PORTERS GR1ND TO THE FINISH

Transcription

1 PORTER BASEBALL PORTERS GR1ND TO THE FINISH CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS, LONGEST GAME IN TEAM HISTORY AMONG HIGHLIGHTS The above was the theme for the 2014 for the Porters. As it turned out that is exactly what the team had to do throughout this roller coaster of a season that ended with the Porters being defeated by Providence by a score of 4-2 in the Lockport Regional. The Porters ended with an over-all record of that saw them play 17 games decided by 2 or less runs. Their record in those games was 7-10 and 6 of those losses were by 1 run. Offense (.241 BA) was hard to come by at times causing the Porters to have to grind out runs. Their pitching (ERA 1.66) and defense (.941 %) carried the Porters throughout the season. Of their 26 opponents 12 were seeded 1 /2 in their sectional, 8 were ranked in the top 25 and 3 in the top 5 showing the tough schedule that is always a hallmark of Porter baseball. Thru it all the team played hard, with enthusiasm and showed their Special Events of Note character. It was an all around outstanding TEAM effort by everyone. Two on the field highlights stand out in particular. The Porters won the SWSC Blue Conference title in dramatic fashion with a 12-2 record. Heading into the last 2 games with L-Way East, the Porters knew that they had to win both games to get at least a share of the title. With typical hard work and effort, the Porters defeated the Griffins in both games. That, coupled with a Sandburg loss, earned the Porters their 4 th consecutive conference title and 29 th in program history. 5 Porters earned All SWSC honors; Mike Formella, Rusty Hoh, Noah Masa, Tyler Hair and Lorenzo Blaze-kovich. A part of this conference accomplishment was the 2 nd highlight of the season. The Porters were heading into the conference showdown with undefeated Sandburg. Despite a below.500 season record, the Porters Continued on page 11 PORTER BASEBALL YOUTH CAMP June 9 th thru June 12 th..9am Flink Field BATTLE OF OMAHA 19U TOURNAMENT June 17 th thru June 19 th.. Omaha, Nebraska LOCKPORT PORTERS SUMMER SHOWCASE June 23-June 25...Flink Field PORTER WOOD BAT CLASSIC TOURN. July 7 th -July 9 th...flink F....Times Check Website No. 11- Season 2014 Highlights Inside Farm Report A complete rundown of how the lower level seasons went and category leaders Coaches Corner In this issue Assistant Varsity Coach Adam Decaire talks about his Leadership Council program for Porter baseball. Alumni Review Instead of a close look at one or two of our alumni, we will give a complete rundown of all alumni and how their 2014 season went. A Season in Pictures We chose a few pictures that show the efforts both on and off the field that reflect the community spirit of the 2014 Porters. Senior Moments This issue will take a at all of the seniors from the 2014 team and some of their reflections of the season and of their careers here at LTHS. Also inside: *Porter News Odds & Ends..pg 6 *Booster Club News & 2014 Golf Outing pg. 10 *Another Look at the Record Book. pg BOOSTER GOLF OUTING Fri., July 11 th Big Run G.C... 1:30 pm IHSBCA SUMMER REGIONAL TOURN. July 14 th -July17 th.flink Field...Times TBA PORTER BASEBALL ACADEMY July 16 th - July 18 th. Flink Field 8:00-9:30 am SHOWCASE/ID CAMP July 29 th July 30 th... Flink Field...8:00-11:00 am

2 Farm Report.Lower Level News Porter Sophomores The Sophomore Porters finished with a 25-6 record. The sophomores were also co-champions of the SWSC Blue Conference with a 12-2 record. Coaches Dan Blaskovitz, Tim Harmatys, Jeff Robinson and Curtis Fournier and all of the sophomores are to be congratulated on a great season. They finished with a team batting avg. of.345 and had 286 hits, 50 of which (44-2B, 3-3B, 3-HR) went for extra bases. From the mound, the team had an ERA of 1.59 and a strikeouts to walks ratio. Fielding, the team had a % of.942. Here is a look at some of the leaders based on available GameChanger statistics. Bat. Avg.