For 1st year West Columbia Post 79 head coach Dargan Lybrand, the 2020 summer provided lasting memories.

“They’ll take this win all the way for the rest of their lives, just like I will,” he said. “I won’t forget anything about this journey. We were going through some hard times. We worked through the adversity and we stepped up. That’s what life’s about, just stepping up.”

West Columbia was 1 of 40 junior and senior teams who formed the S.C. American Baseball Summer League following the cancellation of the American Legion season due to the ongoing pandemic.

On Aug. 16 at Segra Park in Columbia, it came away with the league title after winning the 4-team tournament and finished with a 18-2-1 record.

Under the leadership of Florence Post 1 head coach and former University of South Carolina Athletics Hall of Famer Derek Urquhart & Lexington Post 7 Athletics Director Michael Riefsynder, the league provided an opportunity for players and coaches to play this summer.

This was especially true for those who had their spring seasons cut short.

“I’m just happy for the guys,” West Columbia assistant and White Knoll head coach Blake Roland said. “They had to go through really big adversity this season. Airport, White Knoll, Pelion were having a great year that was cut short, so to get to play baseball in a beautiful ballpark throughout the summer was unbelievable. Just so proud of them.”

“High school getting cut short kind of hurt a little bit, but this here is a high water mark,” said pitcher Dylan Williamson of Pelion, who now attends Spartanburg Methodist College.

Such words are more than appreciated by co-organizer Urquhart.

“That was the goal — to provide an opportunity for guys to play baseball,” Urquhart told the Florence Morning News. “When

American Legion and all the other youth sports around the country started shutting down and people wanted to find some way to play, we thought that we had an idea to provide that opportunity.

“…We felt like it was a successful season. We wound up with over 40 teams around the state registered on the senior and junior levels. We wanted it so that from a fan’s perspective, you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between what you saw and American Legion.”

Head coach Tom Skula of Fort Mill Post 43, which placed 3rd in the 3-day tournament in Columbia, gave his thanks to Riefsynder on Twitter.

“I want to thank Michael Riefsnyder @ LexPost7BaseBal and the committee for putting in COUNTLESS hours to organize this league,” he said. It gave the graduating high school seniors an opportunity to have a season, the ability to play for a championship, and life long memories!”