Lexington, S.C.— Members of the U.S. Army Central provost marshal office partnered with the P27 Baseball Academy for a physical training session December 13, 2023, in Lexington, S.C.

Throughout the session, Soldiers led the athletes in exercises that included push-ups and sit ups, amongst other conditioning drills. The training session concluded with a formation run around the academy campus.

Col. Larry Saunders, the command’s provost marshal, led the event. Saunders, a South Carolina national guardsman, is deeply connected to the youth sports community in central, S.C.

“As a long-time member of the S.C. Army National Guard, I am keenly aware of the importance of sharing the Army message with today’s youth and working to build partnership through these types of community interactions,” said Saunders. “These student athletes seemed very eager to participate in today’s training and gained valuable insight into the Army from our two former drill sergeants.”

The P27 Baseball Academy is an elite training academy for high school and post graduate students to perfect their skill with premier training and coaching, gain experience through a competitive game schedule, achieve academic success, and grow through mentorship and discipline. To date, more than 100 P27 athletes have committed to division I colleges, with several drafted to play major league baseball.

Aside from the physical training, the P27 academy leadership felt that the interaction with Soldiers was a good method to show the athletes there’s more to life than sports.

“I’ve known COL Saunders for years and reached out about wanting to expose the athletes to some military style training, hoping to build esprit de corps,” said Gil Owens, director of personal development for the P27 Baseball Academy. “This was an excellent opportunity for the U.S. Army to come out and show what they do, while letting our boys know that there are other professions besides baseball.”

“I feel today’s event was perfect,” Owens continued.

The world of sports is nothing new for Saunders as he splits time between the U.S. Army and life as a football referee.

Saunders said it is important to show the student athletes a different side to life and the opportunities available. While he considered himself a good athlete growing up, he knew his chances of becoming a professional were slim.

He mentioned that while many receive the opportunity to play division I sports, there are a lot less opportunities in the professional ranks. Saunders said the event was a great opportunity for the noncommissioned officers to share their knowledge and experiences with the student athletes.

“Our Soldiers possess a wealth of knowledge and are always eager to share their experiences and personal stories,” said Saunders. “The young men we worked with today have a greater understanding and appreciation for what we do.”

Putting the student athletes through their paces were Sgt. 1st Johnathan Berta, USARCENT law enforcement operations NCO, and Sgt. 1st Class Michael Hnat, USARCENT corrections/detention program manager. Both former drill sergeants, Berta and Hnat jumped at the opportunity to provide physical training and life lessons to the athletes.

“I believe the athletes were able to take away some good thoughts on self-discipline and time management and are able to have some tools as they develop their own leadership style moving into their college years,” said Berta. “They receive great life coaching from Gil Owens, but it’s always good to receive perspectives from different people as you decide with tools to use as you grow.”

For Hnat, the event took him back to his days as a drill sergeant. He mentioned that the event was fun and gave the opportunity to partner within the local community.

“As a former drill sergeant, I have had the opportunity to train civilians into Soldiers over a nine-week period,” said Hnat. “This was a little trip down memory lane. Their physical ability was very impressive, and it was fun having the athletes push one another.”

Both Saunders and Owens mentioned that they looked forward to working together again in the future. Possibly even on a bigger scale.

“I think this event could be an annual or semi-annual training event,” said Saunders.

“We would love to partner and do this again,” Owens continued.

USARCENT is the Army Service Component Command for United States Central Command and is responsible to the Secretary of the Army for the support and administration of more than 12,000 Soldiers, including those assigned to joint task forces and embassies, across the 21 countries in the CENTCOM Area of Responsibility.