Four local high school softball teams will be playing in the GHSA state playoffs starting this Friday. Starr’s Mill is the only one of the four to be a one seed in their classification’s sectionals but the other three teams have played well, especially down the stretch, and could be a tough opponent for some teams.

Whitewater High School earned their first state tournament bid by placing fourth in the region 4-AAAA tournament. They will take on Luella (22-8) which went 11-1 in their last 12 games. Luella is led by pitcher Brooke Loudermilk, who has picked up a number of wins, saves and strikeouts in that 12 game stretch. Whitewater has a few pitchers at their disposal but Ashley Pedersen has been the go to pitcher in recent games. The team has also had good offensive performances from many in their lineup but will need to keep the bats going to advance in the tournament.

These two teams will meet at Diamond Lakes in Augusta on Friday at 6 p.m.

Our Lady of Mercy did not expect to be in the playoffs this year. This is their third year of playing varsity softball and this will be their second trip to the state playoffs. The Lady Bobcats went 3-21 this year, 1-19 in the regular season and 2-2 in the playoffs. Danielle Allison has pitched great of late and was one of the major factors in the team picking up tournament wins last week. They also got great performances from Marina Fleming, batting .543 for the season and 11-for-14 in the region tournament; Amanda Keuler, who went 6-for-12 in the tournament and batted .293 this season; and Brittany Bowman, a left fielder who hit. 347 and drove in 12 runs during the season.

They will take on Gordon Lee, the region 6-A champion and the defending Class A state champs. Gordon Lee went 22-9-1 and went 9-2-1 in their last 12 games. Seven of those wins were by shutouts and three of those were only won by one run.

Mercy will have their work cut out for them but everybody’s record now is 0-0.

Their first game is at 4 p.m. on Friday at Lovejoy Regional Park in Hampton.

Starr’s Mill (27-6-1) enters the Class AAAAA state tournament having defeated the top ranked Union Grove team twice in the space of a few days. Coach Mark Williamson feels the team is playing well right now and that a different person steps up in each game to make the difference. The team has been led by great defense to back up the pitching eforts of Amanda Howett and Paige Peurifoy but they will need to execute offensively to advance.

They will face Camden County. The Lady Wildcats have a record of 7-11 and have eight losses in their last 10 games, including three shutouts.

They will face Camden County at the Hamilton Complex in Tifton on Friday at 6 p.m.

Fayette County went 7-14 this season but got an important win in the region tournament and qualified for the state playoffs. They have two good pitchers in Caroline Teubl and Britt Hammel-Cobb and their offense is led by jaklyn Edlestein and Chasity Welch. The team also gets good defensive performances from Tori Owen, Eboni Baitey and Welch.

Their opponent in the first round of the playoffs is Brunswick, a team that didn’t have a great overall regular season but got hot at the right time. In six region games to close the season and playoffs, the Lady Pirates went 5-1 and won their final three games by one run.

These two teams will meet at the Hamilton Complex in Tifton at 6 p.m.

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