Health & Fitness
Lexington to Host Blythewood in Game 1 of the AAAA State Finals
Game 1 of the best-of-three series is Monday at 7 p.m. at Lexington.
Lexington set to host Blythewood in Game 1 of the AAAA state finals on Monday
Lexington, S.C. - Top-ranked Lexington opens the AAAA best-of-three state championship series when it plays host to No. 3 Blythewood at 7 p.m. Monday. The Wildcats will send ace lefty Josh Reagan (9-0, 1.30 ERA) to the mound while the Bengals could counter with righty Andrew Beckwith (7-1, 1.02 ERA).
Lexington, 26-4 on the season, won the Lower State title on Friday when it knocked off 10th-ranked South Aiken 2-1 in eight innings. Brandon Camp's two-out double down the left field line scored Nick Ciuffo from first base with the game-winning run. Blythewood (26-5) didn't allow a run in Upper State playoff action and beat Wade Hampton 6-0 on Friday to advance to the finals.
It's Lexington's 12th state finals appearance overall and first since 2003 when they dropped two games to Summerville. The Wildcats' last state title came in 1999 when they knocked off James Island in three games.
Homecoming of sorts for Lexington's Banks Faulkner
Lexington, S.C. -- It's a homecoming of sorts for Lexington associate head coach/pitching coach Banks Faulkner. Faulkner is in his second year at Lexington and has guided his pitching staff to an eye-popping 26-4 record and a 1.68 ERA this spring. The numbers include a four-game staff ERA of just 0.54 ERA against three nationally ranked opponents in USA Baseball's National High School Invitational in Cary, N.C. in March.
Faulkner, who served as head coach and led Wando to a district title and an 18-13 record in 2011, worked three seasons under coach Barry Mizzell at Blythewood. During his tenure the Bengals posted a 58-31 record, won district titles in 2008 and 2010 and finished runner-up both seasons in the Upper State playoffs. The Bengals, who finished ranked No. 3 in 2008 and No. 6 in 2010, had three pitchers sign to play college baseball during Faulkner's tenure, two at the Division I level.
Faulkner was a senior right-handed pitcher on Lexington's last state championship team when they beat James Island in three games in the 1999 AAAA finals.