The West Bladen Knights are set to participate in The Jiggs Powers Memorial Baseball Tournament held April 21-23 at the West Columbus High School field.

The tournament, which has been a two-day, four-team event the past three years, will revert back to its original three-day, eight-team format this year.

Along with West Bladen will be the four Columbus County teams, East Columbus, South Columbus, Whiteville and host West Columbus.

Also competing in this year's Easter Break tournament will be James Kenan, Pender and High Point Wesleyan.

Four games will be played each day, beginning at noon.

Tournament play will open on Monday, April 21 at noon with defending champion South Columbus taking on James Kenan.

Other first-round games will have East Columbus going against High Point Wesleyan at 2:30, Whiteville taking on West Bladen at 5 and host West Columbus squaring off with Pender at 7:30.

On Tuesday, April 22, consolation bracket games will be played at noon and 2:30 with championship bracket games scheduled for 5 and 7:30.

In the final round on Wednesday, April 23, the seventh-place game will be held at noon, followed by the fifth-place game at 2:30. The third-place game will start at 5 with the championship game set for 7:30.

Home teams will be determined a coin toss prior to each game.

Trophies will be presented to the tournament champion and runner-up teams. A 16-member all-tournament team will also be selected.

West Columbus High School baseball coach Ricky Young is the tournament director.

The tournament, which was inaugurated in 1985, is held in memory of Vernon "Jiggs" Powers, who served as a sports publicist in Columbus County for more than a half-century, including 35 years as sports editor of The News Reporter.

The annually tournament rotates among home fields of the four Columbus County teams.

South Columbus has won three of the last four Jiggs Powers Tournament championships.

West Columbus last served as tournament host in 1998 when the event included Lexington Catholic of Kentucky. West Columbus defeated the Kentucky team in the tournament semifinals, but LCHS went on to win its state high school championship the following month.

Past tournament winners

1985 - Tabor City

1986 - West Stanly

1987 - Acme-Delco

1988 - Hallsboro

1989 - Hallsboro

1990 - West Columbus

1991 - West Stanly

1992 - West Columbus

1993 - Whiteville

1994 - Whiteville

1995 - Whiteville

1996 - Whiteville

1997 - South Columbus

1998 - East Columbus

1999 - South Columbus

2000 - South Columbus

2001 - Whiteville

2002 - South Columbus