Sizzlin'
* Charleston Southern (4-1 last week, 8-5 overall) - Sunday's loss to Samford snapped an eight-game winning streak for the Buccaneers. But two wins over one of the usual Southern Conference powers and a midweek win over The Citadel made for some positive feelings. A .255 team batting average and a 5.95 ERA don't seem impressive, but eight wins is eight wins.* Clemson (4-0, 11-0) - It's difficult to believe things could have gone much better for the Tigers last week. First, they pulled away late to beat USC Upstate. Then, they swept the series with South Carolina. Jonathan French's eighth-inning homer in Friday's opener to tie the game started the momentum shift into Clemson's favor. They took control early on Saturday, then did what needed to be done on Sunday to get the sweep. And the sweeps came with little contribution from star Caden Grice, who was largely held in check. But Bryar Hawkins, Cooper Ingle and others took up the slack and the pitching staff had a solid effort up and down the line. The Tigers may or may not be back where their fans want them to be, but steps are being made in the right direction.
* Florence-Darlington Tech (5-0, 15-7) - The Stingers appear to be hitting on all cylinders just in time for the start of NJCAA Region 10 play. Coach Preston McDonald has moved players in and out of the lineup looking for the right mix. The team batting average is a modest .262, but a six-game winning streak indicates opportunities are being seized upon when available. Pitcher Nathan Williams, a Mississippi State commitment, had his best start of the season on Friday, striking out 13 and allowing one earned run in a win over Lackawanna.
* Lander (2-2, 9-8) - All told, it was a pretty good week for the Bearcats. A midweek win over No. 1 Wingate extended a winning streak to five games. Then, they were this close to a Peach Belt Conference series win over a ranked North Georgia team. Lander was up 10-9 in the ninth inning Sunday before North Georgia erupted for five runs and a 14-10 win. Vincent DeRubeis is on a 14-game hitting streak, pushing his batting average to .367. He leads the team with 6 homers and 22 RBI.
* Presbyterian (3-1, 7-5) - A weekend sweep came against a Bellarmine program transitioning from Division II to Division I, but wins are wins. The Blue Hose got a shutout (Duncan Howard struck out 8 in 6 1/3 innings) in the middle game and took a shutout into the ninth inning on Sunday. Eric Toth (.364) went 5-for-9 for the weekend and is on a seven-game hitting streak.
* The Citadel (2-2, 8-3) - Most coaches will take 2-1 series wins in a heartbeat - doubly so if trying to bounce back from a losing season. The Bulldogs are two-thirds of the way to matching the 2021 victory total with 80 percent of the season remaining. Offense has been a strong point, as a .303 team batting average attests. Dylan Costa (.391) is on a six-game hitting streak. He's supported by Tilo Skole (.389), Travis Lott (.378), Sawyer Reeves (.351) and Cole Simpson (.350, 19 RBI). Starting pitchers Ben Hutchins (2-0, 1.62) and Cameron Reeves (2-0, 3.15) have been outstanding.
* USC Salkehatchie (2-0, 3-16) - No one likes tripling their season win total in one day this late in the season, but Indians coach Jeremy Joye will take it week Salkehatchie snapped a nine-game losing streak with a pair of 7-6 wins over St. Elizabeth.
* Wofford (4-2, 6-6) - The Terriers bounced back from a midweek disappointment against nationally ranked Georgia to win five of their final six games. Wofford rallied from five runs down to tie Georgia at 6-6, but the Bulldogs pushed across a run in the ninth. A late comeback produced a win over UNC Asheville, then the Terriers took three of four against Penn. Wofford hit .262 against the Quakers. but got outstanding pitching overall (2.81) for the series and struck out 31 in 32 innings. Matthew Marchal struck out 11 and didn't allow an unearned run in five innings on Sunday, but got a no-decision. Despite an 0-2 record, he has a 2.51 ERA with 24 strikeouts in 14 1/3 innings.
Shiverin'
* Bob Jones (1-3 last week, 1-10 overall) - Henry Wallach's four-hit complete game in the series opener with Toccoa Falls snapped a season-opening eight-game losing streak for the Bruins. The only run he allowed was unearned. Errors - 31 in 11 games - have been a killer for BJU so far. I checked the video feed of Saturday's games a couple of times and overthrows and other misplays were painful to watch.