(50+ AB) Hits Runs Scored RBI Stolen Bases 1. C. Van Lonkhuyzen (.415) 1. C. Van Lonkhuyzen (39) 1. Stephen Hill (31) 1. Stephen Hill (27) 1. Mike Pattison (18) 2. Stephen Hill (.400) 2. Stephen Hill (38) 2. Mike Pattison (26) 2. C. Van Lonkhuyzen (20) 2. C. Van Lonkhuyzen (16) 3. Joe McGuire (.397) 3. Mike Pattison (29) 3. C. Van Lonkhuyzen (22) 3. J. Huber/N. Vella (18) 3. Jake Huber (9) Wins ERA(15+IP) Strikeouts Putouts Assists 1. Mike Stevens (7) 1. C. Kozubowski (0.43) 1. Dylan Barthel (33) 1. Nick Vella (118) 1. Jake Huber (50) 2. Joe Witek (5) 2. Mike Stevens (1.14) 2. Mike Stevens (26) 2. Joe McGuire (97) 2. Stephen Hill (38) 3. Dylan Barthel (4) 3. Joe Witek (1.11) 3. Justin Czech (23) 3. Jake Huber (52) 2. Josh Martinez (19) Porter Freshmen Maroon & White The Freshman Porters Maroon team finished the season The Maroon squad had a team batting avg. of.273 and had 208 hits. From the mound, the team had an ERA of 2.66 and strikeouts to walks ratio. Fielding, the team had a % of.930. The Freshman Porters White team finished with a 7-5 record. Their team batting avg. was.313 with 56 hits. The team ERA was an excellent 2.12 including a strikeout to walk ratio. Their team fielding pct. was.896. Coaches Doug Chesna, Brandan Morrone, Tanner Libby and Mike Smith and all of the frosh did an outstanding job and are to be congratulated. Here is a look at some of the leaders based on available GameChanger statistics. Bat. Avg.(30+ AB) Hits Runs Scored RBI Stolen Bases 1. Matt Harder (.371) 1. M. Harder/J. Baker (23) 1. Jake Suchor (21) 1. Gavin Lovesky (13) 1. Jake Suchor (15) 2. Josh Baker (.348) 2. Jake Suchor (21) 2. M. Harder 2. Matt Harder (12) 2. Eric Jungheim (13) E. Jungheim (18 3. Nick Strysik (.346) 3. Gavin Lovesky (18) 3. Gavin Lovesky (16) 3. Kevin Davis (10) 3. Matt Harder (11) 4. Brent McDowell (.327) 4. Brent McDowell (17) 4. Josh Baker (15) 4. J. Baker/B. McDowell 4. Gavin Lovesky (8) 5. Jake Suchor (.300) 5. Nick Strysik (13) 5. Brent McDowell (12) J. Suchor/N. Strysik (9) 5. Brent McDowell (6) Extra-Base Hits Innings Pitched ERA(10+IP) Strikeouts Putouts 1. Josh Baker (10) 1. Ben Davis (47.0) 1. Ben Davis (0.74) 1. Ben Davis (55) 1. Nick Strysik (109) 2. Gavin Lovesky (7) 2. Tom Shields (29.0) 2. Matt Harder (1.25) 2. Jake Suchor (38) 2. Kevin Davis (60 3. Brent McDowell 3. Jake Suchor (27.2) 3. Josh Baker (1.40) 3. Matt Harder (20) 3. Gavin Lovesky (58) Jake Suchor 4. Matt Harder (22.1) 4. Drew Flanagan (1.97) 4. Josh Baker (18) 4. Brent McDowell (43) Nick Strysik (5) 5. David Mikolajczak (21.1) 5. Aaron Dittmer (2.47) 5. Tom Shields (15) 5. Josh Baker (39) Congratulations to all players for their hard work, dedication and commitment. 2

3 Coaches Corner: Leadership? Porters Take It to the Classroom BAM! POW! BAM & POW!! ALLLLLLL DAY!!! These were some of the sounds that may have been heard from the Porters dugout this season. As you can imagine, the 2014 Lockport Porters were a group made up of a lot of different personalities. Finding a way to balance all of their energy and enthusiasm for the game of baseball with their skill set would be the key to a successful season, but was no easy task for the coaching staff. Always looking to improve the baseball program, Coach Satunas presented me with the opportunity to develop a leadership curriculum that would build upon the Leadership Council we started last season on the varsity level. We wanted to continue to grow our senior leaders, but at the same time wanted to include the lower levels so that they could begin to develop these important characteristics early and continue to build on them throughout their tenure in the program. Six players per level were chosen by their coaches and teammates to represent their team. All players were then assigned to represent one of the PORTERS core values: Pride, Opportunity, Respect, Teamwork, Enthusiasm, Reliable, Self-Reliable. The Leadership Council would meet every Friday morning in my classroom and to reward them for waking up early, I would treat them to donuts, chocolate milk, and orange juice (I think this is the only reason they continued to come). Each week, one of the teams would present a selected chapter of Brian Cain s book on leadership. The kids incorporated engaging video clips, quotes, discussions, and one freshman even quizzed the council on their