Unveiling the 2026 Volusia-Flagler All-Area baseball team

Despite a roster overhaul, Spruce Creek continued its reputation as a perennial Volusia-Flagler baseball powerhouse in 2026.

The Hawks finished 26-5, made the regional quarterfinals and went undefeated against local opponents, meaning Five Star Conference and district titles were in tow.

But Spruce Creek wasn’t the only story of the 2026 season. Father Lopez infielder Liam McKinley led Florida in regular-season hits, and four other local teams made the regional playoffs: Flagler Palm Coast, Deltona, Seabreeze and Trinity Christian.

With all that said, here is the 2026 Volusia-Flagler All-Area baseball team.

All-Area Baseball First Team

Evan Dyett, P, Spruce Creek: The Hawks’ 26-5 record was a Volusia-Flagler best, and a large part of their success was because of their pitching staff. Dyett, a junior, pitched a team-high 54⅓ innings with an 8-1 record and 1.29 ERA and led all local pitchers with 70 strikeouts.

Tyler Kniebbe, P, University: Kniebbe was University’s ace and tossed 59 strikeouts in 41 innings. The senior lefty went 5-2 with a 2.05 ERA in his final high school season.

Brody Radwick, P, Spruce Creek: The Spruce Creek lefty pitched 50 innings for the Hawks and allowed only six earned runs, good for a 0.84 ERA. He finished his sophomore campaign with an undefeated 8-0 record in 10 appearances.

Nathaniel Anderson, C, Seabreeze: Anderson led a district-champion Seabreeze squad with a .407 batting average. Behind the plate, Anderson recorded 95 putouts and three assists in 102 chances for a .961 fielding percentage.

Morgan Corder, INF, Spruce Creek: Corder will be considered an infielder since his primary position was first base, but he was a jack-of-all-trades for the Hawks. He had a .389 batting average, recorded six saves, a 3-1 record and a 1.34 ERA in 15⅓ innings pitched and had a .979 fielding percentage. Oh, and he led the area with 28 RBIs.

Justin Cronin, INF, Spruce Creek: Cronin had a .449 batting average and an area-best 44 hits as the third baseman on the best local program. He also recorded a team-high 10 stolen bases.

Liam McKinley, INF, Father Lopez: McKinley was a hitting machine. The sophomore infielder tied for a Florida-best 41 regular-season knocks that translated to a .554 batting average and 19 RBIs.

Jaiden Palmer, INF, University: Palmer was second in the area with 22 stolen bases. The senior also led the Titans with a .380 batting average and 16 RBIs.

Marion Clayton, OF, Flagler Palm Coast: Clayton led all local baseball players with six home runs, part of a successful campaign that saw him bat .368. He also didn’t record an error all season in Flagler Palm Coast’s outfield.

Anthony Panetta, OF, Trinity Christian: The sophomore outfielder hit .433 and had a 1.267 OPS for the Eagles. Panetta led Trinity Christian with three home runs and 18 RBIs and had a .953 fielding percentage.

Ethan Zagers, OF, DeLand: Zagers, an Air Force commit, had a season fitting his Division I recruitment. The senior outfielder batted .347 and drove in 25 RBIs, which placed him in the upper echelon of the Volusia-Flagler leaderboard. He had 33 putouts in 34 chances in the field.

Seamus Moylan, UT, Spruce Creek: Moylan blasted two homers and knocked in 17 runs, but his ability behind the plate provided a case for the Hawks’ catcher to be one of the best fielders in the area. In 229 chances, Moylan had a whopping 222 putouts, six assists and only one error for a near-perfect .996 fielding percentage.

All-Area Baseball Second Team

Reginald Bass Jr., P, Flagler Palm Coast: Bass was FPC’s best starting pitcher in a season that saw the Bulldogs make the regional bracket. The lefty was second in the Volusia-Flagler area with 66 strikeouts, and he finished 5-3 with a 3.26 ERA.

Tommy Hayes, P, Seabreeze: Hayes tossed 48 strikeouts in 45 innings as the Sandcrabs’ top starting pitcher. Eleven of those Ks came in the District 5-5A final to deliver Seabreeze the championship. Hayes made 10 appearances on the mound with a 3.89 ERA.

Logan Hill, P, Spruce Creek: Hill’s 0.70 ERA in 30 innings was the lowest of any Volusia-Flagler pitcher that pitched more than a few frames. The junior went 3-0, had three saves and struck out 27 batters with only four walks when he appeared on the mound. Hill was Spruce Creek’s shortstop when he wasn’t pitching.

