Prep Baseball Report

Tennessee HS Team Preview: Livingston Academy Wildcats


Prep Baseball Tennessee Staff

The 2025 Tennessee high school baseball season is quickly approaching and, as usual, excitement is abound throughout the state. Players and coaches have been working in preparation for the upcoming season and, as is the case each year, there are some very talented players and teams across Tennessee.

Teams across the state have goals and aspirations to finish their seasons in Murfreesboro at the state tournament championships – but there is plenty of work to be done before that becomes reality. We hope to familiarize our readers with many of the teams across the state as we preview individual teams across Tennessee. We will take you right up to first pitch this season with these team previews, eventually releasing our Preseason Power 25 rankings that’ll carry us into the opening week of action.

Please keep checking back throughout the season as we will be your one-stop shop for everything related to high school baseball across the state. Each week we will be releasing our Players of the Week and updating the Power 25 rankings.

Our 2025 preseason coverage continues today.

High School: Livingston Academy
Head Coach: Jamie Loftis
TSSAA Classification: AAA
District & Region: 7 + 4
2024 Record (Playoff Finish): 21-7 (District Tourney)

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ROSTER PREVIEW

+ No. Returning Positional Starters: 4
+ No. Returning Pitchers: 2
+ Key Returners:

  • OF Tayshawn Hayes (2025)
  • RHP/1B Dawson Ledbetter (2025)
  • C/UTL Drayk Blankenship (2026)
  • RHP/UTL Drew Goolsby (2026)

2025 OUTLOOK

+ The Varsity Wildcats come into the Spring 2025 season off a solid 2024 campaign that saw them carry a strong record but with a disappointing season’s end in their district tournament. They would start March off with a bang going 7-2 with quality wins over Cannon County and Dekalb County. April was even stronger as they carried their momentum 12-1 with wins over state tournament participant Upperman. However, the momentum would come to an abrupt stop losing back to back close games in district play. This brings a lot of motivation for a squad that probably feels like they under-achieved last season. The Wildcats did lose some senior talent but also have quite a few capable players that come in with plenty of experience. Senior outfielder Tayshawn Hayes looks to slide right back into the 3-hole where he produces hits at a consistent clip, while also being adapted to draw walks. Senior pitcher and 1B Dawson Ledbetter will have an expanded role defensively and on the mound. Firing just 1.1 relief innings in the district tournament a year ago, he will be called and relied upon in a starter role this season. Senior catcher Drayk Blankenship should be a captain for the squad this year with presence behind the plate. He will be looking to increase his offensive production to supply additional firepower to the lineup that lost significant offensive production. Junior Drew Goolsby was a factor for the Wildcats last year in the lineup and on the bump. He looks in line to be the ace of the club, while stepping further up in the lineup to the top-half. There is a solid mix of upperclassmen that will look to make a deep postseason run this season. It is a hardworking team and may not be as talented as last year, but look capable. They may need a few arms to step up and may be where they are hurting the most, but also allows for a lot of early opportunities for new players to step up and make a name for themselves.


Find more information on Livingston Academy’s 2025 season below:

+ Find more 2025 team previews on our TSSAA Season Preview page

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