By Patrick MacCoonRecord Sports EditorPostseason recognition is hardly something a player or coach worries about during the midst of a season. Instead it serves as an extra cherry on top for hard work put into an athlete’s craft.After more-than doubling its win total from last summer, six members of the Warrenton Post 122 Junior Legion baseball team will participate in the Ninth District Junior All-Star Game in New Haven this Saturday at 4 p.m.First-team members for the South All Stars include starting outfielder Matt Dildine and pitcher Chris Vogt.Batting leadoff this season, Dildine led Warrenton in nearly every major offensive category. The speedster posted team-bests in batting average (.389), hits (28), doubles (7), runs (15) and stolen bases (17).Amidst clutch situations he also thrived, with a .364 batting average with runners in scoring position. He was one of only two hitters for Post 122 to drive in 10-plus runs.“Matt really hit the ball hard this year,” Head Coach Ken Dildine said. “He worked with a hitting coach and got a lot stronger at the plate. He was picked by every team in the league for the all-star team, which says a lot about how much teams respected him as a hitter.”Vogt went 2-0 on the mound and registered a 3.71 earned run average. With solid speed on his fastball, the right-hander struck out 12 batters in 11 1/3 innings resulting from four appearances.“He pitched well for us down the stretch,” Dildine said. “He will be a solid pitcher again for us next year and has plenty of room to still gain strength and become a better hitter as well.”Selected to the second team were Chris Garrett (third base), Charlie Gerard (OF) and Devon Oden (OF).Garrett’s 11 singles were second most on the team and he walked nine times while striking out four times in 53 at-bats. His 2.94 ERA was best among the full-time roster members.What impressed his head coach the most about Garrett, who was a double-roster member for the second Legion season in a row, was his ability to put the ball in play.“He has a phenomenal form to his game,” Dildine said. “He simply puts the ball in play and is a smart ballplayer. He gets after it all the time on and off the field and I would stack him against anyone in this area.”Gerard led the Ninth District with 29 walks as he averaged a walk once every 2.72 at-bats. The left-handed hitter led Warrenton with a .526 on-base percentage.“Charlie tracked the ball extremely well and drew most of his walks deep in the count,” he said. “He won’t go down without a fight. He really worked hard on his discipline this season.”Oden hit .245 and drove in a team-high 11 runs while having even more success on the mound. In 40 1/3 innings, Oden struck out 40 batters.He won both of his last two starts, in which he struck out 22 in 14 innings to help lower his ERA to 3.65.“He was our leader on the mound,” Dildine said. “I can’t wait for him to get older and stronger and see what he does pitching wise. He worked a lot with ex-Cardinals pitcher Pat Perry this year and he was amazed by his pitching potential at just 16 years old.”Catcher Braden Lawson was also named to the all-star team as a reserve. He drew 10 walks and didn’t commit an error in 58 putout attempts.“Braden is one of the strongest catchers around defensively,” he said. “It was nice to see him get the honor. He’s a great all-around ball player.”With 10 wins and six all-stars to show from this summer, the Post 122 Juniors are excited for its future.Like the Freshman program, it has also enjoyed the tremendous success the Senior Legion program is having amidst its Zone Tournament run currently.“Our mission throughout the entire program this year was change,” Dildine said. “That is what we are gearing towards. We want teams to fear playing Warrenton. We can’t wait to watch the Seniors play at Zone this week along with our players in the All-Star Game.”

Matt Dildine and Chris Vogt were each selected to the Ninth District Junior Legion All-Star Game as first-team members. Vogt finished strong on the mound this season while Dildine led his team with a .389 batting average.

Bill Barrett