By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

Incoming DHS Junior Chase Young was selected to the UnderArmour Midwest Futures game, played on August 5-7 at Benedictine University in Lisle, Ill. The best players in the class of 2013 were there, representing Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio.


“You represent your state and play at Benedictine University,” Young said of the event. “One day we do a showcase and play a few games. The next day we play a few more games and then head home.”

Young was noted as having an outstanding showing on the event’s recap on Prep Baseball Report’s website:

In Game 1 against Illinois on Saturday, it was the Chase Young Show in left field. Using his good speed (6.86 60), Young (Dexter HS) saved two runs from scoring when he made a diving catch in the fourth inning, followed by a catch in the fifth that will be talked about at the event for years to come. On a ball that was crushed to deep left and seemed destined to result in extra-bases, Young made a spectacular, over-the-shoulder, basket-style catch on the run to prevent another run from scoring.

Young has lived and breathed baseball all summer, traveling to various camps and showcases across the country with his prep team, the Rawlings 16U Prospects.

The ‘Spects are managed by Brian Harper, and coached by Rod Anderson, Scott Murphy, and Marty Young - Chase’s father.

During his rare time at home this summer, Young has been busy preparing for one of his other sports - basketball and football.

From the Missouri S&T Sports Information Department

ROLLA, Mo. -- The Missouri S&T baseball team will hold its Future Miners camp on Saturday, Oct. 1, beginning at 10 a.m. at the S&T Baseball Field.



The camp is for players ages 15 and older during the 2011-12 school year and will consist of a pro-style workout as well as primary position skill instruction and games. The camp will limited to the first 60 who register, which will include 24 pitchers, 28 position players and eight catchers.



The cost for the camp is $50 for each individual; those taking part in the camp will need to bring proper equipment including footwear.   For those who register for the camp and are unable to attend, a full refund will be available if the request is made prior to Friday, Sept. 23.



In addition, campus visits will be available for participants on Friday, Sept. 30. For more information, contact head coach Todd DeGraffenreid at (573) 341-7506 or at degraff@mst.edu.

Registration forms for the camp are available on the Missouri S&T athletics web site at sports.mst.edu.

The Dexter Bearcat football team can be found working hard for two practices a day in preparation for the 2011 Season. Fortunately for the 'Cats, the weather has given relief to the extreme temperatures, but it's still hot.

"It's a little muggy out there, but all in all practice has gone pretty well," commented Head Coach Aaron Pixley. "I'm pleased so far."

In only their second official day of practice, the 'Cats are performing a lot of drills and refining their position skills. The coaching staff at Dexter have always been sticklers for proper execution of fundamentals and focus on the basics in the early part of the season.

"Everything is half pads, and we only work against bags, so it's hard to tell what all is going on (with their skills)," Pixley said. "The seniors look pretty good, and I am curious to get them in a game situation and see how they handle it."

The end of the 2010 season in the quarterfinal playoff game against John Burroughs left the program anxious for the 2011 season. Even though the Bearcats graduated several key positions, the 'Cats are returning with a lot of talent returning for the the 2011 roster.

Overall, many of the key skilled positions have returning starters or players that saw significant time last year.

The Bearcats return a strong group of young men on the line of scrimmage. Zach Lacy and Brandon Moore are returning two year offensive line starters. Jacob Stephens is also a returning All-Conference and All-Region starter at the center position. Lacy was All-Region while Moore received All-Conference, All-Region and Honorable Mention All-State in 2010.

"The line is coming off pretty hard and low so far in practice", noted Pixley.

Two-A-Day practices will continue through this week and will move to one practice per day next week prior to the beginning of classes on August 18th.

The Football Jamboree will return this year to Charles Bland Stadium on August 19th. Dexter will host New Madrid County Central, Kennett and East Prairie during the preseason scrimmage. The event will also be highlighted with a tailgate extravaganza for all the players and coaches sponsored by the Dexter Bearcat Booster Club.

