PJC to celebrate 50th anniversary of baseball championship

Published or Revised January 11, 2017

The 1966 PJC Dragon baseball team will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of their conference championship and trip to the NJCAA National Championship Tournament, Saturday, April 30. The group will be honored by PJC President, Dr. Pam Anglin, with a luncheon and recognized on the field prior to the first pitch of the Dragons vs. Panola Ponies games at Hub Hollis Field at 1:30 p.m. This team was coached by the late Jim Campbell and the late Mike Reinhardt and members of their families are expected to be on hand for the ceremonies. Despite a tough regular season, the ’66 Dragons were able to defeat Kilgore and San Jacinto earning the right to travel to Grand Junction, CO for the tournament. They finished fifth in the tournament. Among the team member are: Richard Backest, Mike Bird, Albert Bishop, Jean Blalock, Doug Dennis, Denny Dowd, Sammy Knox, Ernie McAnally, George McKool, Johnny Parker, Mickey Pemberton, Jerry Phillips, Archie Reynolds, Robert Royer, Don Williamson, and Danny Wills. Also scheduled to return are former PJC Athletic Director, Dr. Robert Abshire and Fred Nuesch, former Sports Editor for The Paris News who is currently the Director of External Affairs for Texas A&M University-Kingsville.