knowledge of history! After the kids would present, I would lead them through some of the leadership curriculum I had developed. I really wanted to focus on teaching our players the importance of building confidence in themselves as leaders on the baseball field, in the classroom, and most importantly, later on in their lives after baseball. Studies have classified multiple styles of leadership ranging from those that lead by their words all the way to the silent leaders who lead by example. Many of the freshmen did not mutter a word the first couple of weeks, but by the end some of them were more open than the seniors! It was truly remarkable to watch these 18 young men grow up over the seven weeks we met. I made it a point the first meeting with only the seniors that this was their chance to put their stamp on the 2014 Leadership Council and help shape their future Porter brothers in years to come. I am big on visuals and motivational/inspirational quotes so I used a variety of these sources to lead our meetings. One of the quotes that has really stuck with me in my five years of coaching high school football and baseball is: Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others (Jack Welch). I think we now have 18 young men who will be better leaders in baseball and in the community to help teach their fellow teammates and classmates some of the hard work and pride associated with the Lockport Baseball Program. I would like to personally thank Coach Satunas for allowing me to develop and run the Leader- ship Council; I enjoyed growing closer to the coaches and players involved and will continue to keep learning and becoming a better leader myself. A BIG THANK YOU goes to the senior leaders: Mike Formella, Nick Kaleel, Noah Masa, Ryan Dalton, Avery Lochow, and Jake Stanton. You guys definitely created a solid foundation for your LEGACY! Adam Decaire adecaire@lths.org Adam Decaire Speed/Conditioning Coach Lockport Porters Varsity Who Is This Guy? Clues: (1) Wants to be an EMT (2) Had a BIG Sandburg 13 (3) Nickname was Dougie Fresh ANSWER: swehttam guod 3

4 Porter Baseball Alumni Review Kyle Billig (Washington U.) completed his career at Washington U. of St. Louis. He batted.280 for the Bears and will leave his imprint on their record book. He leaves as the career leader in Stolen Bases (100), Runs Scored (181), Triples (15) and holds a season record for steals (35) in He finishes with a career batting average of.321 Tommy Hook (NIU) just completed season 2 for the Huskies (17-31, Mid-Am. Conf.). He batted.257 starting 51 games and making 179 plate appearances. He was 2 nd in on-base% (.350) and triples (2), as well as 3 rd in runs scored (24) and hits (46). Tommy played multiple positions including 3B, OF and even caught. Derek Bangert (Heartland C.C.) had a tremendous first season for the Hawks (43-13, 24-8 MWAC). Big Bang started 55 games and hit.364 with 17 HR and 69 RBI. His HR total led the nation for junior college Div. II and his RBI s were 6 th. Derek was picked as 1 st team All-Conference as an infielder. Evan Martens (SIUE) just completed his first season for the Cougars who finished and in the Ohio Valley Conference. Evan saw action in 13 games and pitched 52.2 innings mostly in relief. His record was 2-4 with an ERA of Josh Altmann (Olivet Nazarene U.) In his 2 nd year for the Tigers (20-28, CCAC) was very successful. Josh started 44 games and appeared 143 times at the plates hitting a team leading.350 with 24 RBI. He also led his team in steals (27) and on-base % (.450). He was named to the Nat. Christian Coll. Athletic Assoc. All-Region team as well as 1 st team CCAC All-Conference. Matt DeGraw (Joliet JC) finished his career at Joliet Jr. College (39-19, 9-3 North Central Conf.) with a great season for the Wolves. Matt appeared in 12 games, mostly in relief, and in 62.2 innings was 5-4 with 27K s and a 4.45 ERA. Colin Hart (Aurora University) began his 1 st season for the Spartans (10-28, 6-14 NACC). In his inaugural for Aurora, Colin appeared in 7 games and pitched 39.2 innings with a 2-2 record and a 4.99 ERA. He had an excellent 23/10 strikeouts to walks ratio. Jeff Duschene (Joliet JC) just