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

Fall sign-ups for Dexter Parks and Recreation little league sports are here!


This fall, three sports will be in season: volleyball, which is open to athletes in the fourth through seventh grades; soccer, open to anyone in kindergarten to third grade; and football, open to fourth through sixth grade athletes.

Sign-up forms can be submitted online through DPR's website for soccer and volleyball, or at the DPR Offices, with an August 30 deadline.


Forms can also be picked up and dropped off at the DPR Offices for football, but athletes must attend the evening sign-up session, which will be held on Monday, August 22, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the DPR Gym by the Dexter Aquatic Center.




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For more information regarding sign-ups for fall sports, or coaching inquiries, contact the Dexter Parks & Recreation department by phone at (573) 624-8244, online at www.dexterpark-rec.com, or in person at the DPR Offices, located at 1302 E State Road 114 in Dexter.

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

Sawyer Smith’s got a great outlook on his upcoming sophomore baseball season at Palm Beach Atlantic University following a great campaign in a collegiate wood bat league.


Smith, a 2010 graduate of DHS, spent the summer playing for the Tradewater Pirates in Dawson Springs, Ky., in the Ohio Valley League.

“All in all, it was a good season. It wasn’t the best season that Tradewater has ever had,” he noted, “but we played hard and scratched out some good games.”


The summer league was particularly beneficial for Smith, who had been recovering from a partial tear in his right posterior ulnar collateral ligament. The UCL, most commonly associated with pitchers and the infamous ‘Tommy John’ procedure, is the main ligament in the elbow, and is crucial in the baseball throwing motion. Smith was sidelined with the injury in the spring, and caused him to miss most of his freshman season at PBAU.

“It was good for me, coming off my injury, to get out there and play some games,” Smith said. “I caught 30 games this summer, and I think I did well. I struggled at times, but it was part of finding myself again - I hadn’t played many games in over a year until this summer, and it helped me prepare for the fall and leading up to the spring.”

“My bat was the worst part of my game,” Smith added. “I got some good hits, strung together double-digit hits; it’s tough not seeing a live pitcher for six months.”


Smith lived and breathed baseball all June and July, squeezing close to 50 games in two months.

“I was a freshman this year and only got to play three or four full games. I’d never really played until this summer. We played fifty games of college baseball in less than two months. There were kids from all over the states and all levels of baseball. It was great to see consistent college-level pitching,” Smith said.


 Smith’s college team, the Sailfish, ended the season with a 27-22 record, despite being dealt a crippling blow: their coach, MLB Hall-of-Famer Gary Carter, was diagnosed with aggressive, inoperable brain cancer late in the season.


Smith said he understood the gravity of the situation early in the summer, but noted that Carter has received some great news is August.


 “Coach went to Duke University Medical on August 1st and got a great report on his MRI,” he said. “80% of the cancer is gone. When everything was first brought to light, they weren’t sure if this would be a year long battle before it turned fatal. It was great with all the support and prayers he got - God’s awesome. He answered it a few months later, and he’s 80% cured.”


“He had the most aggressive form of malignant tumors in the brain. When they first diagnosed it, his tumors doubled in size in less than a week, and he started loosing his memory,” Smith added. “It was a tough time for him and his family, but the treatments helped, and again, God’s awesome.”


 “We hope he’ll be able to coach next season,” Smith said. “The school wasn’t sure, so they took some precautionary measures - they hired former Cardinals All-Star Ken Bottenfield as our assistant head coach/pitching coach. He’ll be head coach when Coach Carter has be gone, but when Skip’s back, they'll work together and make our coaching staff that much better.”

Bottenfield, who pitched for the Cardinals during the 1998-1999, posted a 17-8 record with a 3.97 ERA in his only All-Star year, but was traded to the Angels in the Jim Edmonds deal at the end of the ’99 season.

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Make sure to check back with the ShowMe Times for updates on Sawyer as he continues his baseball career with the Sailfish!