* Claflin (0-3, 1-5) - The Panthers have played the fewest games of any state team. The combination of a two-week layoff and a ranked opponent showed in the Peach Belt Conference sweep at Columbus State. Claflin was outscored 55-9 over the weekend. The Panthers are now 3-43 in league games since going to Peach Belt. One week into conference play shows there's still much work to do to be competitive.
* Coastal Carolina (0-4, 7-5) - I put the Chanticleers in this category not because they were going bad, but because they had very little go their way in a road swing into North Carolina. First, a 4-3 lead entering the final three innings at UNC Wilmington devolved into a 9-4 loss. Then, they suffered two walk-off losses and a shutout at nationally ranked North Carolina. The offense wasn't there when needed, though. Coastal hit .178 for the trip and left 38 runners on base in four games.
* Coker (1-4, 6-14) - The week began in promising fashion with a win over Erskine, but things went downhill from there. The Cobras ended the week getting swept by nationally ranked Lenoir-Rhyne to fall to 3-3 in South Atlantic Conference play. The first two games were routs, but Coker carried a 7-6 lead into the final inning of the series finale. A leadoff homer tied the score, then the homestanding Bears pushed across another run for the walk-off win. Phill Griffor continues to be an offensive bright spot for the Cobras. He is hitting .402 and has hit safely in 13 consecutive games.
* College of Charleston (1-3, 7-4) - After a midweek win at Presbyterian, the Cougars has a miserable visit to the North Carolina Triad. High Point, which entered the series with a 1-8 record and an 8.83 ERA, shut the Cougars out in the first two games. On Sunday, the College suffered the indignity of a walk-off loss because of a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch. The Cougars and Don Birnam had something in common: a lost weekend.
* Columbia International (1-3, 7-17) - The Rams have had the misfortune of playing a whole bunch of games against teams in the NAIA national rankings, with very little to show for it other than losses and experience against good teams. CIU was in all three games with Reinhardt over the weekend, but lost every game. Even after going hitless in Saturday's finale, Spartanburg Methodist transfer Ward Hacklen had as solid offensive week. He was 7-for-15 for a double, a triple, 2 homers, a steal and 6 RBI.
* Erskine (1-3, 10-10) - The Flying Fleet were in position to get a Conference Carolinas road series win after taking the opener at Mount Olive. But it wasn't to be. They fell behind 5-0 early in Saturday's Game 1, then couldn't protect a 2-1 lead in the middle innings of the nightcap.
* Limestone (1-6, 3-19) - A tough season continues for the Saints. After getting blown out in the series opener at Newberry, the pitching was much better over the final two games. But errors contributed to six unearned runs in those games, putting Limestone's losing streak at six.
* Morris (0-4, 0-7) - The Hornets allowed opponents to score in double figures three times last week.
* South Carolina (1-3, 7-4) - Not only are the Gamecocks reeling from a sweep by Clemson, their pitching staff in in chaos because of injuries. Carolina entered the year knowing that Jack Mahoney, one of the bright spots of the 2021 staff as a freshman, wouldn't pitch this season as he recovers from an injury. Julian Bosnic, projected as the Friday starter, hasn't pitched yet as he deals with a flexor strain. Josiah Sightler hasn't pitched since the first weekend and James Hicks was lost to injury on the second weekend. The Gamecocks have had to turn to several pitchers who have had chances in the past but have not shown themselves capable of succeeding on the SEC level. That being said, the pitching in Games 1 and 3 against Clemson would have been fine had Carolina been more productive offensively. The Gamecocks were 4-for-29 with runners in scoring position. Will Sanders has followed up on a strong freshman season in 2021. He was brilliant in Game 1, striking out 14 innings and leaving with a 2-1 lead. Michael Braswell has clearly made the most impact of any Gamecocks newcomer. The freshman shortstop is hitting .417 and has hit safely in every game. In addition, he has a win and two saves in four relief appearances, striking out nine in 3 1/3 innings. Did I mention No. 1 Texas comes to town this weekend? It does.
* Southern Wesleyan (0-4, 4-14) - Opponents are hitting .341. Not much else needs to be said in explanation. A recent bright spot was Zach O'Malley, who went 9-for-13 last week and has a six-game hitting streak.
* USC Lancaster (0-3, 6-9) - It's been a streaky year for the Lancers: 3 wins, 6 losses, 3 wins, 3 losses. The pitching staff was punished for 35 runs in 23 innings over the weekend. Jonah McElheney (.415) has been the brightest offensive star and has hit safely in nine of his last 10 games.
