New Hope High School senior catcher Will Godfrey quickly recalls his favorite memory from the 2015 prep baseball season.
“The home run against Oxford was my No. 1 memory,” Godfrey said. “It was amazing I was the one that hit it. I was happy. However, I would have been happy had any other player on the team hit it as well. That was just the type of team we had. Everybody was in it together.”
Godfrey hit a walk-off home run in the bottom half of the seventh inning of Game 2 of the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 5A North State championship series game. The blast lifted New Hope to 1 -0 victory and extended the best-of-three series to a third game. Oxford won the third game and a week later won the state championship, stopping New Hope’s streak of back-to-back titles.
For a quartet of New Hope High players, the togetherness continued this summer, as they played together on the East Coast Sox, which is part of the East Coast Baseball Organization, which is based in Columbus.
“It is a good Christian organization,” Godfrey said. “I play summer ball because you get to see a lot better pitching on a consistent basis. I am also not the prototypical catcher. I am not 6-foot-3 with big thighs, so I really worked hard all summer on being better at blocking balls. I don’t think I was anywhere near a bad catcher, but there was room for improvement with my blocking, so I really tried to focus on my hitting and blocking.”
The East Coast Sox had two teams this summer — one for high school seniors-to-be and one for high school graduates preparing for junior or senior college. Godfrey and senior left fielder Aidan Fletcher represented New Hope High on the younger squad, while Northeast Mississippi Community College signee Josh Stillman, a pitcher/infielder, and South Alabama signee Wells Davis, a first baseman, played on the older squad.
“It was my second season with the East Coast Sox, and it was a great experience,” Stillman said. “Sometimes, you don’t see this type of pitching in high school. You are playing with a bunch of others guys getting ready to play college ball, just like yourself, so that really pushes you harder. It is not the stressful environment of high school ball, so it’s nice that you can relax a little bit. At the same time, you want to get something beneficial out of the experience. It’s just good to play so many games.”
With Stillman leading the way on the mound and Davis being one of the team’s leading hitters, New Hope advanced to the North State Class 5A championship series for a fourth-straight season and finished 25-7. New Hope enjoyed a 19-game winning streak during the season. Stillman and Godfrey were named to the Mississippi Association of Coaches Class 5A All-State team.
“Nobody thought we would do anything,” Godfrey said. “This year will be more of the same. We will be lightly regarded even though we had that success last year. We have some guys who can and will step up. (Junior) Carson Forrester is going to be a great player. (Junior) Peyton Buckner pitched a lot last year, and we will expect even more from him this year. (Junior) Thomas Stevens really came through for us big time. He wasn’t sure he would get to play a lot. He played, started, and did a great job.”
Many of the other New Hope High players also played summer ball throughout the region to prepare for the 2016 campaign. The East Coast Sox players played 60 games.
“Traveling was the fun part,” Godfrey said. “We played six or seven games every week. We played on a bunch of different college campuses. That was neat. We had players from Arkansas, Louisiana, Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi. I got to know the players really well. It was a positive experience. It made me a better player. Everything we did was to glory God as well, so it a great summer.”
Stillman also felt like his game grew during the summer.
“Playing in the summer is really good,” Stillman said. “It’s good to do it because you see better pitching. It’s also a chance to make a few extra plays. When you go back to your high school team or move on to your college team, you can really draw from your experiences during the summer.
“Playing with guys who are on your level really helps you become a better player.”
Godfrey also used the summer to learn more about baseball and to learn more about leadership from Stillman and Davis.
“I will really miss the seniors because they showed us how to do things the right way,” Godfrey said. “They taught me the importance of keeping people in line and helping keep their heads on straight. It will be on the seniors this year to make sure the program continues on the right track.
“I think we will make another deep run in the playoffs. Then whatever the good Lord has in store for us is what is going to happen.”
Some might think divine intervention played a role in Godfrey clearing the left field fence and extending the New Hope season for two more days.
“It was the biggest at-bat of my baseball career,” Godfrey said. “We were so down that Tuesday night (after a 3-2 walk-off loss in eight innings). Then we were so high that Thursday night. That is what baseball is all about. It teaches you so much.
“Hitting a game-winning home run against Oxford was sweet because our rivalry against them has turned into one of the best ones in high school baseball. Winning a game of that magnitude is special. It will be something I always remember.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Scott Walters on Twitter @dispatchscott
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 43 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.