AMERICAN LEGION BASEBALL

It’s a different-looking American Legion team on the field this season for Lexington Post 7.

The roster is filled with several new players who hope to lead the program to a league title and eventually, a berth in the state tournament at Segra Park in Columbia.

“This year, we had to replace a lot of guys from last year and the year before that,” head coach Drew Towery said. “At the end of the day, we’re a new team. We’ve only had a couple of guys from (the junior team)...and we’ve just got to learn how to be a team, honestly. That’s what it comes down to this point. Everybody’s got to learn everybody, but that’s the thing you go through. They might know each other’s names and all that, but they’ve got to figure out who they are as a person.”

River Bluff’s Noah Lebron and Noah Huffmaker and Brett McEwen are among the newcomers to this year’s team. They join a team Towery said is strong in versatility and having interchangeable players.

“I think they all can do different things and they’re all good at it,” Towery said. “We have a platoon of outfielders. We have a platoon of infielders and I feel like this year we have more pitching than we’ve ever had. I think it just all got to come together at the end of the day.”

Lexington’s lineup lists as many as 14 players capable of pitching. It includes Wyatt Keisler, Jack Wood and Matt and Dawson Willis (all of Gray Collegiate), Tyde Cooper and Eric Beebe (both of Lexington), Aaron White (Irmo/ Winthrop University), Owen Pickel and Zach Stout (both of Cardinal Newman), Braydon Fowler (River Bluff/Southern Wesleyan), Reid Watson and Chase Rikard (both of Batesburg-Leesville) and Braeden Marzitelli and Will Lott (both of River Bluff).

The team’s camaraderie and togetherness has been tested early in tough non-region games to open the season. Post 7 split 2 games with defending American Legion state champion Chapin/Newberry and fell 13-1 to Greenwood Post 20 at Lexington Ball Park Road.

Lexington will also compete in a slightly revamped League III with longtime rival West Columbia back in the mix along with champion Camden and Aiken. Each team will face each other four times, 3 of the games taking place in succession.

It opened league play Tuesday against West Columbia at Brookland-Cayce High School.

The top 2 teams will make the state tournament.

“We’re hoping to be one of them, but we’ve got a lot of work to do,” Towery said. “We’ve got a lot of figuring out between our pieces and everything that we have as far as who goes where at the right moment.”

All games can be heard by visiting www.lexingtongrizzlies.com .