The challenge facing the Ridgeland Panthers in today’s Georgia Class AAAA baseball first-round series at top-ranked East Paulding was already difficult enough.

It got tougher earlier this week when senior second baseman and leadoff man Zach Barnes had to undergo emergency surgery for a ruptured appendix. Though Barnes will be fine, his bat will be missed as the 10th-ranked Panthers, Region 7-AAAA’s fourth seed, face arguably the best pitching staff in Georgia.

“They’re No. 1 for a reason,” first-year Ridgeland coach Scott Harden said. “They can throw some arms at you. But we’ve faced some good pitching this year. Really, we can’t worry about what they do. We need to focus on what we can do. Losing Zach (.370 average) will hurt, but I think the guys are up to the challenge.”

The Ridgeland-East Paulding matchup, slated for a 5 p.m. start, is one of six best-of-three series involving northwestern Georgia teams that begin today with doubleheaders. Also in Class AAAA, Region 7 runner-up Dalton will host Region 5’s third-place team, Alexander (5:30 start), while Region 7 third seed Ringgold plays at Sequoyah (5 p.m.).

In Class AA, surprising Calhoun, fresh off an unbeaten season in Region 7, hosts Heard County at 5. In Class A, Gordon Lee plays at Lakeview Academy in Gainesville (2 p.m.) while Trion visits powerful Jefferson (5 p.m.).

Deciding games would be played Saturday if necessary.

If Ridgeland (18-7) is to upset East Paulding (23-3), the Panthers will have to find a way to hit junior ace Zach Wheeler and senior Adam Hall, who combined to go 13-0 this year. Wheeler, a 6-foot-4 power pitcher who reaches the mid-90s (mph) with his fastball, averaged nearly two strikeouts per inning, while Hall allowed under a run a game.

The Panthers do have hope, however. Two of East Paulding’s three losses came in a March visit to Chattanooga, where the Raiders lost 5-2 to Baylor and 5-4 to McCallie.

“Baylor has given us the tapes of those games, and we hope to attack them pretty much the same way,” Harden said.

That attack starts with seniors Justin Carruth and Shaun Ball. The two are hitting over .500 and have combined for 18 home runs and 88 RBIs. Freshman right-hander Alex Ridge, fresh off a 7-1 regular season, is the team’s top pitcher.

The winner faces the winner of the Lakeside-DeKalb/Salem series Wednesday.

* Alexander (21-5) at Dalton (14-12): Region 5 teams are difficult to analyze since they each play 22 league games. While East Paulding, Alexander and Sequoyah combined for 85 wins and are ranked first, seventh and ninth, respectively, in the AAAA coaches’ poll, the league also has three teams with 20-plus losses and two others that were sub-.500.

“When you look at those teams, they have great records, but a lot of those teams they play are 3-and-whatever for the season, so you’re really not sure just how good they are,” Dalton coach Bobby Brotherton said. “We saw Alexander play against Sequoyah and saw their No. 1 and No. 2 pitchers. They’re a good-hitting ballclub. They play good defense and they have solid pitching. You will definitely have to come with your A-game to beat them.

“But,” Brotherton added, “it’s not something that just scares you when you look at them.”

The Cougars have a bona fide ace in junior Dylan Smith, who handed East Paulding its only region loss of the season, and a senior-laden offense led by Jordan Quinn and Trent Chaney.

Dalton counters with senior Mackie Sheets, who has pitched most of the Catamounts’ tough games and owns an ERA near 2.00. Sheets, catcher Garren Palmer, Michael Richardson, Carter Crutchfield and Harrison Scott form a solid lineup.

* Ringgold (13-15) at Sequoyah (20-6): If a tough regular-season schedule helps prepare a team for postseason play, Ringgold’s Tigers should be more than ready for the Chiefs. Ringgold, in additon to its league play, played some of Chattanooga’s best teams, including Baylor, McCallie, Bradley Central and Soddy-Daisy.

“There’s not a whole lot they can show us that we haven’t seen,” said Ringgold coach Brent Tucker, who has seen the Chiefs play. “After watching them, I feel we’re right there with them.”

Tucker believes game one will be the key. Some coaches, when facing a team with a clear No. 1 pitcher as Sequoyah has in Kennesaw State University singee Parker Sutton, prefer to send their ace out in game two. Not Tucker, who believes his top pitcher, junior Zac Fairchild, is up to the challenge.

“We know Zac has the capability of throwing a shutout every time out,” Tucker said of Fairchild, who is 5-2 with a 2.26 ERA. “Going on the road, we feel like we need to go out with our best. Game-one winners usually go on to win the series, so we’re going after it.”

To win that first game, Tucker knows his top-heavy lineup, led by 7-AAAA hitter of the year Justin Harris (.463, 10 homers, 35 RBIs) and two-time all-star Drew Walker (.429, 6, 27) will have to cash in on each scoring chance.

* Heard County (16-10) at Calhoun (24-2): Calhoun’s Region 7-AA champions have quietly dominated again this year, despite graduating three players to the professional draft. A strong class of sophomores has more than filled in.

“A lot of people thought it would be kind of a lean year for us, but some young guys have filled the void for us,” Yellow Jackets coach Chip Henderson said. “You want to be noticed, but if we can fly under the radar a bit, that’s fine with us.”

Among those super sophs is pitcher Carter Harrison, who is 10-0 with a 1.84 ERA while also batting .487. Other first-year starters include third baseman Mott Hyde (.435, 8 homers, 35 RBIs) and first baseman Jordan Poole (.346, 14, 42). Add holdovers such as catcher Brad Moss (.464, 6, 32), Jarett Didrick (.363, 8, 25) and leadoff man Tre Lamb (.330, 34 runs), the Calhoun lineup is still very potent.

The Jackets, ranked fifth in the coaches’ poll, face a Heard County team that has struggled in recent years. The Braves started strong this year but lost six of their last eight games to fall to the fourth seed from their region.

“From what I’ve heard, they’re a small-ball type of team that likes to bunt a lot,” Henderson said. “So we’ll have to play strong defense and not let them run.”

* Gordon Lee (16-7) at Lakeview Academy (17-8): Gordon Lee coach Greg Payne has fond memories of playing the Lions in the playoffs. In 2002 the Trojans beat them in their first postseason series under Payne, beginning a string of strong playoff runs.

The hosts don’t figure to be very hospitable this time around. Led by pitchers Ralston Cash and Angus Ferguson, Lakeview Academy finished second to Jefferson in Region 8. Payne is familiar with the team, having coached a few of the players during a summer camp.

“They’ve got a great tradition, having won a state title in 2004, so we know we’re facing a good program,” Payne said. “They’re not a team of superstars, but they know how to play the game.”

If Gordon Lee is to make it to the second round, senior star outfielder/pitcher Zach DeBord (.570, 42 RBIs) will have to shine.

* Trion (7-16) at Jefferson (18-4): Trion’s fourth-seeded Bulldogs, under first-year coach Dean Hollis, were in danger of missing the playoffs before winning three of their final four games. They face a Dragons team that has won 17 of its final 18, though, and averaged more than 10 runs per game during the streak.

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