Bio’s: Contributing Writers

Mark Bonnette

Mark Bonnette is a 1993 graduate of Airport High School and a 1998 graduate of Newberry College with a B.S. degree in Physical Education and a minor in Coaching. Bonnette was a four-year letterman on the Newberry College baseball team. Bonnette was the head baseball coach at Silver Bluff High School for two years before coming to White Knoll. He is entering his sixth season as the Varsity pitching coach at White Knoll. Bonnette also runs a very successful travel baseball program called the Palmetto Sand Gnats. The Sand Gnats are comprised of select players from across the state and consist of three teams: 18u,16u and 14u.

Lee Long

Lee Long graduated from Hillcrest High in 1994 where he was named First Team All-State as a pitcher and played in the North-South game. He played baseball at Wofford College where he became the first baseball player in school history to earn First Team All-Southern Conference as a starting pitcher. He graduated from Wofford in 1998 with a B.A in English.

Long then pitched two seasons professionally in the independent Frontier League: 1998 for the Johnstown Johnnies and 1999 for the Dubois County Dragons. He compiled a combined record of 12-4 in professional baseball before suffering a torn labrum.
Following pro ball, Long went back to school and graduated from University of South Carolina School of Law in 2001. He practiced Law in Charleston and Columbia before starting his own business. Lee owns an insurance agency providing health, life and ancillary insurance to businesses and individuals. He resides in Irmo with his wife, Amy.

.