PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla., – Visit Panama City Beach is excited to announce a new collegiate event at Panama City Beach Sports Complex this spring. The Visit PCB NJCAA College Baseball Classic will be taking place February 4-6, 2022, and features the best programs in National Junior College in a 16 team tournament. Hosted by Gulf Coast Community College, the event will feature ten teams that were either top 25 last year or preseason top 25 this season.
Teams committed include 2022 preseason No. 1 team San Jacinto (Houston, Texas), 2021 National Champions McLennan CC (Waco, Texas) and 2021 No. 1 team Wabash Valley from Mt. Carmel, Ill. Seven Florida schools will compete, including Chipola Community College (Marianna, Fla.), Gulf Coast State College (Panama City, Fla.), Northwest FL State (Niceville, Fla.), State College of Florida (Bradenton, Fla.), Miami Dade Community College (Miami, Fla.), Florida Southwestern State (Fort Myers, Fla.) and St. Johns River (Orange Park, Fla.). All games will take place on the new AstroTurf fields at PCB Sports Complex managed by Sports Facilities Management.
“With programs coming in from Texas, Alabama, Louisiana, Illinois, South Carolina, and Georgia, we are looking forward to some incredible early season matchups in one of the toughest fields assembled in NJCAA ranks,” states Gulf Coast Director of Athletics, Mike Kandler.
“When we built this complex, this was just the type of college event we were looking to develop and host in the destination,” says President and CEO of Visit Panama City Beach, Dan Rowe. “We’re excited to bring together this tournament hosted by Gulf Coast State College in conjunction with NJCAA and Perfect Game which adds a whole new level to the tournament.”
The sixteen-team bracket begins Friday, February 4, with Championship game February 6. Tickets are available at $10 per session or $25 for the tournament. The largest baseball scouting organization, Perfect Game will serve as the official scouting and media coverage partner for the event. PerfectGame.TV will produce multiple games throughout the weekend with long-time MLB Play-by-Play Daron Sutton leading the coverage. PG’s JUCO Baseball and MLB Draft team of Brian Sakowski and Colton Olinger will lead the scouting coverage on the website and social media as well.
Major League Baseball scouts and Division 1 College coaches will be in attendance as these NJCAA programs have produced some of the best players in the nation. The MVP of the event will be named after Legendary 324 game-winner Hall of Famer, Don Sutton, who pitched at Gulf Coast Community College.
“We can’t wait to be part of this inaugural event with such an elite field of teams,” says Perfect Game Vice President of Operations, Taylor McCollough. “The event will feature the very best college baseball teams in the country. Combined with the fantastic facility and welcoming community like Panama City Beach, it will be a memorable weekend. This event will put the sports complex on the map for years to come.”
