American Legion State Tournament: Beckley looking to turn the clock back to 2005

Baseball

July 21, 2026•2 min read

Wheeling Post 1 comes to Beckley looking for three titles in a row

The Post 32 Beckley Bash have been here before.

Now they are looking for the same result.

The last time the American Legion State Tournament was held in Beckley, the Bash walked away as state champions.

This year the tournament returns to the City of Champions, and the "Bash Boyz" would love to see some more hometown magic.

Tournament play begins Thursday morning on Access Health Field at Linda K. Epling Stadium with four games in round one starting at 10 a.m. and continues through Monday where the 2026 champion will be crowned.

The 2005 triumph was the first of back-to-back state championship for Beckley in a run of three titles in five years.

The hometown boys opened the 2005 tournament with a win over Moundsville before beating Barboursville and then South Charleston to head to the championship tilt.

The title game was a rematch with South Charleston and for eight innings, it appeared SC would force a deciding game.

Beckley had other ideas.

Trailing 5-0, the Bash rallied for six runs in the bottom of the ninth to secure the championship in a thriller.

Picture and information courtesy of the Register-Herald archives

While Beckley (25-6) is looking for the same exciting ending, the road to a title will be far from easy.

Wheeling Post 1 rolls into town with a 24-7 record and will be looking for its third title in as many years. Wheeling has the most Legion state titles with 19 overall and won three straight from 2015-2017.

South Charleston Post 94 (14-1) has a roster littered with all-staters and is the Area 3 champion having knocked off Beckley twice in tournament play.

Seven times Post 94 has hoisted the championship trophy over the year with the last one coming in 2022.

Berkeley Post 14 is 17-6 and has 10 players hitting over .300 with a team ERA of 2.24. Berkeley won its last state title in 2023.

Wyatt Boice will lead a very capable Parkersburg Post 15 (17-9) squad to Beckley. Boice is 4-0 on the hill with a 0.913 ERA and is hitting .500.

Bridgeport Post 68 (18-5) will square off with South Charleston at 4 p.m. on day one in a highly anticipated battle that could feature Bridgeport HS all-stater Owen Sonderickker on the mound.

Morgantown Post 2 (11-12) and Potomac Valley Post 64 (11-9-1) may be considered a slight dark horse, but both teams have plenty of talent to get the job done.

West Virginia Sports Writers Association Player of the Year Lanson Orndorf is on the roster for Potomac Valley.

Beckley will counter with its own all-state heavy roster and a deep pitching staff.

Friday will feature two winner's bracket games at 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., while the two loser's bracket games will be played in the morning starting at 10 a.m.

The full bracket schedule is below.