A special ceremony was held Saturday night to honor the naming of Gregg Powell Field. Powell threw out the first pitch and is pictured with Easley High School (and South Carolina District 1 player) catcher Cooper Sears.
Jeff Holt | The Easley Progress
Sometimes in life, you bump into something that is bigger than the game.
That’s what happened last Saturday night at the Senior League Baseball World Series. Friends, family and former players from Easley piled in the gate with t-shirts in honor of naming the field after Gregg Powell.
He just soaked in it, too.
Powell threw out the first pitch of the game (for South Carolina District 1) with a long list of ones he wanted to thank.
It’s official: You now have the Gregg Powell Field at the J.B. “Red” Owens Sports Complex.
“We’re honored and blessed to be here,” Powell said, right before the ceremony started. “None of this would be possible without God. He is our Lord and Savior. He gave me 30-some great years with the city. I was able to coach the host team for four years and won four championships. My coaching staff and the great players and the city of Easley has been tremendous with this. They are naming the field Gregg Powell Field and I’m blessed and honored.”
Powell is a 1980 graduate of Easley High School and a 1986 grad of Central Wesleyan College. He’s coached baseball for 35 years (1984-2018) and served as the City of Easley Parks and Recreation Director for several years. His resume goes on and on … coached over 1,050 games, won over 700 games and has had 25 players drafted to Major League Baseball.
South Carolina District 1 suffers first loss: West broke loose for five runs in the sixth inning on Sunday night to defeat South Carolina D1 by the score of 8-2.
South Carolina D1 got on the board early in the second inning when Tristan Buzbee singled and Luke Young doubled. SC D1 held a 2-1 lead after three innings of play.
Hitting for SC D1: Young (1-4), Austin (1-4), Finley (2-4), Glenn (0-4), Simpson (0-3), Phillips (2-2), Lowe (1-2), Jarisch (0-2), Sears (0-1) and Buzbee (2-3).
Graham Campbell did do a solid job of pitching for South Carolina, giving up only 1 earned run in 3 innings of work. Campbell also struck out 3 batters, scattered 7 hits and walked just 1 batter. Graham is from West Oak High School.
Did you know? Campbell, catcher Tobie Lowe (Walhalla HS) and first baseman Colin Phillips (Walhalla HS) all started the second game for South Carolina, and all three of them have been playing “travel ball” on the same team since they were 8 years old. They are all entering their sophomore years of high school, too.
Lowe is a 6-foot-3 catcher for SC D1 and is only 15 years old. His dad, Matt, was drafted in 1997 by the New York Mets.
Post 52 Legion Baseball Flashback: The Easley legion team did improve this season, winning 10 games overall. Coach Jonathan Hall took some time to reflect on his team after the final game.
“It’s always tough when you lose with a chance to go to the next level,” Hall said. “but we had some guys step up in some big ways. We have to have these guys bought in like we talked about all year. Just fight til the end because you never know what’s going to happen. We can return a lot of guys and I’m excited for that.”
Added Easley High School grad Levi Recio, “It was a great season with these guys. Had a lot of fun. Got super close to a bunch of them. Played with a few of them from high school and over the years. Had a great time with them this year.”
Upcoming Events: The 5th Annual James Robert “Radio” Kennedy Memorial Celebration will take place Friday, Aug. 23 at the Anderson Sports & Entertainment Center.
The special gues will be Clemson University men’s basketball head coach Brad Brownell. There will be a dinner, live auction, drawings and door prizes. The grand prize to be given away will be a Traeger Pro 780 Pellet Grill (tickets are 420). It is the 20th Anniversary of the Outdoor Dream Foundation. Be sure to celebrate Coach Brownell and his Clemson Tigers. There will be a special drawing for those wearing orange.
For more information, contact Coach Harold Jones at (864) 226-8775.
There will be a Masquerade Ball coming up on Saturday, Aug. 24 in honor of the 35th Anniversary of the United Christian Ministries. This big event will be held at Southern Wesleyan University’s Founders Banquet Hall at 120 Child St. in Central.
Pickens HOF Nomination Form: Nominations are currently being submitted to Pickens High School. You can also mail your nomination to Coach Chad Smith, 4314 Moorefield Hwy, Pickens SC 29671. Nominations are due by Wednesday, Aug. 14 at 3:30 p.m. Please include these details: Nominee, Years at PHS, Sports and Awards, Post High School Contributions and Copies of News Articles or Awards for Nominee.