Three Gryphons Returning To College World Series

Lander University is heading back to Cary and the Division II College World Series for the second time in three years.  They are led by senior DH hitter Thomas Berry who just this weekend became  the all time Lander home run hitter when he rapped number 29 over the Columbus State University fence.

Lander won all four games they played in the Southeast Regional including the noon victory Monday over USC-Aiken 5-3.  Former Gryphon "Baseball" Brett Johnson who is now in his sixth year as third base coach.  Serving his second year as pitching coach is Jim Leggett who at the time he graduated from Rocky Mount was the all time winningest pitcher in Gryphon history.  He has since been over taken by Benton Moss the winningest pitcher.

Lander finishes the regionals with a 42-14 record and  has sweet revenge in beating USC-Aiken twice during the regional after USC-A had swept the Bearcats during their three game series during the regular season and once in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament last week.  They are ranked eleventh in the latest DII polls.

The Division II College World Series starts Saturday at the USA Baseball Training Facility in Cary.  There will be two games Saturday and Sunday giving all eight regional champions one game during the weekend before the Monday second  round of the double elimination tournament begins.  The teams and times have yet to be announced as other teams and regions are not over as of yet.

I had the pleasure to go to Landers first game in Cary in 2014 and sat near all the Johnson and Berry family members and wrote on this blog how wonderful it was to be with families as they watched their children partisipate for many their biggest moment in life.  I was not alone as approximate 200 people from the Rocky Mount area were there to witness  the game.  Now this year the Leggett family will be there.

The opening night of American Legion baseball got washed out and has been pushed back to Wednesday.  The Wednesday game will be against Kinston  and Friday night Pitt County Post 39 will be at Legion Field.

Legion Returns Tonight

Legion Rained out Tonight!!!!!!!

Those of you that read this Blog on a daily basis may remember that end of the Legion season in 2014 that I announced that I was retiring from the pressbox after nine years as the PA for Coleman Pitt Post 58.  How was I to know that my retirement would devastate Post 58.  Knowing that I would not be there to announce their names there wasn't enough interest last season to field a team.  So in the best interest of Legion Baseball I will be return to the pressbox again this season.

Coleman Pitt Post 58 at this point has a 16 game schedule with seven home dates and eight road games and one of those road games will be a doubleheader.  Tonight Kinston  Post 43 will be at American Legion Field on Howell street.  Their second home game of the season will be Friday night May 27th when they host Pitt County Post 39.

Wednesday night the first road game will be against Pitt County Post 39 and the game will be at Pitt CC.  Saturday will be the lone double header as Post 102 in Ahoskie will host Post 58.  Memorial Day will be the trip back to Greenville Post 39.  Conference play starts on Tuesday May 31st as Cary Post 67 comes to Rocky Mount. 

This season Post 58 is in the division with Cary,Apex,Durham,Clayton,and Garner.  Wednesday June the eighth will be the only meeting of the year between Rocky Mount and Wilson as Post 13 is in the Other division and the game will be in Wilson. June 15th and 17th Coleman Pitt will host Apex Post 124 and Durham Post 7.

Clayton will make a trip to Rocky Mount on June 20th.  Post 58 will finish the season with five of there last six games on the road.   June 24th at Apex, June 25th at Clayton.  Monday the 27th at Durham.  The final regular season at  home game happens on June 28th with  a visit from Garner.  Post 58 ends the regular season June 30th at Garner and July 1st at Cary.

Hank Jones return as the head coach for his fifth season at the helm.  He will be assisted by the Ramsey brothers Cameron and Spencer Ramsey, Nick Hahula and David Williams.  Twenty players are as of right now on the team but only 18 will be eligible for the playoffs.

The 2016 Coleman Pitt Post 58 American Legion team is as follows:
Rocky Mount High-Zack Keeter,Forest Bell,Will Hedgepeth, David Harrison,Josh Pittman and Logan Pearce.
Nash Central-John Michael Kelly,Cameron Taylor,Colby Carter,Noah Schrock and Tyler Sherrod.
Northern Nash-Tyler Barrett, Chad Nelms, and Josh Daniels.
Southern Nash-Dawson Sikes and Trevor Mills
Rocky Mount Academy-Reid Johnson and Isaiah Thomas
Faith Christian- Luke Mills
Tarboro-Trey Wells
The strong point of this team could be pitching which is in recent history of Post 58 is opposite as hitting has been the hallmark.

Lander Univerity won the winners bracket game Sunday and now sits and waits for the loser bracket winner and if they are the winner will return to the to the Division II College World Series in Cary.  Former Gryphon Thomas Berry has play a major roll in game one hitting his 29th career college home run which is the top spot on the Lander Home run list.  Sunday in the winners bracket game Berry drove in two of the three runs in the game.

Two former Gryphons played in another regional in the DII playoffs as Chowan lost their first two games to get eliminated.  Cody Smith started game one in a 12-6 lost to Westchester. Will Edwards pitched in the late innings of game one.