PICKENS — Pickens native Lexi Wierzbicki received an award at the 43rd annual AAU Girls Junior National Volleyball Championships in Orlando, Fla., on June 22. The rising Pickens High School sophomore was honored after her club volleyball team finished third in the nation in the 15U Premier National Championships for Axis Elite Volleyball Academy, located in Simpsonville.

Wierzbicki was a catalyst in the team’s national title chase, finishing with a record of 10 wins and only two losses.

Axis Elite 15 Open lost in the semifinal match against the No. 1 overall seeded Palm Beach Elite Juniors in straight sets. The semifinal loss ended a stellar run by Axis Elite, which came in as the No. 21 overall seed out of 80 teams in the division.

Wierzbicki was a huge part of the success of the team, as she amassed 85 kills in 149 attempts, with only 18 errors in 12 matches. She also accounted for 16 blocks, 14 digs, nine aces and an attack efficiency of .450.

Those numbers earned Wierzbicki  recognition as one of 12 All Star/All American players for the tournament out of at least 700 girls.

Wierzbicki and Pickens High volleyball teammate Sydney Bolding also received honors earlier this year when the pair were named honorable mention and special mention, respectively, by PrepVolleyball.com on its annual list of the top 59 freshmen players in the country based on their performances during their freshman seasons. The rising sophomores produced massive numbers a year ago.

Wierzbicki helped lead the Blue Flame to a 27-13 record in 2015. She finished the season with an impressive 202 kills, 93 kill-blocks, 37 aces and 37 digs.

Pickens High School coach Jennifer Gravely lauded Wierzbicki, saying “we have a great future ahead of us.”

Bolding made a major impact her freshman year as well. She contributed 183 kills and 93 kill-blocks, even while suffering an ankle injury at one point in the season.

“Bolding is definitely a player to watch in the future,” Gravely said.

With the talent of Weirzbicki and Bolding, combined with the rest of the talented Blue Flame players, the Pickens volleyball team is looking to get back to the State championship game this fall for the first time since securing back-to-back titles in 2013 and 2014.

PICKENS — The Pickens Recreation Department is now taking registrations for its fall soccer and volleyball seasons.

Soccer registration will be open through July 22 at the Pickens Recreation Center on Sangamo Road in Pickens.

Age divisions offered for soccer are 5-6, 7-8, 9-10, 11-12 and 13-15.

Volleyball registration will be taken through Aug. 5 at the rec center.

Volleyball age divisions are 7-9, 10-12, 13-14 and 15-17.

Following registration for both sports, a skills evaluation day will be held for each age division.

The registration fee for both sports, whch provides a jersey to be kept, is $45 for in-city residents and $55 for out-of-city residents.

Birth certificates are required at registration, and birthdate cutoff is Sept. 1, 2016.

If you are interested in coaching or need more information, call the rec department at (864) 878-2296.

courtesy bigleagueworldseries.org

As the Big League World Series (BLWS) approaches its 16th year in Easley, many people have asked themselves, “Why? Why Easley?”

With a population of a little more than 20,000, Easley could be considered an “average” American city. But up until 2001, it lacked something. It lacked a recognizable event, an event that would draw people from all around the world. Greenville has its spectacular downtown and Main Street, while Charleston has the history and the beaches that surround it. Columbia and Clemson have high-profile college football teams, but Easley lacked something.

Kerry Gilstrap/Courier

As city council members and tournament director Jon Humphrey, left, look on, Easley mayor Larry Bagwell throws out the ceremonial first pitch at last year’s Big League World Series at the J.B. “Red” Owens Complex in Easley. Bagwell will once again toss the opening pitch when the series returns to Easley for its 16th year later this month.

In the mid-’90s, the city of Easley decided to build a community recreational complex, which would eventually open in 1999 as the J.B. “Red” Owens Recreational Complex. While the complex was still in the planning phase, four men — Gregg Powell, Forrest Thomas, Doug Brooks, and Dave Watson — developed a vision to bring a major Little League event to the future complex.

In 1996, they packed their bags and headed to Williamsport, Pa., home of the Little League World Series. Many thought they were crazy and questioned why they were wasting their time and money, because a lot of people misunderstood the purpose of the trip. Some thought they were bidding to host the Little League World Series, which as most know would never be feasible due to its successful legacy in Williamsport.

Instead, the four men had their sights set on the Senior League World Series, which consisted of players aged 13-16. After arriving in Williamsport, the four met with all kinds of people trying to market Easley and the complex that would be opened three years later. They met with Little League president and CEO Stephen Keener and did everything they could to convince him that Easley was the right place for a tournament. They packed gift bags full of “southern” items to pass out, cooked a “southern” meal of shrimp and grits, and brought different signs that would one day decorate the field, all in hopes of wooing Little League. Once the presentation was complete, the waiting game began.

