When the University of St. Thomas knocked a single through the left side of the infield to beat the Wooster baseball team for the national championship in the bottom of the 12th inning, ìheartbroken” doesnít even begin to describe the emotions at the end of last yearís historic season. However, looking back on the 2009 season, despite a rash of injuries and adversity, last yearís baseball team came closer to a national championship than any team in school history. That feat in itself may be the most remarkable aspect of the Fighting Scotsí roller coaster season.
The Scotsí appearance in the national championship game is a great achievement in itself.† The 2009 team that head coach Tim Pettorini trotted out was probably not the most talented in Pettoriniís 27 years, but it came as close to winning the ultimate prize as any Scot team has ever come. The Scots first reached the national championship in 1997, ultimately falling to Southern Maine 15-1.
In many ways, the 2009 team was similar to a MASH unit. Within the first week of the season, the Scots were already hit with a significant setback. Starting pitcher Matt Barnes í10, poised for a breakout junior season and slated to become the teamís ace, was out for the season with a blood clot after his first start of the year. Anthony Trapuzzano í09, a three-year contributor, battled arm troubles all year and was not the same force he had been in years past. Shortstop Matt Johnson í10, a defensive standout in the infield, was shelved for the season in mid-April due to an arm injury.
ìAfter the season-ending injuries to Barnes and Johnson, the team really had two routes to travel. We could easily give up on the season because our backs were against the wall, or we could come together as a team, pick each other up, and go out on the field and give 110 percent every pitch of every game. We chose the latter,” said relief pitcher Tanner Hall í10.
The team, however, was able to play its best baseball in the second half of the season with the players it had. After losing three of four to conference foe Kenyon College, the Scots won 18 of their last 20 games between Apr. 16 and May 25, advancing all the way to Appleton, Wisc. for the College World Series. The team simply took it up a notch. It was a run no one, not even Pettorini, could have expected.
ìThis group really did overachieve. [After the injuries,] I didnít make any sterling coaching moves that turned us into a juggernaut. Because we didnít have a lot of depth, our top guys really played well and improved as the season went on,” said Pettorini.
One key aspect helping the turnaround was starting pitching. Justin McDowell í11 (13-3, 2.38 ERA and 94 strikeouts in 113 innings) and Mark Miller í09 (11-2, 2.51 ERA, and 72 strikeouts in 96 innings) emerged as two of the top pitchers in Division 3. McDowell had a breakout year, leading the nation in wins.
Once the team got going, it didnít let up. The team won its first four games in the College World Series to advance to the championship game against St. Thomas. After already beating the Tommies once in the earlier rounds of the World Series, the Scots simply needed to win one of the final two in the championship series on May 26. With McDowell and Miller on the mound in both games, the Scots looked to be in good shape. However, after playing so consistently for over a month, the team couldnít get it going on the last day of the season.
In the first game against St. Thomas, the Scots tied the game at four with three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning, only to see St. Thomas score two in the ninth to take the first game 6-4 and set up the winner-take-all second game of the double header.
Offense was at a premium in the final game. The Scots led 2-1 until the sixth inning, when St. Thomas was able to tie the game against Miller. From there, both teams remained deadlocked. The Tommies threatened to score in the eighth, ninth, 10th and 11th innings, but each time Miller worked out of a jam. Finally, in the bottom of the 12th, the Tommies led off with a single, moved the runner over with a sacrifice bunt, and a weak grounder through the hole between third and short gave St. Thomas the national title. Miller pitched arguably one of the finest games of his life, but it wasnít enough.
Pettorini opted to leave Miller in for the entire game because he simply couldnít bear the thought of taking the All-American out. ì[Millerís] such a competitor,” he said. ìWe had other guys who could have come in and pitched, but maybe not as well. He gets so many ground balls and we were making plays behind him. I didnít have the heart to take him out. It never should have gone that far. We should have scored runs behind him.”
The emotion, still fresh from that late afternoon on May 26, still sits in the stomachs of the players. Hall said that after St. Thomas singled in the winning run, ìIím pretty sure Miller was the only player on our team that was left standing. I know most everyone in the dugout dropped to their knees. It felt as though the weight of the world came down on our shoulders.”
ìWe all pictured in our minds that we were going to be the team to dog-pile at the end of the game, and when it was St. Thomas instead definitely made us realize it was all over. The season was finished,” said Matt DeGrand í10.
While it is said that time heals everything, the loss is still raw for many of the players. ìIt was the worst feeling in the world ó knowing that we had come all that way and battled so hard only to be beat on a weak single through the hole. I have never felt a more sickening feeling in my stomach,” said McDowell.
ìThe bitter aftertaste of coming so close and knowing that we were the best team in the country but just couldnít get it done on the championship day still hasn’t gone away. Every single time I see a highlight from the game or someone talks about it, I still canít get over it. Yes, we had a great run through the NCACís, regionals and World Series, but there is no doubt in my mind we were the best team in the nation,” said McDowell.
The pain from that loss may never go away for many of the players, and if it does, it wonít subside any time soon. Three months later, however, the players have had time to reflect on what a ride it was all the way to Appleton. The double-header on May 26 that somehow went awry shouldnít erase one of the finest seasons in school history. As hard as the loss has been for McDowell, he is immensely proud of what the team accomplished last spring. ìThe saying goes ësecond place is the first loser,í but I think if you talk to Kenyon, Oberlin, Allegheny, Marietta, etc., theyíll tell you the caliber of team that we had. We beat St. Thomas Game 3 of the World Series. It was just unfortunate that the day we played them for the championship just wasnít our day.”
Pettorini said that at the end of last season, he was as proud of the team as he has ever been in his 27 years here. ìIt wasnít the most talented group and we had to deal with a lot of adversity. Every coach wants their team to reach that max potential, and this team came as close to that as Iíve ever had,” said Pettorini.
Yet as positive as this past season was for the entire team, especially given the circumstances, the aftertaste of that extra inning loss still lingers. ìI look back proud of what we have done but it still hurts everyday when I think about how close we were to reaching every one of our goals. We accomplished every goal but one, but coming that close makes it hurt more than to feel satisfied with the things we did accomplish,” said third baseman Zack Vesco í12.
The Scots came as close to a national championship as any team can without capturing the ultimate prize. While the run brought immense pride to the school and surrounding community, it didnít end the way players, coaches and fans had envisioned. While the players know they should look at the 2009 season with their heads held high, for many of them the pain of that loss will not subside anytime soon. The only cure may be to get back on the field and start thinking about the possibilities in 2010.