The Picayune Maroon Tide baseball team will host a hit-a-thon June 22 in an effort to raise funds for the program.

Community members who want to take part can sponsor a specific player.

That player will head to the plate and have three swings to hit the ball as far as possible.

The person’s pledge is then multiplied by the distance the ball travels.

If a person pledges $1, and a player hits a ball 300 feet, then that donation will come out to $300.

Players are responsible for finding pledges prior to the hit-a-thon and will then collect the money after the event.

For anyone interested in sponsoring an athlete, they may contact Picayune Memorial High School and ask for the baseball coach Evan Nichelson.

The Maroon Tide recently built a new 100X60 batting facility and the funds raised from the hit-a-thon will go a long way in helping pay for the new building.

The facility has turf and a shield cage that’ll be used by the varsity team.

This will also allow the program to transform the old batting cage into a junior high locker room and batting cage for visiting teams.

The 2020 team will also reserve a special place inside the building to commemorate those athletes.

“We’re going to honor the class of 2020 and put their picture in the building since they didn’t get a senior season,” Nichelson said.

The construction of the new facility also serves as an attraction for up and coming athletes.

Nichelson said the building will not only benefit his current squad, but the community as a whole with players of all ages and skill levels able to use the facility if bad weather makes using the field impossible.

“We’re just trying to keep kids interested in playing baseball at Picayune and I feel like if we have some of the nicer things kids will be interested in it. With the new facility, it gives a lot of youth teams the chance to come in and hit. It’ll be good for the community because it’s going to be open. That’s one big thing for the kids in the community to be proud of, to have a nice hitting facility,” Nichelson said.

The fundraiser will start at 9:30 a.m. at the Picayune Maroon Tide baseball field.