completed his 1 st season at JJC. In 26 games, he had 55 AB s, hit.291 and had an OB% of.400 playing mostly second base. Ron Sessler (Joliet JC) joined the Wolves after LTHS successful 2013 season. The Wolves finished and Ron was a big part of their success. Playing OF, Sess played 43 games and hit.376 in 133 plate appearances. He also batted in 30 runs, had a.462 OB % and a SLG % of.474. Matt Skrzypiec (St. Joseph College) in his second season for the Pumas (19-31, GLVC), batted.250. In 29 games, Matt made 60 plate appearances and had a SLG% of.333 as well as an OB % of.375. Defensively, Matt had an excellent.962 FLDG. %. Benny Collesano (Trinity Christian College) finished his career for the Trolls (26-24, CCAC) in great fashion. Ben had a record of 5-2 with an ERA of 3.11 in 55 innings. Jeff Pattison (Joliet JC) finished his 1 st season roaming the outfield for the Wolves (39-19, 9-3 NCC). He played in 26 games, hitting.296 in 54 at bats with 14 RBI. 4

5 Porter Baseball Alumni Review Nick Davito (Lewis University) completed his 2nd season for the Flyers (26-25, GLVC) with a 0-2 record pitching in 13 games mostly in relief. In 35 IP, he had a 4.46 ERA. Thomas Smith (Dominican U.) just completed his 1 st season for the Stars (23-18, NACC) playing 40 games as an infielder. In 151 plate appearances, Smitty had a.252 BA with 38 hits and 16 RBI. Austin Mastela (Lewis University) had a very successful 2nd season for Lewis playing in 40 games and batting.314. He had 48 hits, 29 RBI, a SLG% of.451 and an OB% of.340. Always excellent in the OF, Austin was a perfect Austin was 2 nd in RBI, 3 rd in runs scored (32), HR (4) and total bases (69). Jory Koehler (Robert Morris U.) finished up a great collegiate career which began at Kankakee JC and ended at RMU (29-19, CCAC). Mainly a second baseman, Jory hit.298 for the Eagles. Bob Wilmsen (Trinity Christian College) Joining fellow Porter Ben Collesano at Trinity, Bob s 1 st season for the Trolls was a good one. He appeared in 11 games, pitched 47.2 innings and was 3-3 with an ERA of Connor Ryan (Prairie State) had a great season for the Pioneers (28-18, 9-5 ISCC). He appeared in 17 games and finished 7-4. In 50 IP he had a 2.16 ERA with an outstanding 60/15 strikeout/walk ratio. Ted Snidanko (Purdue U.) Ted joined Purdue (13-37, 6-18 Big Ten) and had a successful fall season but was behind senior OF s for the Boilermakers. He played in 23 games, had 55 AB and hit.182 with a perfect fldg.%. During a game at UIC Ted suffered a fractured face crashing into the wall to make a catch. sound familiar? Connor Petschke (Kentucky Wesleyan) concluded his last season at KWC (31-16, 17-7 G-MAC). Connor was in 44 games, hit.291 with 134 AB s and 34 runs scored (2 nd ). He had a.410 SLG% and a.415 OB%. He was outstanding in the OF handling 73 of 76 chances for a.961 FLD%. Pat Domke (Illinois Wesleyan U.) appeared in just 6 games for the Titans who finished and 14-7 in the CCIW. Pat pitched 5.1 innings. Doug Matthews (Concordia U.) had a very successful freshman yr. for the Cougars (39-7, 18-3 NACC). He split time between 3B and OF defensively but had a solid offensive season. In 23 games and 56 AB s, Doug hit.286. Brenden Dunleavy (U. of Chicago) just completed his junior season for the Maroons (10-27). He appeared in 11 games and had 26 plate appearances and batted.192. Eric Duzan (Prairie State) joined Porter teammate Connor Ryan on the Pioneer s staff and finished 1-3 appearing in 7 games and pitching 29.1 innings with an ERA of

6 PORTER BASEBALL NEWS ODDS AND ENDS DIAMOND GIRLS PORTER RON COOMER Know who these young women are? If you got a hot dog at the concession or heard a player being announced at a sophomore game you might have seen them. They are known as the Diamond Girls and they assisted the Boosters in so many ways throughout the season. We want to thank them for all of their hard work and help during this season. They are; Abby Kaczmarek, Allison Dykas, Alyssa Burke, Alyssa Moralis, Annie Walsh, Aubrey Elwood, Cassie Schremser, Celine McLaughlin, Claudia Mos, Dominika Bizub, Kamila Stasik, Katie Pacetti, Kara Adams, Megan Moran, Morgan Valley and Stevi Marek. 