HAMLET — Opening the Area 3 Conference playoffs on the road Monday, the Hamlet Post 49 baseball team isn’t shying away from a challenge.
Originally told they would have home field advantage in the first round of the postseason, the 49ers and head coach Eric Brown found out over the holiday weekend that they’ll be the visiting team when the best-of-three-game series starts.
With the completion of the regular season, Hamlet (5-7) earned the No. 5 seed in the eight-team Area 3 Conference bracket. That will send the 49ers to face No. 4 Chatham Post 305 (10-10) for the first round.
Making it back to the conference playoffs, Hamlet did so in Brown’s first season as head coach.
Last season, Post 49 was eliminated in the first round after being swept in two games by Liberty Post 81. Hamlet is trying to advance to the Legion state tournament for the first time since 2024.
“In addition to developing as players and a team, making the conference playoffs was a goal we set at the start of the summer,” Brown explained. “Any time we get to extend our season and play for a chance to win the conference title is a credit to our players and coaches and their dedication.
“We’ll approach this first round just like any other playoff series,” he continued. “We’re going to play one game at a time and put our best effort on the field each night as coaches, players and as a team. And we’ll see what happens.”
During the teams’ two-game regular-season series, Hamlet and Chatham split with a win apiece. Both times the visiting team won the game.
Hamlet dropped a close 2-1 decision in the first game of the series on June 11, and bounced back with a 14-10 victory on June 12.
“We’re a competitive group of guys and we believe we have the ability to beat Chatham in a three-game series,” Brown explained. “We match up well with them and if our pitching and defense can control the tempo, our bats should put us in a position to advance.
“Going on the road for game one has its advantages,” he added. “It may take some of the pressure off of playing in front of our home crowd and let the guys find their way together.”
Finding some rhythm late in the season, Post 49 will enter the postseason on a season-long three-game winning streak. Chatham, on the other hand, has lost three of its final four games, including its last two.
Game one will be played Monday at Jordan-Matthews High School at 7 p.m., the home field of Chatham Post 305. Game two will be played Tuesday at Memorial Park in Hamlet.
If needed, the teams will return to Jordan-Matthews Wednesday for the decisive game three.
The Richmond Observer will continue its postseason coverage of the Hamlet Senior and Junior baseball teams this week.
