Easley High School senior catcher Aaron Tolbert fires the ball to second base recently.
Photo courtesy of Alicia Tolbert
Quietly, Aaron Tolbert is having another all-state type of season for the Easley High School baseball team.
He’s batting a team-high .371 at the plate (13-for-35) to go with 3 doubles, 8 RBIs and 9 runs scored. He’s also got a .971 fielding percentage as a catcher for the Green Wave.
A couple other Green Wave teammates – Levi Holcombe and Ayden Beeco – are turning in great seasons at the plate, too.
Holcombe is only a freshman and is third on the team in hitting at .318 (7-of-22) with 3 doubles and 6 RBIs. Beeco, a junior, is batting .310 (9-of-29) to go with a team-high 5 doubles and 8 RBIs.
Did you know? Cooper Sears, a junior first baseman, currently leads Easley’s offense with 11 walks this season.
Pickens Baseball: The Blue Flame are currently 3-8 at press time, but they only have three seniors on their varsity baseball team. The three seniors are catcher Preston Scott, right fielder Griffin Duncan and pitcher Ben Reeves.
“We were able to beat Berea the other night and Blue Ridge, so we are 2-0 in region,” said Blue Flame coach John David Burgess. “Those seniors provide great leadership.”
Number 3 hitter Jayden Ferguson (only a sophomore) leads Pickens at the plate with close to a .500 batting average.
“He (Ferguson) is very confident at the plate and is a real anchor at the plate,” said Coach Burgess. “We are coming along. We struggled in the preseason.”
The recent starting lineup for the Pickens varsity baseball team:
1 Maddex Freeman (3B)
2 Lewis Martin (SS)
3 Jayden Ferguson (1B)
4 Lucas Torres (DH)
5 Preston Scott (C)
6 Griffin Duncan (RF)
7 Brayden Smith (P)
8 Cam Wilson (CF)
9 Matthew Cantrell (2B)
* Justice James (LF)
Reserves: Dawson Paxton, Ben Reeves and Chandler Gravely.
Congratulations to the Easley High School students who have been selected for Boys State this summer: Brady Wright, Cohen Durham, Ethan Mackey, Lucas Goodacre and Matthew Hillstock.
Mark your calendar: The 38th Annual Special Olympics Golf Tournament will be held on Tuesday, May 13 at the Oconee Country Club at 781 Richland Road in Seneca. The cost is $95 per person and the four-person team includes green fees, breakfast items, lunch, golfer gift bag, a mulligan and a red tee closest to the pin contest, and the hole-in-one contest.
There will also be a 50/50 raffle, prize raffle, silent auction, and all proceeds will benefit Area 13 Special Olympics.
The Pickens High School 2025 Blue Flame Car Show will be on Friday, May 2 in the student parking lot. The registration goes from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and the cost is $20 per entry. There will be trophies awarded to: Top 40 cars, top-10 student cars, Best in Show and the People’s Choice. All proceeds go to PHS Athletics. Contact Tim Sheppard for more information at timsheppard@pickens.k12.us.
The first-ever FCA Benefit will take place on Thursday, May 15, at Pickens High School. The worship will be led by local youth choirs and testimonials from students, coaches and faculty. The featured speaker will be Rev. Brett Turner. It will start at 6:30 p.m. in the PHS auditorium.
Reach Jeff Holt at 864-855-0355.