BLYTHEWOOD (June 23, 2016) – The Bengals baseball squad officially has its second head coach in school history.
The Richland 2 School Board gave their OK last week to Banks Faulkner to replace Barry Mizzell, who stepped down as baseball head coach last month to take over as Athletic Director for the retiring Vince Lowry.
Faulkner, an assistant under Mizzell from 2008 to 2010, has spent the last two years as head coach of Summerville High School’s Green Wave baseball team. He racked up a 51-12 overall record in two seasons, winning the Class 4A state title last month.
He began his coaching career as an assistant at Gilbert High School where he helped lead the Indians to a Class 2A state championship. Faulkner then coached under Mizzell at Blythewood before heading to Wando for the 2011 season. In 2012, he was back in the Midlands an assistant at Lexington High School, helping the Wildcats to the 2013 4A title.
“It’s really great to have Banks come back to Blythewood to lead the Bengals,” Mizzell said. “I relied on him heavily while he was here as an assistant, so I know he’s got what it takes to lead our young men and continue to build our program within the community. We’re not surprised at the success he’s had since he left us. This speaks volumes about our school and our community that we were able to hire one of the best coaches in the state.”
