MORGAN COUNTY
The Morgan County baseball team won 20 games last season and had multiple talented players across its roster.
One, in particular, would have to be Sam Schofield, who recently accepted a scholarship offer to continue his baseball career at Georgia State University in Atlanta.
He was recruited by multiple other schools, but Schofield believed the Panthers was the right team for him.
“It feels great. It was a tough decision to make, but I’m glad I finally signed and got that over with,” Schofield said. “Now, I can just enjoy the rest of the year and get ready for my last high school season.”
Schofield is paired with a few other next-level pitchers on the Diamond Dogs staff but has solidified himself as the team’s ace heading into the 2023 season.
The 6-foot-2 right-hander consistently throws his fastball between 90 and 92 miles per hour. When pairing that with a slower change-up and a breaking ball with lots of movement, Schofield has been able to strike out even the toughest batters.
Georgia State realized his talents and constantly followed him and his progress on the recruiting trail. Schofield claimed it was the Panthers’ persistence that swayed him to commit there over other schools like Georgia Southern or Kennesaw State.
“They honestly just kept in touch a lot. They showed a lot of interest and made it very clear that they really wanted me to go there,” Schofield said. “I love the coaching and all the players that I’ve met so far. They’re really cool and dedicated, and I can tell it’s a place that I’ll enjoy playing for.”
Being a local Morgan County kid, Schofield was initially worried about the change in scenery; however, he acknowledged that since he’ll be focused on baseball, it shouldn’t impact him too much.
“Moving to Atlanta is definitely different and is kind of scary, but I plan to be busy with baseball,” Schofield said. “I just know that I’m going to have my coaches and teammates around when I need them. I don’t really care too much about where the school is, because I just want to play baseball.”
Luckily, Schofield is already somewhat familiar with the layout of the state’s capital.
He played on Team Georgia’s travel baseball team, which is located around the Marietta area where he got decent amounts of exposure to other college-level athletes.
Along with his time at Morgan County, Schofield attributes his development to his time spent playing travel ball at some of the highly touted showcases played across the country.
“It helped so much playing in those tournaments. The competition and the coaching made me a lot better,” Schofield said. “Coach Mac [Chris McRaney] has really given us a good perspective on what it’s going to be like in college. He’s been trying to prepare us for the next level, because that’s always the main goal.”
All in all, Schofield hopes to end his career at Morgan County with a successful senior season as the Diamond Dogs try to make it further into the playoffs than they did last year.