NHBA Mustang final ends in dramatic fashion

Eileen Stuka- written by Oliver Fleener

Stories of Rocky Balboa and Seabiscuit can come true in 9-10-year-old baseball, as the Mustang Division of NHBA witnessed one of the strongest comebacks in the league’s history.

Team Wells Fargo, a ninth seeded team out of 10, pulled off one of the more improbable comebacks to win the 2009 championship. With a regular season record of 6-12-1 for a 0.361 average Wells Fargo was all but written off after losing its first round playoff game to Roel Construction, the No. 8 seed, in the double-elimination format.

With nothing to lose Wells Fargo simply incorporated the rally cry of “send one team home” before Wells Fargo did. That motto seemed to work with a surprising victory in its next game against Ticon Construction, the sixth seed. With excellent hitting from deep in the lineup by Jake McIntyre, Ryan Fecko and Janzen Fenn, the team benefited from a well-needed boost of runs and offense.

Continuing its loose style of play and “just for fun attitude”, Wells Fargo racked up another surprise victory the following Monday against Barkate Orthodontics, the seventh seed. With excellent pitching by Brett Bell, Luc Stuka and Josh Ovalle, Wells Fargo’s defense, coupled with another strong showing of offense, stunned its opponent and “sent another one home.”

Wells Fargo’s strong play and determination would not stop there. The team shocked its next opponent Big Belly Deli, the fifth seed the following Wednesday with both excellent defense and aggressive offense. Coltrain Tait rallied Wells Fargo with a post-season home run and Julian Rodgers finished the game with a jaw-dropping defensive play behind second base to help the team squeak by with another victory.

At this point the Wells Fargo Express seemed to have left station and the team was on a roll. The following Thursday, Outback Steakhouse, the third seed, tried to stop them but they were stalled as Wells Fargo played a slow and deliberate game. With excellent catching and throw downs to second base, PJ Steiner kept Outback’s running game to a minimum. The hot bats from PJ, Jake Fleener, and Michael Manser also helped Wells Fargo win yet another game.

The next day, Carls Jr, the No. 2 seed, was determined to stop Wells Fargo in its tracks but proved unable. With all-around excellent defense, some of which would can only be described as “Top 10 sports cast highlight worthy” and offense from all team members, Wells Fargo pulled off another unbelievable victory. Wells had shocked the division by making it all the way back to the championship round, in order to face its first playoff game rival Roel who had also managed to also upset the entire bracket. It was a showdown of destiny between the unlikely participates - an eighth seed and ninth seed in the championship round.

In front of a full crowd with a packed outfield the stage was set for game one of a potential two-game series. Wells Fargo quickly jumped out to an early lead in game one with momentum that can only be described as divinely inspired. Wells Fargo’s offense was a force to be reckoned with and quickly took control of the game which it eventually won. With this being Roel’s first loss, Wells Fargo had to play the second round of the championship an hour later.

Truly exhausted and drained after playing seven games in 10 days Wells Fargo took the field to face a very determined Roel Team. Roel jumped on Wells early and maintained a strong lead through most of the game. With true grit, Wells Fargo chipped away at Roel’s lead to find itself down by only three runs in the last inning. As the visiting team all the way through the playoffs, Wells Fargo knew this was its last chance at bat for the season. Once again with a momentous contribution from deep in the Wells Fargo lineup, capitalized on by the top of the lineup, Wells Fargo shocked Roel, and the crowd, with a come-from-behind six-run rally to win the game!

Coach Oliver Fleener and assistant coach Martin Stuka were nearly speechless at the end of the game. Wells Fargo had just won more games in eight days than it did during the regular season by winning the championship. The determination of these players was awe-inspiring and truly fantastic. As Coach Fleener reiterated to his players, “This is the team I saw during the draft. They picked a perfect time to peak. I could not be more proud of them all! This was their day and I hope they remember this forever.”

Assistant coach Stuka told the team, “I have been playing and coaching baseball for 25 years and this is one of the wildest rides I have ever been on or seen!”

Fleener and Stuka concluded their comments to the team with words of encouragement to all the players and their parents to keep playing America’s greatest pastime sport - baseball!