hitting one batter and walking another to open the door for the tying run to score on an error. Brookland-Cayce’s Hayden Thomas then delivered a game-winning RBI single in the eighth.
The Eagles finish the season with a 21-7 record.
