Three athletes from local high schools were named to the All-Star team – Erin Golf, Stanley McManus and Todd Mattox. Mattox was also named MVP for Blythewood High School for the year.
Fairfield Central High School’s Stanley McManus has earned his place as a South Carolina Baseball Coaches Association (SCBCA) All-Star. McManus’s selection marked the first time a Griffin had been selected as a baseball All-Star since Justin Trapp. They are the only two Griffins to ever receive the honor.
McManus clocked 21 hits in 51 at bats this season, with two homeruns, 21 RBIs and a stellar .412 batting average. He racked up 37 strikeouts on the mound with a couple of wins and a 1.59 ERA.
“We’ve made the playoffs 5 of the 6 years he was on the team. We have won four or five playoff games over the past 5 years and he has pitched in every one of them, including the program’s first home playoff win vs. Chesterfield in 2014,” McManus’ head coach Scotty Dean said. “That 2014 team played for a district championship, another first for our baseball program. He has played a huge role in any success that our program has had over the last 6 years.”
Blythewood softball star Erin Goff joined McManus and fellow Bengal Todd Mattox as an SCBCA All-Star. Goff, a senior, drove in 14 RBIs on 23 hits, in 65 at bats, with two home-runs, five doubles and a .534 batting average.
Goff is the third Bengal softball player in as many years to be selected to the All-Star team. Ansley Gilstrap of USC-Upstate was chosen in 2015 and Maggie Herrera of Newberry College earned her selection in 2016.
“Erin is a great softball player, but an outstanding individual. She is a model of a student athlete,” Bengals’ head softball coach Jordan Atkinson said. “She leads the team in GPA (over 4.0) and finished in the top three in every offensive category. Erin is a team player and a leader. She is willing to play any position if it helps the team.”
Three Richard Winn Academy Eagles earned SCISA All-Star selections.
Two-sport athlete Zack Taylor earned a baseball All-Star nod. Taylor, just an eighth grader, is a standout in football as well as on the diamond and was named the team’s baseball MVP for the year. Taylor hit for a .360 average, with nine RBIs and, while on the mound, he tossed 42 innings, gave up only 15 earned runs, struck-out 46 and wrapped the season up with a 2.48 ERA.
“Zack deserves all of these accolades because of the hard work he has put in and the focus that he maintains to be the best that he can be as a baseball player,” Taylor’s head coach Paul Brigman said. “I look forward to the future for Zack, because I know it is a bright one.”
The dominant senior duo of Bailey Taylor and Alyssa Atkerson earned All-Star honors as well. Atkerson and Taylor powered the Eagles to back-to-back semifinal appearances in the last two SCISA state tournaments.
Blythewood High School’s Ben Lang-Spittler and Todd Mattox received All-Regional honors for the Bengals. Rodric Woodard and Stanley McManus were named All-Region players for the Griffins.
Westwood High School’s Rashawn Green, Elijah Heatley, Matthew Oxendine and Branden May were given Regional honors for the Westwood Redhawks. Westwood coach Jonathan Burroughs was named the Regional Co-Coach of the Year.
