Creekside team won historical NABF title
By Greg Gulas
STRUTHERS
When Creekside Fitness swept through the recent NABF Sophomore Division regional at Cene Park, they felt as if they were playing their best baseball heading to World Series action last weekend in Knoxville, Tenn.
Turns out that was the momentum booster needed as they swept their way to the area’s first ever championship in that division this past Sunday.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of NABF championships, which date back to the 1914 season when Cleveland’s Telling-Stroller defeated Butler Brothers of Chicago, 3-2, to capture the organization’s first championship in its Major Division.
In the century of action since, the NABF has expanded to eight divisions with its sophomore grouping now the third-oldest of its championship formats.
Creekside defeated Mississippi’s Diamond Elite 96ers, 4-1 for the title, the area’s initial championship coming almost two years to the day when local entry, Ohio Glaciers, suffered a 9-8 setback at the hands of the Maryland Monarchs (Gambrill, Md.) to finish runners-up.
Until this year, 2012 was the only other time that a local team had played for the title in the division.
“It was an unbelievable end to an absolutely terrific season. Despite the raindrops we played absolutely fantastic baseball and I could not have been more proud of such a great group of players,” Creekside Fitness manager Dave Stauffer said. “We had been in Knoxville since Wednesday and there was either a threat of rain or raindrops each day. The delays and postponements took its toll on every team for we had no idea when, or if the tournament would get completed. It was an added stress on many families for many had to get back home by Monday in order to return to work.”
Like so many champions, pitching, timely hitting and near flawless defense remained keys for Stauffer’s troops.
World Series “Most Valuable Player” Anthony Longo posted two of his teams’ five wins with Nick Bianco, Joe Faber and Garrison Wieland the other three starters earning victories.
In addition to strong starting performances, Brandon Youngs, Cole Constance and Johnny Mikos lent added relief as the entire staff allowed just two total runs; both earned as they outscoring opponents by a 46-2 count.
“All three phases of our game came together at the right time. When you allow just two total runs in five games played you put yourself in position to win,” Stauffer said. “Offensively, in four of the five games that we played we were able to jump out to early leads, scoring five runs or more in the first inning alone.”
Creekside opened the tournament with a 12-0 shutout of the West Tennessee Rebels, racing to a 5-0 first-inning lead with Longo picking up the decision and Brennen Olesh blasting two triples to drive in five of his team’s runs with just two swings of the bat.
They followed that up with an 11-0 whitewashing of the Troy (Ohio) Rampage, again opening the game with a five-run first inning with Faber, a tourney addition from Shenango Valley, picking up the win and Mikos adding the relief.
An 8-1 victory of Ohio’s Diamond Boys gave the team three consecutive wins, the third time in as many games that they raced to an early 5-0 advantage after just one frame of play.
Wieland picked up the win and while play was suspended due to rain, the game never resumed and Creekside was declared the victor.
In the fourth contest, they stopped the PAL Rangers, 11-0, posting nine runs in the first stanza behind Wieland’s bases clearing double and the pitching of Bianco, who tossed a three-hit gem.
In the championship game, Longo outdueled the 96ers’ Connor Sevelle for the victory. It marked the first time in the tournament that they failed to score in any of the first three innings.
Longo went six strong innings with Faber adding the team’s only save of the World Series.
In addition to Longo’s MVP award, Wieland earned the tournament’s “Top Hitter” award with Bianco, Coleman Stauffer, Antonio Page, Jared Fabry and Brennen Olesh each earning all-tournament laurels.
“I couldn’t be prouder of this group because our goal from day one was to go out and compete at a high level, play to our potential and always do so with class,” Stauffer added. “We accomplished all three goals and in the end that netted us a World Series trophy. It’s a tremendous accomplishment and something that we will forever remember.”
Other key members of this year’s squad included Drew Havrilla, Evan Knaus, Josh Sheetz, Blake Benyo, Randy Smith, Dom Velasquez and Noah Felliti.
Creekside completed its season 35-11-1 overall, finishing a combined 9-0 in regional (4-0) and World Series (5-0) play.