Easley heard back from Little League in 1998, but it wasn’t the answer they were hoping for. Instead of hosting the Senior League World Series, they were asked to host the divisional round for the Big League World Series, the division for players 16-18. The good news is Easley was on the radar — the bad news was that the divisional round preceded the regionals and the World Series itself. But Powell and friends didn’t let it get them down — instead, they viewed it as a stepping stone.

In 1999, they took another step in the right direction when they hosted the Southeast regional. Fortunately, the regional ended up producing the BLWS champion! The winner of the regional was a team out of Florida, and they ended up going on to win the BLWS later that year. This definitely went a long way with Little League. Finally, after four years of waiting and hoping, they received the call they had been dreaming of, granting them permission to host the BLWS. Immediately after that November call, they got to work, and in January they had a ribbon-cutting ceremony at City Hall. In July 2001, the Big League World Series kicked off for the first time in Easley.

Fifteen years later, the World Series is still a hit in Easley and the entire Upstate of South Carolina. It attracts teams and fans from Germany, to Guam, to California, to Chinese Taipei, and all across the world. ESPN began broadcasting the championship game in 2007, moved it to primetime a few years later, and has featured the game since. For a week, Easley is the baseball capital of the world.

Today, the city of Easley continues to enhance the experience that fans have while visiting the World Series. New this year, the city has added permanent bleachers behind home plate, a new ticket office down the first-base line, and a new “Baseball Wall of Fame.” The Wall of Fame will honor some of the best players to play at the BLWS. One of those players, Chris Coghlan, is in the Majors right now playing left field for the Chicago Cubs. Other players include Taylor Harbin, who made it to Triple-A before taking a coaching job with the Clemson Tigers and now the Furman Paladins, and Jay Jackson, who is a pitcher in the San Diego Padres organization. Future plans at the complex include awnings over the bleachers, a revamped press box, and replacing bleachers with actual seats around home plate. Looking further into the future, the complex would like to add dorms onsite so that the players won’t have to stay at another campus and travel back and forth to games. As you can tell, Easley is not resting on its laurels, as big things are in store as a result of the Big League World Series!

Powell — manager of the S.C. District 1 host team for the last 13 years and a man who was instrumental in bringing the BLWS to Easley — had one idea in mind when he journeyed to Williamsport 19 years ago. His one goal, in his own words, was this: “20 years later, maybe you (Little Leaguers) could make this team. That’s the whole reason why we do this is for the kids!”

The Big League World Series has fulfilled the vision of giving Easley a signature event. It’s great for the city, for the residents and for the thousands who visit the series each year. But Powell put it best. Ultimately it’s about the kids, their commitment and their passion for the game. And it’s summed up best in the words they repeat before each game — the Little League pledge:

“I trust in God

“I love my country

“And will respect its laws

“I will play fair

“And strive to win

“But win or lose

“I will always do my best.”

EASLEY — To celebrate the National Society’s 125th anniversary and the culmination of the “Celebrate America” volunteer service initiative, the DAR channeled its fervor for patriotism and dedicated support of our nation’s military service members toward an ambitious goal.

During the week of the 125th Continental Congress, held in June at DAR’s Washington, D.C., headquarters, the organization set an official Guinness World Records title in patriotism for “most letters to military personnel collected in one month.”

DAR members possess an unwavering patriotic devotion that spans the organization’s 125-year history. During the past three years alone, Daughters have devoted more than 2.2 million hours of service to veterans, honored more than 288,000 Vietnam War veterans, and donated more than $250,000 in support of active duty service members and their families. The Guinness World Records attempt served as a test to see if the membership could exceed its already high standards of support for our military.

Achieving this ambitious goal required the National Society to collect and then mail at least 10,000 letters to active-duty service members. Daughters across the country rallied in support of the effort. Members of Fort Prince George Chapter in Easley contributed by collecting letters to add to the total. Many DAR members wrote personal messages, but because individuals could write only one letter each, they also enlisted help from their communities. Local DAR members obtained letters from local schoolchildren, coworkers, friends and families.

As dictated by the Guinness World Records guidelines, all letters had to be handwritten, addressed to an active duty service member, placed inside a stamped, unsealed envelope, and delivered in person to one of the designated stations set up at DAR Headquarters. Chapter members Anne Kilpatrick and Harriet Nash brought the chapter’s letters to Washington, D.C., and hand-delivered them to a collection station. Letters of appreciation filled more and more boxes as the week progressed, and an official Guinness World Records adjudicator arrived to conduct the verification process.

The carefully tallied total was revealed at the National Defense Night ceremony on Saturday, June 18. As thousands in attendance waited to learn the outcome of the attempt, members surprised them by carrying in box after box to give a visual representation of how many letters were submitted. Cheers increased as soon as the number topped 10,000, but then the audience, including the night’s special guests, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert McDonald and the USO President and CEO, Dr. J.D. Crouch, all went wild when the tally surpassed 100,000.

The DAR had collected 100,904 letters, more than 10 times the minimum threshold needed to set the record for most letters to military personnel collected in one month!

“Congratulations — you are officially amazing!” the adjudicator proclaimed.