GREENWOOD – Adam Love lined a bases-clearing triple off the blue concrete of the right field wall to give Lander its first lead in the fifth inning, and Connor Droze hit his 50th career home run for insurance as the Lander baseball team claimed its first Peach Belt Conference Tournament title since 2014 with an 8-3 win over Columbus State on Friday afternoon at Dolny Stadium.

The tournament title is Lander’s second-ever conference tournament crown and its fifth overall Peach Belt title when including regular-season championships (2014, 2024, 2025).

With the win, Lander (42-13) secured the Peach Belt’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Southeast Regional—its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2016. Of the Bearcats’ three previous trips, two ended in Cary, N.C., at the Division II Baseball Championship.

The 42 wins are the third most in program history, and the Bearcats finished 26-3 at Dolny Stadium this season—the best home record since the 2014 squad went 27-4.

Columbus State (30-23) scored three runs across the first three innings, including two in the third after a two-out error extended the inning. Lander’s lone early response came in the second inning on a sacrifice fly by Will McClellan.

The Bearcats trimmed the deficit to 3-2 in the third as Taichi Nakao scored on a wild pitch during a walk to Droze. Then in the fifth, with two outs and the bases loaded after a Sherrod walk and singles by Droze and Garrett Chun, Love launched a deep drive that hit high off the blue wall in right field—just out of reach of the fielder—to clear the bases and give Lander a 5-3 lead.

A shutdown inning in the sixth by starter Jagger Jefferis (7-3) capped a gritty outing: six innings, five hits, one earned run. Kurt Rogers came on in the seventh and overcame some control issues to post a scoreless frame.

Then, in the bottom of the seventh, more Dolny Magic occurred. In what could be his final at-bat at Dolny Stadium, Droze delivered one for the history books—a towering three-run home run to right field, the 50th of his career, and became the first Lander player ever to reach the 50 home run mark. The homer sent a Dolny Stadium crowd of 323 into a frenzy as the Bearcats extended their lead to 8-3. Droze later earned PBC Tournament Most Valuable Player honors.

Columbus State threatened in the eighth, but Rogers stranded two runners. Tyler Bowen then pitched a 1-2-3 ninth, sealing the win and sparking a long-awaited dogpile on the infield.

The NCAA Southeast Regional bracket will be revealed Sunday at 10:30 p.m. on NCAA.com.

Peach Belt Baseball

All-Tournament Team

Carson Phillips, Georgia College & State University

Phillip Ard, North Georgia

Warrick Wilmot, Columbus State

Luke Miller, Columbus State

Victor Junco, Columbus State

Zach Cowart, Lander

Evan Wickeri, Lander

Garrett Chun, Lander

Tournament MVP

Connor Droze, Lander

HOWIE-IN-THE-HILLS, FLA — Three Peach Belt Conference men’s golf teams are among the top four following the first round of the NCAA South/Southeast regional at Mission Inn Resort (par 72, 6,960 yards). Columbus State is in second place with North Georgia third and USC Aiken fourth.

Florida Southern leads the event after shooting 8-under 280. Georgia Southwestern is tied for ninth with Flagler and Lander is in 13th. Round two will begin on Friday morning at 7:30am with round three on Saturday.

Flagler’s Joel Petersson and USC Aiken’s Erik Olin are both tied for second on the individual leaderboard at two-under 70. Petersson had five birdies on his round with only two bogeys, playing the back nine in bogey-free 35 (par 37). Olin had seven birdies in total and was also two under on the second nine.

Columbus State was led by a trio of players who each shot two-under 70. Pete Stansell had only two bogeys with four birdies and shot 35 on the back nine. Bernard Meyer had only one bogey with four birdies while Martin Gruendemann had five birdies on the day. Frederick Chappell rounded out the scoring for CSU with a 74 while Russell Makepeace had a 75.

North Georgia’s Ethan Day fired a two-under 70 while Colby Bennett and Jack Vajda were each one-under 71. Hughes Threlkeld shot one-over 73 with Hunter Smith one back at 74.

Olin was the only Pacer to finish under par. Mitchell McNeill shot even-par 72 while Nick Goellner and Oscar Abrahamsson were each one-over 73 and Karl Frisk two behind.

CSU is four strokes behind Florida Southern at four-under with North Georgia three under and USC Aiken one under.

At a minimum, the top three teams and the top two student-athletes not with a team from each regional will advance to the finals, May 19-23 at PGA National Resort in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. The remaining eight team berths will be allocated based on the regions represented in the prior year’s head-to-head medal play portion of the championships, with the maximum number of teams from a given region capped at seven. The finals will be hosted by Palm Beach Atlantic and the Palm Beach County Sports Commission.

Esports’ competitive season came to an end after the team took part in the Texas Scholastic Esports state championships May 1-3 at Baylor University. The Hawks took home state titles in “Valorant” and “IRacing”. 

“We had a crowd at every game, even if multiple teams were playing, there were at least some students at each station cheering for their teammates,” head coach Kristopher Phillips said. “To see how our program impacted the overall competition [was special.]” 

At state championships, junior Abby Pham and junior Jack Bodwell cast the finals — commentating and calling the match. Bodwell is the captain of the “Overwatch” team. They lost one game in the grand finals — finishing second. 

“I’ve never heard so many people inspired to win at once; it was amazing,” Bodwell said. “We lost, but we had brought a game that we were not supposed to win close, and I’m proud of the guys. Overall, it was an amazing experience, getting to lead a team to second place in nationals, and second place at state.”

This year, the program underwent change, dealing with the departure of former head coach Jaden Gorham, with Phillips taking his role. 