84 Alum Ron Coomer is in the Cubs WGN radio booth with the legendary Pat Hughes. We missed Ron at the Alumni Day game honoring his 84 team, but we wanted him to know he was missed. We also want to thank him for the very kind on-air words about the event and Por-ters baseball. We look forward to seeing Ron at Flink Field when the new batting cage facility becomes reality and we put his name prominently on it. Who IS THIS GUY? Lt. Noah Masa?? Noah Masa and his family received a visit by Lieutenant Colonel Farrell on Senior Night, May 23 rd. and in a ceremony at home plate was presented with a symbolic check representing his UIC Army ROTC Suburban Scholarship. While Noah attends UIC, in addition to playing baseball, will serve in the Army ROTC Program. This is a commitment of Noah of 4 to 8 years of service in the U.S. Army and Army Reserves. This is a great opportunity for Noah as it represents a full ride payment of his 4 years at UIC while studying pre-med. Clues: (1) He never met a hot dog he didn t eat! (2) He hit an inside the park HR (taking BP above right) (3) Nickname was Kobayashi (4) One of the best human beings you ll ever meet. ANSWER: slohcin nitsua HAS IT BEEN THAT LONG????? Next season, we will mark the 10 th anniversary of the 05 State Championship during our Alumni Night game. Our schedule has not been completed but we hope to utilize a Friday night game in late May as the date. Of course we will let everyone know as details become available. We plan on presenting an OF sign that will be placed in LF along with the other state tournament Porter teams. Stay tuned!! 6

7 Alumni Day, May 17 th : 1963 & 2014 Porters 2013/14 Christmas Food Drive Alumni Day, May 17 th : 1984 & 2014 Porters 7

8 2014 PORTER BASEBALL Senior Moments Lorenzo Blazekovich will attend Prairie State College. Zo finished 2014 sharing time between SS and the mound as a go to reliever. He batted.296 in 30 games and 98 AB. His OB% was.375 and had a SLG% of.327. In SWSC Blue competition he batted.304 and was picked All- Conference. On the hill he appeared in the 16 inning Sandburg game, pitched 1 inning and struck out 2 of 3 Eagle batters. Ryan RD Dalton will go to Kenosha and play for the Carthage College Red Men. In 2014 Ryan was a mainstay in RF and batted in the middle of the Porters order. He batted.218 appearing in 35 games and 101 AB. In the outfield he had an outstanding.958 fielding % handling 46 of 48 chances. Frank Diaz, an infielder/ outfielder, will be attending Harper JC next fall. The 16 inning game with Sandburg is Frank s big memory from this past season. Franky is going to miss being around the boys because they were a great group of guys. Putting on the Porter uniform meant a lot to Frank because there is a lot of tradition in the program. He said, we all wore that uniform with pride. Matt Duplessis will be attending JJC next fall. Matt returned to the hill for the Porters and appeared in 3 games and pitched 8 innings. On Senior Night, Matt took the mound against Plainfield East and went 4 innings and limited the Bengal hitters to 2 hits and 1 earned run. Avery Lochow will attend Purdue-Calumet next fall. Avery says that his best memories of Porter baseball were the many trips. They were perfect times for everyone to bond together. He s going to miss just being around the guys because of that close bond. Being a Porter helped me not only become a better player but a better person. Oh yeah, watching Trevor eat those five worms at practice to win the 1PW was his funniest memory. He wants to thank the coaching staff for what they have done for me. Rusty Hoh will be attending North Central College and will continue his baseball career for the Cardinals. Russ played both the OF and pitched for the Porters. He batted.314 in 51 AB collecting 16 hits and 8 RBI. In SWSC play he hit.333. On the hill, Rusty had 8 appearances and pitched 34 innings. He had an excellent 33/13 K to BB ratio and finished with an ERA of Even better in the SWSC, he had an ERA of His play in the SWSC earned him All-Conference honors. Chris Grazioli will head to the north country and attend St. Mary s U. in Minnesota. Fighting injury throughout the season, Graz continued to work and practice hard in an effort to regain playing form. He played in 14 games and had 33 plate appearances batting.212 with 7 hits and 8 RBI. Noah Masa embarks on an exciting journey studying premed and playing baseball at UIC. He will be enrolled in the Army ROTC Program. The Porters #1 pitcher, Noah appeared in 13 games and had an ERA of 2.17 in 61.1 IP. He finished with a record of 5-4 with an excellent K-BB ration of In SWSC conference play Noah was 3-2 with a 3.14 ERA. He was named to the All- SWSC team. 8

