2018 Cougar Baseball Update:
As we wrap up 2018 we wanted to give everyone an update on what is going on with Cougar Baseball. The 2018 season was another very successful season for us. Our record was 24-9, and we won the 13th district championship. We lost six seniors to graduation and all had great careers for us. Five of those Six are playing college baseball. Austin Rayno is at Lindsey Wilson. Bradley Taylor, Ethan Smock and Kaleb Justice went to Frontier Junior College, and Jackson Steward is at Shawnee Junior College.
Maybe one of the best statistical years I have ever seen. Team batting average was .341, which I am sure is a school record. We lead the state of KY in Home runs (37). Bradley Taylor had a huge season leading the state of KY in Home runs (14) and Slug % 1.019, .486 Batting Average. Bradley was chosen as the 4th region Player of the Year. Bradley was also chosen as the PBR state player of the year. He was all 13th District, 1st team all-state and a Senior West All-Star. Senior 1B Kaleb Justice also had a monster year hitting .457, 51 RBI’s, 11 Home Runs and was also all 13th District. Koby Wall Junior OF/P posted a .396 BA, 7 HR, and 41 RBI's. Koby was also all district and a junior west all-star selection. Rookie of the Year Braxton Meguiar had a .457 Batting Average, and was also all 13th District and a Sophomore West All-Star selection. Senior pitcher Jackson Steward led the team in wins (7), innings pitched, and strikeouts.
The Regional tournament didn't go as we would have liked it to but overall a fantastic year 24-9 and some great individual accomplishments. We beat the defending regional champion Franklin Simpson 3-2 on their field to win the 13th district championship. We were eliminated by Bowling Green in the first round of the regional tournament who went on to win the 4th region tournament and their first game at the state tournament. Even though we lost a lot from the 2018 seniors we still feel very good about our team and what we can do in 2019.
Also wanted to share some of the exciting things that we currently have going on with our baseball facility. We recently built a new 30 x 40 storage building which will have a coach’s office and dressing room for the players. This building when completed will be a huge upgrade for our program. We have raised enough money to roughly build the building but we still need funds to finish the project. Our baseball field continues to get better since we added our new sprinkler system and Bermuda grass in the summer of 2017. We have one of the nicest playing fields in our area. This past spring we completed our new 10 inning scoreboard with all the sponsorship's which looks fantastic.
Just recently we added asphalt paving to all the gravel areas around the baseball field, press box, and extending the drive behind the school and down to the green house. This makes our facility much more handicap accessible. Before spring we should have a new fence along the front entrance to the baseball field and a new roof on the press box. This was accomplished by funds from the Logan County Board of Education which has really stepped up to help upgrade all our athletic facilities.
We will have our annual Alumni/Booster Dinner coming up in February so hopefully all of you can attend. We will let you know very soon when this will be held. We would love to see many of our former players attend and share some memories.
Since 1983 the Logan County Cougar Baseball Program has continued to provide a positive experience for many young men and their families. I am very proud of the accomplishments both on and off the field from the many young men who have come through this program. Our community support, alumni, booster club, and board of education have been very supportive of us which has made many of these upgrades possible. Thanks for being a part of it!
Happy Holidays to you and your family! Spring will be here soon!
Cougar Pride, Coach Meguiar