* USC Upstate (1-3, 7-4) - It wasn't a good week for the Spartans, who lost two of three to previously winless Xavier. Both losses came when the Musketeers rallied in the late innings against the Spartans bullpen. Devin Buckner (.439) has hit in 10 of 11 games and Noah Rabon (.429) is on an 11-game streak. Throw in Noah Sullivan (.378) and Upstate has shown the ability to reach base. Sullivan also was the winner Friday, giving him three wins in as many relief appearances.
* Winthrop (1-3, 3-8) - The Eagles were in position for a series win on Sunday, taking a 5-3 lead into the ninth against East Tennessee State. But the Buccaneers got a three-run homer and held on. Jack Spyke was 7-for-15 last week. Parker Whittle had a couple of effective outings, going a scoreless inning at North Carolina and striking out seven while allowing one earned run in five innings against ETSU.
So-so
* Anderson (0-3 last week, 13-4 overall) - Why So-So instead of Shiverin'? The Trojans went 0-3 last week, but it was against top-ranked defending national champion Wingate. The Bulldogs put the first two games away in the middle innings, but the finale was tied before Wingate scored three runs in the sixth of the seven-inning game. After starting the season on a 14-game hitting streak, Kye Andress went hitless in two of the three games over the weekend.
* Benedict (2-2, 2-13) - The Tigers got their first two wins of the season in a road series at LeMoyne-Owen. The offense scored 16 and 18 runs to open and close the series wrapped around a walk-off loss in the middle game. Bradon O'Connor was 7-for-12 with 12 RBIs in the set and is hitting a team-leading .471 with 21 RBIs. He's also up to 36-for-39 in stolen bases. Jalen McDuffie is batting .458. A 12.40 staff ERA and a roster saturated with freshmen go a long way in explaining an 0-11 start to the season,
* Francis Marion (3-2, 10-8) - The Patriots had a couple of walk-off losses in a series loss at Barton. They scored two runs in the eighth inning to tie the opener, but lost in 12 innings, 4-3, of the opener. In the series finale, FMU scored four runs in the ninth to tie the score, but the host Bulldogs responded with a run in the bottom of the inning. Darius Nobles had four home runs in Sunday's doubleheader. FMU hit .325 for the series, with Leniel Gonzalez, Will Hardee, Bill Hanna, Todd Mattox and Nobles all prospering,
* Spartanburg Methodist (1-1, 5-8 through Sunday) - Four one-run losses and another by two runs have put the Pioneers below where they'd like to be at this point. But SMC and the six other NJCAA Region 10 teams are on equal footing in the standings as league play begins this weekend. Jordan Young is hitting .412 and leads the team in homers (5) and RBI (24). Dariyan Pendergrass has raised his batting average to .426 and has stolen a team-best 10 bases.
* USC Aiken (2-1, 7-9) - The Pacers probably felt like they should have feasted at Georgia Southwestern, which entered the weekend 4-11 and has had just one winning season in the past 10 years. But winners and losers aren't determined by history, and Aiken found itself on the short end of a run-rule game in the opener. Joel Haney's shutout got the Pacers turned around and they completed a 2-1 PBC series win on Sunday. He has a 3-1 record, an 0.,89 ERA and 30 strikeouts in 30 1/3 innings. Jeff Cyr (.364) is on an eight-game hitting streak. Sean McQuillan (.359) has hit safely in nine of his last 10 games.
* USC Beaufort (2-0, 9-13) - The Sand Sharks are off to an 0-6 start in The Sun Conference, but got a couple of confidence-boosting offensive performances in nonleague play last week. Six regulars are hitting .306 or better, led by Leandy Castro's .371 mark.
* USC Sumter (2-3, 13-6) - The Fire Ants played five games against teams with winning records last week and paid the price in the won-lost column. But if Sumter can continue to hit at a .341 clip, good things may happen in Region 1-0 play.
* USC Union (2-2, 10-4) - The Bantams split four games against JV competition last week. Coach Micah Stancil didn't do his team any favors in their final tune-up before Region 10 play starts: National power Walters State is scheduled to visit for two on Wednesday.
* Voorhees (0-0, 4-9) - The Tigers didn't play last week - or if they did, I couldn't find any record of it.
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