William Shakespeare wrote the phrase in his play Henry IV, “Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown.”
So far this season, defending Class AA state baseball champion Winfield has handled that pressure with relative ease.
Stunning the W.Va. high school baseball world last year with a regional win over two-time defending state champion Logan, the Generals proceeded to march to the state title game to take a 3-0 win over Keyser.
After snapping. 21-year drought last year, Winfield (29-4) is now looking to go back-to-back.
The quest for the Generals begins Friday morning at 10 a.m. in Charleston when they play Independence in the Class AA state state baseball tournament semifinals at Go-Mart Park.
Winfield senior Karson Frye, who was named the 2024 Lootpress Kanawha Valley Player of the Year, talked about the big key to the Generals strong run this year.
“Our (head) coach (Will Isaacs) really pushed us in the off-season,” Frye said. “We continued to work and lift weights throughout the off-season. That motivated us to stay together as a team. We play for each other and we do a lot of team activities outside of baseball. That helps us work together as a team.”
While a defending champion making a return to the state tournament may not come as a big surprise, under the circumstances, Winfield’s run back to Charleston is nothing short of impressive.
“We lost six seniors last year and all six of them started,” Frye said. “We were not expected to do what we did this year, but a lot of younger guys stepped up. We have two freshman that are unbelievable and both of them start. They have been phenomenal for us.”
Even with several new faces in the starting lineup, the Generals roared out of the gate winning their first 19 games of the season.
Included in that stretch were wins over defending Class AAA state champion Cabell Midland, George Washington, Buffalo and Charleston Catholic. All four teams are in Charleston playing for a state title in their respective classes.
“We were not expecting to start out the season like that. I knew we were going to be really good, but not 19-0 starting out. We started out the season with a 6-1 win over Cabell Midland and that really boosted us going forward.”
The Generals received another confidence boost a day later with a win over a very strong Class AAA Ripley team in their home opener.
“Ripley is always a rival and was once again a great team this year. In all of the years I have been in high school, we had never beat Ripley,” Frye said. “We started out down 3-0, but we came out on top 12-7. That game right there told me we had something good this year.”
Of the 29 wins, 11 have been shutout victories from a very deep pitching staff.
Sophomore Blake Withrow has led the way with an 8-0 record, allowing only five earned runs this season. In 55 innings of work, Withrow has 70 strikeouts and a 0.636 earned run average (ERA).
Wins for Withrow include victories over Ripley and a three-hit shutout against George Washington
“Blake has put up some really dominant stats this year and is probably our most dominant pitcher,” Frye explained. “He is a strong lefty that gets the job done.”
Frye and fellow senior Xavier Hensley have been equally effective.
Hensley is 6-1 on the season with one save and a 1.80 ERA. Over his 46.2 innings, he has allowed just 12 earned runs and has 39 strikeouts. Frye sports a 5-1 record in 42 innings pitched. The fireballer has 88 strikeouts with a 2.33 ERA.
Playing a strong schedule, the Generals are also been strong offensively, having not been shutout all season by an opposing staff.
Frye has five home runs, 27 RBI and 22 stolen bases, while junior Preston Keiffer has 28 RBI and 16 swipes. Withrow can also swing the stick with 23 RBI and eight extra base hits.
Thus far, Winfield has jumped every hurdle put in front of them during the season. The next big test is how well the newcomers handle the atmosphere at Go-Mart Park.
“Just play the game like we know how to play the game,” Frye said about his advice to the young players. “Just play like we know how to and we will win the games. As we can see, it has worked out for us pretty well this season. If we get down, we can’t let it get to us. Just play like we know how to play.”