9 2014 PORTER BASEBALL Senior Moments Jake Stanton will be continuing his baseball as a member of the Big Blue of Milliken U. in Decatur. Jake was the rock of the Porter defense catching 32 games with an outstanding.979 fielding %. His 250 putouts were the 6 th most in a season posted by a Porter in the program s history. Big Jake hit.197 in 76 AB including 9 RBI. Mike Formella will take his glove to River Forest as a Cougar of Concordia U. Mike experienced much success over 4 yrs. with our program including the 31-3 soph. season which ranks among his best memories. The funniest moments came during our many trips (a common theme it seems among the seniors anything to tell us guys???). Mike considered playing for the Porters an honor to be a part of a program as good as ours and will always come back to see future teams play. He finished an IHSBCA All-Area and ALL- SWSC pick with a 7-2 record and an ERA of In the SWSC he was 5-0 (0.37 ERA) and pitched both days of the 16 inning Sandburg game. Forms also became the starting 1B for the Porters and hit.240 with 18 hits and 9 RBI. Dan Kaleel will attend Grandview U. in Des Moines, IA. and play baseball for the Vikings. Dan played a great 1B for the Porters. He handled 96 of 98 chances cleanly for an excellent fielding % of.980. A vocal teammate, Dan was a leader on and off the field and served as an example for his teammates. His enthusiasm was non-stop ( Bam, Pop ) and took the responsibility of keeping the dugout in the game at all times. Nick Kaleel will be joining teammate Chris Grazioli and head north to Minnesota to attend St. Mary s U. Nick struggled with health issues throughout the past two seasons but always remained an important part of the Porters. Limited to 7 games and 13 AB, Nick batted.154 and played 3B. As his brother Dan, Nick was a player who displayed what it means to lead by example and to put his team first above all. Dakota Dunston is as yet undecided where he will go this fall. A valuable infielder coming off the bench, Dakota appeared in 6 games and had a fielding % handling all chances that came his way. In limited appearances at the plate Dakota hit

10 News from the Booster Club Porter Baseball Boosters Golf Outing (PRINT OUT THIS PAGE AND SEND IN OR GO TO WEBSITE AND DOWNLOAD REGISTRATION FORM FROM LINK ON FRONT PAGE Other Booster News: -Once again the Porter Baseball Boosters leant invaluable assistance to the program during the 2014 season. Under the leadership of Larry Wishba (Pres.), Suzanne Cronberg (V-P), Bob Duplessis (Treas.) and Karyn Lochow (Sec.) the boosters assisted the team in organizing their overnight trips, special event game activities, ran the concession stand, coordinated the Diamond Girls, and continue to organize activities (SEE GOLF OUTING ABOVE) and oversee projects at Flink Field. Again THANK YOU! -As always we are looking for new members and wish to emphasize that the Boosters are not limited to parents. Alumni have expressed interest as well as others who support Porter baseball. We would like to encourage those who have an interest and would like to help to contact us at or contact one of the booster board members. 10

