LaGrange College Men's Baseball

Kelton has been the head coach of the Panthers for three seasons. Kelton was an assistant for the Panthers for four seasons prior to being named the head coach, working with the defense, base running, and hitting.  In 2016, Kelton guided the Panthers to a 30-13 record, including a 13-5 mark in the USA South conference. The 30 wins rank fifth in the program's history and the most since the 2005 season. The Panthers led the USA South in batting with a .312 team average and were second in pitching with a 3.04 earned run average. This past season, the Panthers had junior third baseman Blake Buthcher named the USA South Player of the Year. Butcher was one of nine Panthers to be selected to the All-Conference team. Under Kelton, the Panthers have had 12 USA South All-Conference selections and 50 earn USA South Academic All-Conference honors. Butcher and Ryan Broaderick were named to the ABCA/Rawlings South All-Region team. In addition, Butcher, Cain Sauls, and Tavin Thompson were selected to the D3baseball.com All-South Region team. A native of West Point, Ga., Kelton was an all-state shortstop for Troup County High School.  As captain, he was selected as a Coaches Poll All-American.  He set five school hitting records, two of which still remain today. Kelton was drafted in 1998 out of high school in the second round by the Chicago Cubs. He reached the major leagues with the Cubs in 2003 and 2004. Kelton got his first major league call up when outfielder Sammy Sosa was suspended for the corked bat incident.  He received many accolades during his professional career being selected to minor league All-Star teams in eight of his nine seasons.  In 2002, Kelton was the minor league player of the year, and selected as Topp's Player of the Month. He played in the Futures All-Star game at U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago in 2003.  In 2006 as a free agent, Kelton signed with the Atlanta Braves, playing at the AAA level.  During his career as a pro, he had 910 hits, including 116 home runs, 517 RBI's, and 89 stolen bases. Kelton spent the 2007 season as the head coach for the Springwood School in Lanett, Ala.  He took the Wildcats to the first round of the AISA playoffs, losing to eventual state champion Lowndes Academy. Kelton is married to the former Meredith Hawkins.  The couple resides in  LaGrange with their daughter, Mary Elliott and sons, Grady and Hill.

Beamenderfer helped guide the Panthers to a 30-win season and a second place finish in the USA South. Beamenderfer will assist the Panthers in defense, hitting, and recruiting. Beamenderfer played two years at LaRoche (Pa.) College before transferring to St. Vincent. He earned All-Conference honors as a senior, hitting .327. Beamenderfer graduated from St. Vincent with a degree in Business Management. During the summer of 2013, Beamenderfer was an assistant coach for the collegiate summer league in Myrtle Beach, S.C. He is pursing a master's degree in Philanthropy and Development from LaGrange College. Beamenderfer is a native of Lewistown, Pa.  He was a three-year letterman at Lewistown High School, earning All-Conference honors as a junior and senior