Playoff game rescheduled following sudden death of local baseball coach

CRAMERTON, N.C. — A community is grieving the sudden death of a beloved baseball coach.

Stuart W. Cramer High School says their junior varsity coach collapsed before their playoff game Friday, and later died.

The game in Lawndale was moved to Saturday.

There were a lot of heavy hearts at Burns High School Saturday night.

The baseball game started with a moment of silence for Coach Samuel Casey McMillen.

While a lot of the fans have a connection to the teams, that wasn’t true for everyone who came.

“I don’t have any association with either school, so I just wanted to show support for not only the students, but most importantly the families affected by this,” said Rick Balser, a supporter.

Coach McMillen was the JV coach for Stuart W. Cramer High. He was also a husband and his wife posted that he would soon be a father.

Thinking about that legacy is one of the reasons Rebecca Smith brought her 11-year-old son Wyatt to Saturday night’s game.

“It’s just a game, but it’s much more than a game. It’s about community,” Smith said. “It’s about love, it’s about sportsmanship and being there for each other.”

It was Friday evening when Coach McMillen collapsed and efforts to revive him failed.

Tammy Dye’s son is one of the players for Cramer.

“My son if he fell apart on the field or the other boys had some issues or anything, I just thought morale support from parents would be best in the stand,” Dye said.

Although the teams are typically rivals, on Saturday, everybody was on the same side.

“They are playing today in memory of him, and I hope they win,” said Dye.

Both teams have played really well this year. This is the best season Cramer has had in a while.

The players, coaches, and fans had their minds on much more than that during the game.

Anyone who wishes to support Casey McMillen’s family during its time of loss can do so at MealTrain.

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