Dissa and data, Feb. 12

Anderson

Troj-antics: One look at team hitting stats provide ample explanation for a 5-2 record to start the season. Anderson has a .345 batting average and is scoring more than nine runs per game. Kye Andress leads the regulars with a .467 batting average, 12 runs scored and 14 RBI. He has a team-high two home runs and shares the lead in hits (14) with Gray Wells (.438) ...  Anderson has stolen 18 bases in 19 tries, led by Andress with four.

Claflin

Claf-lines:  Senior pitcher Roman Woods-Golston has struck out 17 batters in 12 1/3 innings, including 11 in 5 1/3 innings against Carolina University last Friday. He has a 2.92 ERA ... Junior Micah Shivers is batting .400 and is 3-for-3 on stolen bases. On the minus side, he has committed four of the Panthers' six errors.

Coker

Snake strikes: The Cobras are 19-for-22 in steals, led by Cameron Ferrell at 5-for-5 ... Coker has a 2.20 staff ERA through five games. Eight errors have contributed to 10 unearned runs. 

Columbia International

Ram-egrams: The 0-7 start is the worst in the program's four-plus year history, and CIU has lost nine straight going back to last season. But there's time for a rebound. The 2022 team started 0-5, but finished with a 38-265 record and won the National Christian Athletic Association's national championship ... Emmanuel Maldonado leads the team with a .375 average ... Jordan Murphy has two of the Rams' six home runs, but they are his only hits in 14 at-bats ... Opponents are outhitting CIU .339-.242, outhomering them 11-6 and outscoring them 85-28 ... Rams pitchers have walked 45 and hit 20 batters in 54 innings.

Erskine

Fleet filberts: Dale Francis Jr. hit .442 with 14 homers and 51 RBI a season ago and he's off to another hot start this season, hitting .414 with 4 homers and 12 RBI in seven games ... Both of newcomer Josean Sanchez's home runs have led off games ... Ben Maskin has six hits, but four have left the yard. He had a key three-run shot in the 14th inning of Saturday's win at Barry.

Florence-Darlington Tech

Stinger zingers:  North Carolina commitment Rom Kellis is off to a strong start offensively, hitting .385 with a homer, 10 RBI and 5 steals. He shares the team lead in hits with Josh Campos and Tyler Kamerer, both of whom are hitting .417 ... Michael Gibson has been a two-way contributor, hitting .250 with a homer and striking out 11 in 10 innings. He is 1-0 with a 1.64 ERA.

Francis Marion

Patriot-ics: Senior outfielder Zack Summerville has been a major contributor to a .324 team batting average during a 4-2 start. He is 12-for-25 (.480) with 10 RBI. Not far back are Kollin Crepeau and Noah Stout (.364 apiece), Peyton Wilson (.348), Blake Falor (.318) and Tanner Cannon and Owen Taylor (both at .316) ... Stout has a team-high 11 RBI and shares the team lead in homers (2) with Summerville.

Lander

Lander liners: Junior college transfer Taichi Nakao has found his comfort zone with the Bearcats. He is batting .364 and has driven in a team-high nine runs. He has a .529 on-base percentage and is 6-for-6 for stolen bases  ... Lander is 25-for-25 as a team ... The Bearcats' 5-2 record has been assembled even with a 6.14 staff ERA ... Ethan Calif has gone against the staff trend. He has nine strikeouts and has not allowed a run in five innings. 

Morris

Hornet heaters:  Guillermo Mora has been a two-way contributor to Morris's 2-2 start. He is batting .429 (3-for-7) with a double and a run scored and struck out seven while allowing one earned run in a complete game in his only start ... Tijawan Black has gone 6-for-13 (.462) ... Korique Rainey has struck out eight in 5 2/3 shutout innings.

Newberry
Wolf howls: Getting more offensive productions will be key to escaping an early 1-5 funk. The Wolves are  hitting .217 as a team and have a .247 "slugging" percentage  ...  The staff ERA is 10.02  after being lit up for 44 runs in a three-game series at No. 2 Tampa.  Opponents are batting .343.

North Greenville

Crusader capers: The offense seems to be hitting on most cylinders, with a .316 team batting average and 18 steals in 19 attempts. David Lewis has  a .393 batting average, a .786 slugging percentage and 15 RBI in seven games ... Staff ace Reece Fields (2-0) has 16 strikeouts in 12 innings to go with a 0.75 ERA ... Reliever Dawson Taylor has struck out eight in four innings ... The staff is averaging 10.3 strikeouts per nine innings.

Southern Wesleyan

Southern scoop: The Warriors have a .180 team batting average, with Cam Mitchem's .280 mark leading the way among regulars ... Christopher Hund has contributed at the plate (.300) and on the mound (ex-inning win at Lee) ...  Warriors pitchers have surrendered .10 homers in 61 innings.

Spartanburg Methodist

Pioneer pearls: A .338 team batting average has been a major factor in SMC's 8-1 start. Blake Martin is hitting .531 (17-for-32) with 10 RBI. Kal Tullos is at .500, Hunter Fryzowicz is at .444, Ethan Wilson at .424, Schley Gordy .409, and Brooks Mauro at .377.  Wilson and Gordy have two homers apiece and Wilson leads the team with 14 RBI ...  The Pioneers had a 4.50 staff ERA, but do have two shutouts while holding opponents to a .225 batting average ... Davis Wright (2-0) has a 0.90 ERA and 14 strikeouts in 10 innings.

USC Aiken

Pacer patter:  Like a couple of other state teams, USCA hasn't been able to do much slugging. The Pacers are hitting .246 as a team with a .313 slugging percentage. And the production is concentrated among JB Bell (.389), Capers Molinaroli (.348) and Dalton Graves (.333) ... A challenging early schedule and a staff ERA of 9.00 add up to an 0-6 start.

USC Beaufort

Shark bites: USCB is another  offense looking for answers with a .214 batting average and .245 slugging percentage ... Aiden Driscoll-Sadusky has been a bright spot with a .280 batting average. He and Carson Phillips share the team lead with seven RBI ... Opponents are batting .301 ... Ian Barnes has saved all three Sand Sharks wins.

USC Lancaster

Lancer-lots: Look up the word torrid in the dictionary and Joe Sperry's picture may be there. Seven games into the season he is batting .556 with 6 homers and 16 RBI. Just as impressively, he has struck out twice in 29 plate appearances ... Eddie Olmeda (.476) and Luke Garabedian (.438) are also shellacking the ball.

USC Union

Bantam bits: USCU is batting .340 as a team, led by Mason Elrod (.529), Tyler Strickland (.500), Brayden Corn (.435) and Michael Adams (.400) ... On the mound, Colby Helms has not allowed a run and struck out nine in four innings.

Voorhees

Bengal bingles: Freshmen Shay Barbosa (.333) and Raekwon Wedderburn (.304) have adjusted smoothly to the college game so far .... Voorhees has 27 stolen bases in eight games ... Jathan Smith has a 2.92 ERA over 12.1 innings ... Freshman Reginald Faison has struck out 7 in 6 1/3 innings.

Elsewhere

Complete stats aren't available for Bob Jones, USC Salkehatchie and USC Sumter, so it was tough to extract some nuggets.

Golden Spikes Award list set

Sorry, this happened last week and I never got around to including it, so I'll stick it here. USA Baseball gives the Golden Spikes Award to the person identified as the best amateur baseball player in the nation.

Golden Spikes Award preseason watch list

Billy Amick, Tennessee (S.C. native, Clemson transfer); Derek Bender, Coastal Carolina; Cam Cannarella, Clemson; Cole Messina, South Carolina; Ethan Petry, South Carolina.
Spikes