11 Summer Time to Rebuild and REload Well, summer is finally here! Thinking back to this winter and the cold temps that continued into early May some thought it would never get here. But now that is has, the Porters will begin taking steps to improve upon this past season. The Porters will field 2 teams this summer. The varsity is holding tryouts the week of June 2 nd. Their schedule will include 3 tournaments including the annual Battle of Omaha 19U Tournament that is held during the College World Series. The Porters will be facing teams from Minnesota, Colorado, Montana, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Maryland among others. Most teams consist of graduated high school players and college players. Lockport will also host two tourn- Finish of 2014 Season (cont d from page 1) stood at 8-2 two games behind the Eagles. A win was a must if the Porters had any hope of repeating their title and win they did. It was the way they did it that was impressive and historic. In the longest game in Porter baseball history the Porters defeated the Eagles 2-1 in 16 innings that spanned two days because of darkness after 11 innings on day one. It was truly inspiring to see the effort of the whole Porter team but in particular pitchers Mike Formella and Cole Bellair who combined to pitch 14 innings. Formella started the game, went 6.1 innings and then came back 2 days later when the game resumed to pitch another 5 to earn the win striking out 12. Bellair came into the game in the 7 th and pitched 2.2 innings and struck out 8. This started a late season run for the Porters who finished 7-1 in their last 8 games. Once again the Porters character was on display off the field as well. In keeping with the program philosophy of giving aments later in the summer. Candidates will include juniors from the spring varsity, sophomore and freshman teams. Evaluations will be made by the summer coaching staff and rosters will be posted on the team website (porterbaseball.org). Candidates from the Maroon and White freshman spring teams will also go through 3 days of tryouts as well and will compete in the Summer JV League. This league consists of over 20 schools and will conclude with a season ending tournament. The goal of our summer program is to evaluate players for next spring and provide the best competition possible. back to the community, the Porters hosted their annual Strikeout Cancer day of baseball. This year the Porters raised $9,178 for pediatric cancer research. They also honored the armed forces past and present with a Military Appreciation day with special ceremonies before the game. Also a tradition is recognizing the accomplishments of past Porter teams. This year they honored teams from 1963 and Also, the Porters participated in St. Baldrick activities in March that helped raise funds for and awareness of child-hood cancer. Another highlight for the Porters is that once again 12 players are moving on to college to continue their baseball careers at the next level. Also, in 2014, head coach Andy Satunas reached an important mark in his 4 yr. career by winning his 100 th game and 4 th consecutive SWSC conference championship. Flink Field Update 2014 Never in recent memory has the weather had an effect on the early part of the baseball schedule as did The severe winter, late thaw and spring arrival caused all sorts of complications at Flink Field. However, the Porters played a full 35 game schedule due in large part to the efforts of Mark Dulkowski and his great crew that worked many hours to get the field playable. The coaches and players greatly appreciate the time and commitment of the maintenance staff and would like to extend a giant thank you to these guys!!! We couldn t have done it without you. NOTES: The infield grass has especially been in great shape and is by far the best infield we played on all season long. We will be moving forward on a new press box that will sit behind the stands at home plate. Also, Ron Coomer has accepted our invitation to have the new batting cage facility named in his honor. 11

