Patriots baseball trio sign to play college ball

Bullins, Kight, Voyles latest Marion athletes to commit

By CHUCK LIVINGSTON

Marion School District

Three more Marion senior baseball players signed letters of intent last week to continue their playing careers in college.

Luke Bullins, Dylan Kight, and Payton Voyles pledged themselves to Rend Lake, Arkansas-Rich Mountain, and Graceland, respectively. Marion’s senior class now boasts six college baseball commits for the 2022 season.

Bullins, Marion’s regular left fielder, batted .333 last spring, when he scored seven runs and stole six bases. Bullins joined the Marion baseball team as a freshman and “he’s worked nonstop since then,” said Marion coach Pete Prater. “His entire upside is in front of him. He knows how to find his way on base, and he always does his job.”

Kight has battled injuries in his varsity career but has been a defensive dynamo as Marion’s catcher the previous two seasons. Prater expects Kight to hit in the middle of the lineup and log most of the significant innings behind the plate in 2022. Kight has batted .262 with 11 RBI and 10 runs scored in his career.

“He’s been our best twostrike hitter,” said the coach. “He can handle the bat, but his defense is what we like to see.”

The left-handed-hitting Voyles became a mainstay at second base over the past three seasons, and Prater expects that to continue this season and moving forward. Voyles has never made an error in varsity competition.

“He’s real steady in the field,” said Prater. “He got hot last year at the plate to start off, but you can’t replace his defense.”

Marion opens its baseball season 4 p.m. on Monday, February 28 at home against Southside Bee Branch.

Marion senior baseball players Luke Bullins (from left), Dylan Kight, and Payton Voyles signed letters of intent last week to continue their baseball careers in college.

Photo by Chuck Livingston