NCHSAA playoff glance: A quick look at area teams in the postseason

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on May 12, 2015 1:48 PM

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A total of 18 teams from the News-Argus readership area qualified for the 2015 N.C. High School Athletic Association playoffs in either baseball, softball or girls' soccer. Here's a short breakdown of each team:

BASEBALL

Northeast Guilford (13-9) at C.B. Aycock (17-4): One run short of reaching the eastern regional championship series a year ago, the Golden Falcons begin the 3-A playoffs at home Wednesday. CBA is 8-1 on its home diamond and expected to start Appalachian State signee Bobby Hampton, who is 7-2 with a 0.55 earned run average. Northeast Guilford finished fifth in the Mid-State Conference and is 5-7 in road games this season.

Eastern Wayne (12-7) at Wilson Fike (13-6): The Warriors head into the postseason on a three-game skid and are just 4-4 in road games this spring. The team hits a collective .281 and has stolen 34 bases. Lee Daniels (.426 batting) leads the offense, while Zack Smith is the bullpen ace (5-2, 0.95 ERA).

Hobbton (7-11) at Spring Creek (13-8): Carolina 1-A champ Spring Creek swept Hobbton during regular-season play. The Gators have won 9 of their last 10 games. SC has swiped a county-leading and probably school-record 83 bases this season. Limestone College signee Allen Coor leads the team in several offensive categories - batting average (.523), plate appearances (72), at-bats (65), runs scored (30), hits (34), RBI (22), extra-base hits (13) and two home runs.

Manteo (12-7) at Princeton (13-9): Princeton ended the season with six wins in its final nine games and hits .274 as a team. Nick Phillips is the team's main offensive threat with a .429 batting average. The Bulldogs' bullpen has a team ERA of 3.02.

Pamlico (8-11) at Rosewood (11-9): The eastern 1-A regional runner-up last season, Rosewood begins its playoff journey at home. The Eagles have a team batting average .286, have stolen 40 bases and play pretty clean defense with a .921 fielding percentage. Junior Ethan Chapin is the offensive leader with a .391 and shares the team lead in hits (18), but is the top RBI producer with 11.

North Duplin (9-8) at Bear Grass Charter (14-6): Directed by first-year head coach Chuck Crumpler, the Rebels hit the road. North Duplin has dropped three of their last four games overall. Trey Pate is expected to get the starting nod on the mound for against Bear Grass.

GIRLS' SOCCER

Northern Nash (10-7-0) at Eastern Wayne (10-6-0): The Warriors enter the postseason battle tested after playing eight games - and winning two - against 4-A league foes J.H. Rose, D.H. Conley, New Bern and South Central. They'll come at you with numerous offensive weapons - Megan Mozingo, the sister pair of Brennan and Cameron Dove and others. Defense is EW's mainstay and usually becomes its strong suit as the season progresses.

C.B. Aycock (4-12-0) at Cameron Union Pines (16-0-0): The Golden Falcons travel to the East's No. 1-seeded team. Sabrina Johnson has emerged as Aycock's top offensive threat and posted a pair of hat tricks during the final month of regular-season play. Ariel Strickland is valuable in the midfield.

Goldsboro (6-9-4) at Croatan (13-8-0): The Cougars finished second in Eastern Carolina 2-A play and have won three straight. Juanita Cortes-Torres, a team captain, has been one of the team's top goal producers. Goldsboro must play disciplined and control possession of the ball.

North Duplin (4-9-0) at Princeton (15-3-0): Princeton swept the regular-season series against the Rebels, who are fielding their first-ever team in school history. The Bulldogs have scored 117 goals and logged 87 assists -- both single-season school records. Kassandra Bautista Velasquez has punched in 23 goals, while Chelsea Hawley has scored 21. Hawley and Jessica Brush have combined for 57 assists.

East Wake Academy (11-11-0) at Rosewood (13-5-0): Not surprisingly, multi-sport star Lexi Mercer leads the Eagles with 42 goals, according to the most-recent updated stats on Maxpreps. The Eagles are an unselfish group with 62 assists on 69 goals. Goalkeepers Jala Holloman and Ashley Thornton have combined for 94 goals and three shutouts between the pipes.

Spring Creek (14-2-0) received a first-round bye. The Gators are lead by Rheanna Ried and Madison Harkay, who have combined for 54 goals, according to the most-recent stats posted on Maxpreps.com.