12 On the Record: 1963 and 1984 Porters Among the Best Ever Porters Jake Stanton (l) and Mike Formella present the 63 sign to team capt. and All-State pitcher Chuck Ballantine 84 Porters Coach Clyde Odle, Bill Pomatto, Steve Lotz, Bob Mondrella, John Boland, Bruce Rigoni and Dave Jennings Tradition Still Alive at Flink Field For those who sat in the old stands of the Athletic Field in the early 60 s, seeing Chuck Ballantine (above left) on the mound and Pete Fulton at 1 st Base was not an unusual sight. Both were All-State players for the Porters and both were instrumental in leading the Porters during their historic 63 season. That team was the first Porter team to reach the state tournament. Those 63 Porters traveled a tough road to get to the Peoria IHSA State Tournament as they won the South Suburban Conference, the Lockport District, Reavis Regional and Morton Sectional. They finished off Mound City in a 5 inning game at the state tournament but then lost to Granite City and finished Chuck and Pete attended Alumni Day ceremonies on Saturday May 17 th as the 2014 Porters dedicated and presented them with a sign (above left) that is on the left field wall with other signs recognizing Porter state tournament teams. The 63 Porters included Vince Affrunti, Jerry Anderson, Pat Bannon, Dave Bier, Chuck Bozue, Chuck Brieden, Wilbur Clark, Andy Dystrup, Larry Edsall, Bob Keefer, Herb Kinder, Jim Kraft, Mike Murawski, Fred Pederson, Jim Pieper, Jim Posetto, Ray Ryan, Dave Sims, Norman Thomas and Wayne Traylor. Sharing that day and also being recognized was the 1984 Porters led by head coach Clyde Odle. Joining Coach Odle were former players Bill Pomatto, Dave Jennings, Steve Lotz, Bruce Rigoni, Bob Mondrella and John Boland. They too were given a sign (above right) at home plate ceremonies as a summary of their tremendous state tournament season was read to the crowd. The 84 Porters finished 32-5 and won the SICA West Conference title as well as the Lockport Regional and Hinsdale South Sectional earning them Elite Eight status in the Class AA IHSA State Tournament. 84 Porters included asst. coach Jim Hall, Ron Coomer, Mike Curtin, Mark Feigl, Rich Gardner, Tim Haas, Chris Kopacz, Tim Laken, Ken Laczynski, Chris Penteris, Ken Pesavento, Tim Popovich, Pat Sexton, Jack Surin, Mark Wessel, Brad Whalen and Dave Wrona. The special Alumni game is a tradition the current Porters began a few years ago when we rededicated OF signs for past Porters Tom and Bill Haller, Ron Coomer, Jim Hall and Clyde Odle. It is our way of saying to past Porters that you are not forgotten and that your days as members of the Porter baseball family are valued by those who wear the uniform today. It is the hope of the Porter Baseball family that this tradition will continue and that we are able to welcome many of those from the past to Flink Field in the future. In fact next year we will be celebrating the 10 th anniversary of the 2005 State Championship Porters and will be honoring them at our annual Alumni Night game late in May, 2015 (date TBA). GO PORTERS!! 12

13 On a practice day this season, some of the coaches were talking amongst themselves and the subject of what our players know and don t know about Porter baseball history came up. The freshman coach said that his players were unaware of things from the 80 s and 90 s let alone events from past decades going back to the early 1900 s. Things like who Ed Flink was. One player didn t even know who Ron Coomer was! (Sorry Ron) On another day a varsity coach was talking with a player in the OF during BP and was telling him about the history of Flink Field and some of the historic events that have occurred there. I didn t know that was heard over and over. Well, we have decided to try and do something about that. The Porter baseball program is in the process of constructing an unofficial history of our baseball program and of baseball in the Lockport community as well. Our community is rich in baseball tradition and LTHS has, is and always will be a big part of that. We feel that all players coming into our program should know about it. An early cover page of this short history is to the left. We hope to complete it over the summer so that we can send a PDF copy to all of our players and their families next season. It will also be offered to all on our list as well. The quality of a person s life is in direct proportion of their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor Porter Baseball Coach Andy Satunas (asatunas@lths.org) Go Porters! Lockport Township High School East Seventh Street Lockport, Illinois Website: Contact us: porterbball@comcast.net Our next issue will be at the end of summer and include summer season information.