Polson sports fans shouldn't be too alarmed that athlete Kyle Bagnell will be dawning the orange and black next fall.
"I look at it as Oklahoma State colors and not Ronan colors," Bagnell said just after he signed his letter of intent this Wednesday to play baseball for Oklahoma State University.
The lefty flamethrower for the Mission Valley Mariners said he'll be the only southpaw on the pitching staff for the Cowboys, who know a thing or two about recruiting after having last year's recruiting class ranked 15th in the nation.
"It kind of is like taking a weight off your shoulders," Bagnell said of committing to a school after checking out OSU, Kansas and talking with Arizona State, UCS, Pitt, East Carolina University and Wichita State.
It was a Arizona Sun Devils scout that asked him to attend a baseball camp in Las Vegas with around twenty schools in attendance.
"He was the one guy that wasn't there," Bagnell said.
However, the exposure paid off and Bagnell will move from Legion A ball to playing Division 1 baseball.
"I'm pretty excited, I didn't really expect to be at this level," Bagnell said. "It's all surreal."
Anyone who watched Bagnell pitch for the Mariners would beg to differ as he was no stranger to strikeouts, shutouts and no hitters. Bagnell threw two no-hitters this summer and struck out 20 batters in one game.
Bagnell will not be getting a full-ride scholarship but it will definitely help and he said once he gets his academic scholarships, it should cover 75-80 percent of the costs. Academics is something Bagnell definitely factored into his choice.
"It pretty much came down to what I wanted to major in," he said, pointing out that Oklahoma State has an excellent pre-med program and that he would like to go to dental school. That certainly would be in the family business as his father is a dentist in Ronan.
Bagnell will report in the fall and participate in the baseball's fall program which is largely scrimmages.
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