By Thomas Grant Jr.
Baseball continues to serve as a source of pride in Lexington County.
This past month saw Airport and Batesburg-Leesville win state titles, and defending Class 5A champion Lexington was Class 5A Division I state runner-up.
This weekend, four former members of the Lexington County Blowfish are representing Coastal Carolina in the College World Series final against LSU.
Game One is set for 7 p.m. Saturday on ESPN.
“The Blowfish organization is honored to have four players on Coastal Carolina in the College World Series,” Lexington County co-owner Bill Shanahan said. “Summer collegiate baseball and specifically, the Coastal Plain League, which we have been proud members of for 20 years, definitely has a place in helping develop these young college players.”
Coastal Carolina has two players with local high school ties. They are redshirt freshman infielder Walker Mitchell of River Bluff and senior transfer infielder and Gilbert native Wells Sykes of Lexington.
“It’s been really cool watching Walker compete at the highest level of college baseball in Omaha,” River Bluff head coach Mark Bonnette said. “We are extremely proud of the way he has represented our program and community. How many players get a chance to win a state championship and now compete for a National Championship?”
Mitchell was a member of the Gators’ 2023 Class 5A championship team. After redshirting last season, he’s batting .278 with four home runs, 45 RBI and has had 12 games in which he’s driven in two or more runs.
“We recognized Walker’s talent very early on,” Bonnette said. “It was evident that he had a chance to be a special player. I’ve been fortunate to coach a lot of very good players, and Walker is definitely one of the most talented. I believe he was the best shortstop in our state his senior year, and I’m not surprised to see the player he has become. I believe he will continue to develop and believe he will have a chance to play pro ball in the future.”
Sykes earned All-State honors in his one season with the Wildcats. He attended The Citadel for three years where he batted .299, had 144 hits, 91 runs, 24 doubles, 10 triples, three home runs and 66 RBI.
After head coach Tony Skole’s contract was not renewed, Sykes hit the transfer portal. During the Chanticleers’ 26-game winning streak, he has reached base in every contest.
For the season, Sykes is batting .293 with three home runs and 37 RBI.
“Wells is the ultimate competitor who has an extremely high baseball IQ,” Lexington head coach Brian Hucks said. “He understands exactly who he is as a player and what he can do to impact the game. As a coach, anytime you see one of your former players excelling on the biggest stage, there is an enormous amount of pride.
“Wells is representing both Gilbert and Lexington extremely well, and I could not be more proud of him.”
The Blowfish connection with the Chanticleers extends to the front office. Connor Owings, a Gilbert graduate and member of Coastal Carolina’s 2016 CWS championship team, played for Lexington County in 2015. He’s currently a volunteer assistant for Player Development in Conway.
Coastal Carolina infielder Ty Dooley of Blythewood is also a Blowfish alumnus. His former Bengal teammate, Zac Cowen, is expected to pitch in Game One of the Best of Three series for LSU.
“We played against both Ty and Zac while they were at Blythewood,” Bonnette said. “I remember playing against them in the championship of the NaturChem Invitational in 2021, and we were fortunate enough to win that one. They are both very talented and are having great college careers. I wish them both the best of luck and am pulling for them.”
Game Two of the CWS will air at 2:30 p.m. Sunday on ABC. Game Three, if necessary, will air at 7:30 p.m. Monday on ESPN.
Feature Photo shows Coastal Carolina’s Walker Mitchell (Photos by Coastal Carolina Sports Information Office)
