Gregg Park squads aspire to make history

GRANITEVILLE -- With dreams of state championships in their heads, Gregg Park's coaches could barely sleep in their beds.

A pair of Gregg Park baseball teams are enjoying fairy-tale seasons and are accomplishing unprecedented feats. Those achievements, accompanied by a mighty bout of anticipation, also make insomniacs out of passionate managers.

"I didn't get to sleep until 3 a.m. (Monday morning)," Gregg Park manager Bill Ferguson said with a laugh Monday afternoon. Ferguson's 7- and 8-year-old All-Stars were poised to battle Edisto on Monday evening in the 7- and 8-year-old Pitching Machine State tournament. The winner of the tournament will advance to play in the Junior Boys World Series in Alabama.

"I only started sleeping on Thursday after we won (the District 6 title)," Gregg Park manager Michael Paradise admitted Monday. "We're excited, and this is the first time two teams from Gregg Park have made the state tournament (in the same summer)."

Gregg Park's 10-and-under All-Stars clinched the district title with a hard-fought series victory over Bamberg. Gregg Park won the final game of a three-game set by a 10-2 margin.

Gregg Park won the contest in Bamberg, a night after Paradise's squad suffered a rare loss.

"The kids settled down and played with emotion (in the final game)," Paradise said. "We don't have any weak links on this team, and all of the kids bring something to the table."

The same concept applies to Ferguson's bunch. Gregg Park opened state tournament play in Lexington on Saturday with an emphatic 15-0, four-inning win over Turbeville and a 13-4 win over Bluffton.

On Sunday, Gregg Park was down 9-2 before they scored a combined 13 runs in the final two innings to secure a 15-10 victory over Lancaster.

On Monday, Gregg Park was scheduled to take on an Edisto team that they trounced by a combined score of 39-11 in a two-game District 6 title series sweep.

"One through 12, all of our guys can hit the ball," Ferguson said. "Defensively, we're a sound team."

The teams also share a similar power source - the undying support of their Graniteville-based fans.

Ferguson admitted that a number of supporters from Gregg Park, which also won the 9U and 12U tournaments recently, have supported all of the varying teams during their journeys across the state.

"Everyone pulls for each other," Ferguson noted.

Now, those fans are waiting on watershed moments from two sets of diminutive hometown heroes and their spirited managers.

"We have a task ahead of us," Paradise said of the state tournament. "It's a 12-team tournament, and there will be a bunch of good teams there. I think we're up to it, though. If we pitch well, we'll do fine."