Nathan Murrah, C, Pine Ridge: Murrah was the bright spot for Pine Ridge this season, as the junior catcher led the Panthers in batting average (.424), RBIs (19), home runs (two) and OPS (1.093). He also had a .978 fielding percentage behind the plate with 119 putouts and 12 assists in 134 chances.

Carson Flis, INF, Flagler Palm Coast: Flis was a productive hitter with runners in scoring position with 27 RBIs for the Bulldogs, good for second in the Volusia-Flagler area. Uncoincidentally, his batting average (.341) was on the higher side as well.

Brayden Kleibl, INF, DeLand: Kleibl recorded 25 hits in 76 at-bats for a .329 batting average with 11 RBIs.

Ethan Slaughter, INF, DeLand: Slaughter batted .344 and was a productive member of the Bulldogs’ infield with a .959 fielding percentage.

Aaden Shaw, INF, University: Shaw recorded a team-high 1.072 OPS with a .373 batting average and 14 RBIs to be one of the more productive hitters in the area. He also had a .914 fielding percentage.

Merrick Campbell, OF, Seabreeze: Campbell batted .320 with 14 RBIs and two home runs for the Sandcrabs.

Luke Loeb, OF, Spruce Creek: Loeb was one of the best power hitters in the area with five home runs and a team-high .613 slugging percentage. He also had 19 RBIs.

Ivan Sanabria, OF, Atlantic: Sanabria was the Volusia-Flagler leader in stolen bases after swiping 25 bags. He was a productive hitter with a .355 batting average.

Alton Hughes, UT, DeLand: Hughes had a successful junior campaign for the Bulldogs, batting .342 and tying Zagers with a team-high 25 RBIs. He also recorded a .944 fielding percentage with 134 putouts and 19 assists in 162 chances.

Honorable Mention

Atlantic: Jayden Lombardi, Nicolas, Lutton, Cameron McArthur, Landen Morgan

DeLand: Jefte Fuentes, Austen Pielen, Steele Pielen, Samuel Rogers

Deltona: Brayden Flores, Evan Grove, Noah Lochiatto, Jase Stephenson, Ray Vargas

Father Lopez: Westen Brownlee, Owyn Mock

Flagler Palm Coast: Nole Hemmerle, Nicholas Pandich, Brody Youngman

Mainland: Amare Campbell, Cameron Cope

Matanzas: Tate Conner, Wiley Conner, Paul Trettner

New Smyrna Beach: Tate Haag

Pine Ridge: Daryl Badger, Sam Figueroa, Derek Rivera, Cameron Schweit

Seabreeze: Tommy Hayes, Jacob Imhoff, Dallas Newkirk, Joshua Sheffield, Mason Sisk, Wrigley Zweifel

Spruce Creek: Aidan Giedrys, Jordan Livingston, Ryder Ritch, Mason Sanders

Trinity Christian: Quinten Berry, Ruben Negron, Reilley Oglageo

University: Brody Constantine, Jensen Coveney, Rafael Jimenez, Rocco Maenza, Jaden Quinones, Jason Roble, Nathan Tillis, Levi Veirs, Andrew Walsh

Warner Christian: Anthony Ferrigno, Bobby Flores, Joel Gornto, Juan Watson, Andrew White

Baseball Coach of the Year

Matt Cleveland, Spruce Creek: The Hawks won more games (26) than any other Volusia-Flagler baseball team despite a revamped roster at the beginning of the season. Spruce Creek’s appearance in the Region 1-7A semifinals was farther into the postseason than any of its local counterparts, who were 0-11 against the Hawks this year. Spruce Creek also took home its second consecutive Five Star Conference and district titles as well.

Baseball Player of the Year

Marion Clayton, Flagler Palm Coast: While Spruce Creek made it to the regional semifinals, Flagler Palm Coast wasn’t far behind with an appearance in the regional quarterfinals led by Clayton, a Jacksonville University commit. Clayton was the area’s best power hitter with a Volusia-Flagler-leading six home runs as the Bulldogs’ leadoff hitter. When he wasn’t hitting bombs, he was still getting on base with a .368 batting average and swiping several more with a team-high 18 stolen bases. Clayton was perfect in Flagler Palm Coast’s outfield with 45 putouts and an assist in 46 chances.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Unveiling the 2026 Volusia-Flagler All-Area baseball team

Reporting by Zach Allen, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal

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