Shawn Stinson/Daily Journal Richmond Senior baseball coach Ricky Young and his Raiders are currently third in the SEC with a 3-2 mark.

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Shawn Stinson

Sports editor

ROCKINGHAM — Teams from the Southeastern Conference are taking some time off from battling each other on the field before returning to league action just before spring break.

In the race for the SEC titles in baseball, soccer and softball, Richmond Senior is currently in a good position to earn postseason bids in all three sports.

The Scotland baseball team is currently undefeated (5-0) at the halfway point in the SEC season and leads second place Pinecrest by 1 1/2 games. The Fighting Scots completed a 2-0 victory over Richmond Senior Monday night. The Patriots (3-1) were unable to finish their game with Hoke County Friday night. Pinecrest leads the game 4-0 going into the bottom of the fourth. The game is slated to be concluded on April 26 just before the team’s regular season finale.

The Raiders (3-2) are in third place, having dropped their last two league contests. Lumberton is in fourth and would earn the final playoff spot with a 2-3 mark after knocking off county rival Purnell Swett Monday night. The Rams are in fifth place, one game behind the Pirates. Hoke County is the lone winless team in SEC play at 0-4.

Purnell Swett needed extra innings to remain perfect in softball Monday night with an 7-6 win over Lumberton. The Rams hold a 1 1/2 game lead over Richmond Senior. The Raiders are 3-1 after their contest with defending league champion Scotland was suspended in the top of the fifth. The game is slated to be completed at 5 p.m. today. The Fighting Scots are alone in third place with a 2-2 mark. Lumberton and Pinecrest are tied for fourth with 2-3 league records. The Pirates currently hold the tiebreaker in the hunt for the postseason berth because of their 5-4 win over the Patriots earlier this season. Hoke County rounds out the standings at 0-5.

In soccer, Pinecrest finds itself sitting atop the conference standings once with a spotless 5-0 record. Lumberton is in second place, one game behind the Patriots. Scotland moved into third after edging Richmond last Wednesday night. The Fighting Scots are 3-2, while the Raiders are 2-3 and would advance to the NCHSAA playoffs.

Hoke, which trails Richmond by a game, will attempt to tie the Raiders for fourth when the two schools battle at 7 p.m. today at Richmond Stadium. Purnell Swett is in the SEC cellar with an 0-5 conference mark.

— Sports editor Shawn Stinson can be reached at 910-997-3111, ext. 14, or by email at sstinson@heartlandpublications.com