The 1982 Strom Thurmond High School Baseball team had a storybook season that ended in a AAA State Championship.  After losing twice to defending State Champion Newberry HS, the Rebels finished second in the Region but still qualified for the play offs.  As luck would have it we were matched up with Newberry HS in the District Tournament. The Rebs won the District Championship in three games by beating Newberry twice which included beating a Newberry pitcher who had won 17 straight games.  With newly found confidence the Rebels were able to take the Upper State Championship in three games against T.L. Hanna HS, with the third game being a 1-0 victory in a very hard fought and well-played game by both teams. In the Championship series with Marion HS, each team won their home game and the third and deciding game was to be played on a neutral field in Camden. The Rebels again won by a shut out (3-0) and arrived home with the trophy just in time for graduation. The following players were part of this team:

Sanford Best, Marion Bledsoe, Barrick Blocker, John Blocker, Eddie Freeman, Gerald Freeman, Ernest Gordon, Lonnie Gordon, Wilber Gordon, Eugene Harrison, Chester Jennings, Lonnie Jones, Mike Kelley, Carl Lanham, Jeff Lee, Johnny Lott, Danny Painter, Freddie Perry, Jimmy Seigler  Manager:  Buddy Best Coaches:  Doug Eargle  Dusty Triplett