BEDFORD — Bedford North Lawrence outfielder Grant Dalton has a cool thing coming up, which, in youthful slang means it is so cool it's sick, or in this case literally "SIC."

Dalton has inked his full-ride scholarship deal to continue his baseball career at Southeastern Illinois College, a JUCO school in Harrisburg, Il., after he completes his senior season with the Stars this spring.

Harrisburg is about an hour west of Evansville and plays in one of the best JUCO leagues in the country, the Great Rivers Athletic Conferences. The Falcons had a tough season in 2021 under veteran coach Jeremy Irlback, going 18-30 overall and 8-19 in the GRAC, but the program has a proud tradition in baseball and academics.

The two-year junior college program has sent countless players on to NCAA Division I teams, and three players on to the major leagues, while former coach Rich Hacker went on to coach third base for the Whitey Herzog-led St. Louis Cardinals.

"One of the biggest things about choosing SIC is getting to play to play against the level of competition I'll see and the maximum exposure I'll get while I'm there," Dalton said. "The conference they play in is the best junior college conference in the country, and last year their shortstop got an offer from Texas."