By By BRIAN HAINES, Sports Writer
In what has turned out to be an excellent year for area softball, six area teams made the playoffs this season and it seems like just about all of them have a chance to make an extended playoff run.
Southside, which has won its conference three years in a row, earned a No. 1 once again and will be joined in the postseason by fellow 1-A squads Jamesville, Williamston, Northside and Bear Grass, while Washington has qualified in the 3-A division.
Here is a look at the matchups.
No. 3 North Edgecombe at No. 1 Southside
The Seahawks fended off Williamston and topped Northside in the final game of the regular season to win the newly formed Four Rivers Conference championship. That achievement has allowed Southside (16-4) to begin its quest for a state championship in Chocowinity. The Seahawks will square off against No. 3 seed North Edgecombe from the Tar Roanoke Conference, who enter the playoffs with a 7-6.
No. 4 Kipp Pride at No. 1 Jamesville
After finishing the regular season with an astounding 17-1 record, the Tideland Conference champion Bullets earned a No. 1 seed and will host No. 4 Kipp Pride.
Kipp Pride ended the regular season below .500 (6-7) and is the fourth ranked team from the Tar Roanoke Conference.
No. 3 Dixon at No. 2 Williamston
It’s been a wild year for Williamston, who with only two games left in the regular season could have finished anywhere from first to third in the extremely tough Four Rivers Conference.
While the Tigers did not win the conference, their 14-7 record was good enough to give them a No. 2 seed and a home game in the playoffs.
Williamston will face Dixon, who wrapped up its regular season with a 13-10 record and was the No. 3 seed out of the Coastal Plains Conference.
No. 3 Northside at No. 2 Pamlico
Like Williamston, Northside was in contention for the coveted Four Rivers Conference title all the way up until the end, but could not dethrone Southside in the regular season finale.
The loss to the Seahawks not only cost the Panthers (12-9) a conference title, but because of its head-to-head losses to the Tigers, allowed them to loose the No. 2 seed and a chance to host a playoff game.
Northside will begin their quest for a state title at Pamlico, where the 13-6 Hurricanes earned the No. 2 seed in the Coastal Plains Conference.
No. 4 Camden at No. 2 Bear Grass
Bear Grass may not have been able to overtake Jamesville in the Tideland Conference, but its 13-8 record was good enough to take second an earn a No. 2 seed. The Bears will begin their postseason at home against a quality opponent in Camden. The Bruins finished the regular season with a 10-7 record in the Four Rivers Conference.
(3-A division) No. 5 Washington at No. 1 Currituck
Washington was able to punch its ticket into the postseason with win over West Craven in the regular season finale. Now, the fifth-seeded Pam Pack (7-11, Coastal Conference) will hope to carry some of that momentum into its first-round battle with Currituck, who with its 7-10 record, is the No. 1 seed from the Northeastern Coastal Conference because it was the highest rated 3-A school in the hybrid 3-A/4-A conference.