DON McDERMOTT / PVT Manager John Bradley, left foreground, talks with the Pahrump Valley American Legion Post 40 baseball team Monday, after the Trojans split a doubleheader with visiting Las Vegas Palo Verde and finished 11-13 in their first season.Assistant coach Tim Cazier is at the left. Advertisement

Three Pahrump Valley American Legion Post 40 baseball team players will be headed for college this fall.

Alex Bietar, the backbone of a strong defensive infield over the second half of the Southern Nevada Silver Division season, is going to Santa Barbara, Calif., City College.

A.J. Craighead, a jack-of-all-trades infielder, is headed for Victor Valley, Calif., Community College.

Jacob Rusk, who has played about every position during his high school and Legion career, is going to St. Mary's College in Leavenworth, Kan.

Justin Mills, a redshirt freshman, will return to Missouri Western, where he expects to play this year after sitting out the 2005-2006 campaign.

Bietar chose Santa Barbara because of the sheer number of games the team plays during a school year.

"They play a lot of baseball, all year long. And that's what I like," said Bietar, who played third, shortstop and second, as well as the outfield. He was also a relief pitcher this summer, as Post 40 finished 11-13 after a 3-9 start. In the 2006 baseball season for the high school and Legion teams, Bietar played in 61 games, batting over .400.

Only a 5-3, nine-inning loss to visiting Palo Verde Monday stopped Post 40 from climbing back to .500 in its inaugural Legion season.

Craighead played all of the infield positions for manager John Bradley's team. Offensively, both he and Bietar contributed many clutch hits during the season.

"Alex and A.J. did everything we asked of them," said Bradley. "And Jacob played the outfield; he caught and he pitched for us. Losing the three of them will be huge."