“I went into this season [viewing it] as a [learning experience,]” Phillips said. “Moving forward, we have opportunities to make changes to make this program stronger, more manageable and sustainable. I’m looking forward to what this [program] will look like moving forward.”

The team was supportive of each other throughout the season, helping each other grow in practice and use their time to build each other up. Phillips, Bowdell and Esports president Hansu Kim said the team’s atmosphere impacted their community positively.

“Winning is a good feeling—nothing really beats it,” Kim said. “You can’t look at a state championship as a disappointment. Together as a team, we grew [and bonded] well. Being able to have that connective energy while we’re playing is what makes this so much fun.”

Following the state championships, the team was supposed to compete in the High School Esports League (HSEL) in-person national championships, but they were canceled. Phillips said it was a huge disappointment to the program, despite them still viewing the season positively.

“The kids faced a bunch of adversity [this season] with things that were not within their control,” Phillips said. “I’m super proud of how the kids represented the school, represented themselves and their teammates. We competed at the highest level across all titles that we represent, and we walk away from the season showing that this program is as dominant as ever.”

After winning their fifth state title in three years earlier this spring, East Helena’s high school esports team has set its sights on the ultimate final boss: the first-ever U.S. esports national championship.

East Helena High is one of three Montana schools invited to compete in the inaugural National Association of Esports Coaches and Directors’ high school tournament, taking place June 17 in St. Louis alongside the association’s annual convention.

Teams from up to 20 states are gearing up for the national showdown, and East Helena will face off against schools with more established esports programs from states like Washington and California. While some of these schools compete as part of official athletic associations with league play and school funding, East Helena has earned its spot the hard way. 

A top contender in Montana, on the national stage the Vigilantes enter as the upstart and the underdog. Because this is the first year the national tournament will take place, the team had not expected to compete in St. Louis until the call on Apr. 7, the day after winning state.

“The call came out of nowhere,” said esports coach Mason Skains, who also works in maintenance and has been playing video games since grade school. “It’s a big step for our program.” 

The thrill of the invitation, however, soon gave way to uncertainty: would the team be able to scrape together the $3,000 needed to turn this dream into a reality? A club rather than a sanctioned sport, esports teams across Montana need to raise their own funds. 

Esports General Manager Marne Bender said the invitation to nationals came right after the team had depleted its budget at the state tournament. “So we were like, yay!” Bender said excitedly, then lowered her tone. “And then we were like…oh.” 

Undeterred, the team launched a crowdfunding campaign to cover the cost of flights, lodgings, and expenses for five student athletes and a coach. By Thursday afternoon, the campaign had sped past its goal and hit $3600. “It’s awesome,” said sophomore esports athlete Kayleigh Peterson. “I’ve never been on a plane before.”

The tournament is also a college opportunity. LeagueOS, a company that runs most U.S. college esports leagues, is sponsoring the national tournament. The event will include a “recruiting combine,” where high schoolers get the chance to play in front of college esports coaches. 

Many universities with esports teams, including Boise State, University of Utah, Ohio State, and Valparaiso, offer scholarships and full-rides to top esports athletes. As of early 2025, more than 250 U.S. colleges and universities have varsity esports programs, and around 200 of them offer scholarships, including the University of Montana. 

Initially nervous to join due to the stigma around video games, Peterson described joining the esports team as “probably” the best decision she’s ever made. Now, her teammates are some of her closest friends. 

Critics knock esports as requiring little physical activity, and thus not an actual sport, but participants argue that it’s extremely mentally demanding. “The reality is so far from the stereotype it’s not even funny,” said Skains, adding that the sport requires strong collaboration and communication, technical skill, and advanced problem solving. 

He also said it’s a good option for students who might not find success in physical sports. “Don’t knock it until you try it,” he said.

The team trains on multiple video games, but its Valorant team is advancing to nationals. Valorant is a teen-rated, first-person tactical shooter game in which two teams of five go head-to-head, alternating between offense and defense. The attacking team tries to plant the “spike,” an explosive device, while the defenders work to defuse the spike once it’s planted. 

In addition to Peterson, East Helena students Ayden Dess, Myah Erickson, Joe Senecal, and Ben Paige play on the Valorant squad. Sophomore esports athlete Senecal attributed the team’s success to friendships built through playing together. His coach took a similar view. 

“This is way bigger than sitting in front of a screen playing a video game,” said Skains. “This is a team of individuals trying to accomplish something great.”

Fayette County Public Schools is one of five nominees for National Esports School District of the Year in the 2025 PlayVS Awards. Let’s bring this honor home! Voting is open until May 16, and you can vote daily:

Vote Now

This opportunity highlights the outstanding growth and impact of esports in FCPS.

Thriving Programs: Schools like Lafayette High, with over 30 student participants and top-ranked teams across multiple esports titles, illustrate the quality of our coaches.

State Leadership: At one point, three of our high schools ranked in the Top 25 for Super Smash Bros in Kentucky, showcasing the depth of talent across FCPS.

EPIC Growth: Our groundbreaking EPIC Esports program has expanded opportunities to 24 elementary and six middle schools, fostering early engagement and skill development.

Commitment to Equity: FCPS ensures all students can participate through reliable high-speed internet at their schools and secures funding for gaming equipment from community sponsors.

FCPS is competing against districts in Florida, Georgia, Texas, and New Mexico for the national award. Tune in at twitch.tv/playvs June 5-6 for the PlayVS Cup Finals, where the winner will be announced! 

For general questions about esports in FCPS, please reach out to STEM learning coach Shad Lacefield.