When Rico was introduced last Saturday, someone behind me yelled “one more year.”  I found out later it was a former neighbor of mine, and he was referencing former Illinois State University Redbird player Rico Hill, now of the Chicago Muscle of the Premier Basketball League.

It was the first PBL game I’d been to (the Central Illinois Drive team is new to town), and the game featured two former Redbirds with Hill and Tony Lewis of the local team.

For $10, you get a general admission ticket courtside in any of three sections.  The venue is the US Cellular Coliseum in downtown Bloomington, where the floor is moved to one end and a large part of the venue is “curtained off” to make viewing a more intimate experience.  I’m not sure what the capacity of this configuration is, but with an announced attendance figure of 1,558 on this day, there was still plenty of room.

Not a bad seat in the house, to steal a well-used cliché.

Even better, for $38 you can sit courtside in cushioned, folding chairs and enjoy unlimited concession access delivered directly to you by one of the available servers.  Draft beer is included on this menu – I noted several former players of one of the local college teams taking advantage of this ticket option.

For me, Rico Hill was the most noticeable name on either roster, having been a former NBA draft pick some years ago.  But there were other players I’ve seen in the past – former Division III players from Illinois Wesleyan University and North Central College, the two Illinois State alums, and even the seven foot plus son of former NBA player Paul Mokeski.

I’ve done a little reading on the league, and it’s a little difficult to understand the financial model, or determine how team owners can make much money.  With only 10 home dates (and 20 games total), travel does seem to be reasonable in that the opponents are generally within driving distance, and I haven’t seen anything that would suggest big salaries are being offered.  If anything, it seems the league owner is an honorable guy with regular philanthropic interests, and funding this league could be one of them.

I plan to see more games, especially the February 11^th game against the St. Louis Phoenix, sponsored by D&R Plumbing, Heating & Air, Inc.

The first 1,000 fans in attendance get a free plunger.

Gotta love minor league sports.

Ten days in to 2012, and it’s time to either update my blog of disable it.  2011 was a busy year with a newborn added to my household, but he’s also become very adept at attending all the sporting events we take in on a regular basis.  I could go so far as to call him a young fan – he watches the various sporting events we attend with interest – at least as long as his attention span and hunger pains will allow.

So with the NFL playoffs on television, the 2011 State Farm Holiday Classic behind me, and the promise of an upcoming baseball season bookended with the high school and college basketball season I enjoy every year, I attended the Illinois Wesleyan/Augustana men’s basketball game last night.  This is always a great rivalry – Wesleyan is rated #25 in the country, and #6 Augustana started the season as the top-ranked team.

I’ve written about him before, but Augie is coached by the colorful Grey Giovanine, and he rarely disappoints.  It’s an annual can’t miss game for me.  The timeline:

6:25  Arrive at the Shirk for a 7:30pm tipoff.  It is much easier to get lighting set up before having to trip over people in the stands.

6:40  I try to assist an elderly couple with accessing the open Internet with the iPad so they can “watch” Illinois play at 8pm.  Unsuccessful.

6:50  I try to connect to the Shirk Open network with my computer.  Also unsuccessful.

6:55  Augustana has an assistant coach that played for a rival high school a lifetime ago (when I was in high school).  My team generally won in basketball, split most seasons in baseball, and always lost in football.  It is always good to catch up – we talk about the current state of things at our current high schools, friends we have in common, a little about Augie’s team so far.  It’s funny that I’ve reached the half century mark, and it seems like yesterday we were competing against each other.  Our Iowa roots run deep.  How time flies.

7:00  Titans take the floor, followed shortly by Augie.  The band is playing, and Augie’s entrance is without cheers or acknowledgment.  No so for the Titans.

7:10  A half hour ago there were many, many coats in the stands, all marking the seats of long-time fans.  Its general admission, but then again, it really isn’t.  Those fans are now filing in, filling those spots.  Tonight is a “white out.”  Clearly, I didn’t get the memo.  I’m not alone.

7:15  A quick conversation with a retiree from my company and long-time Titan fan is followed by a quick conversation with Matt the Cat, an IWU icon.  “We’re going to blow them out,” he says.  A quick wave of his towel for emphasis.  I hope he’s right.

7:17  Matt is already talking about a Carthage visit by Bosko Djurickovic on Saturday.  He’s had years to develop an opinion about the other conference opponents, coaches.  Bosko won two national championships at North Park previously, and is entering his 16^th year at Carthage.  The conversation clearly shows Bosko doesn’t get Christmas cards from the Cat.

7:21  Teams leave the court.  A low hum competes with the near silence.  You know it’s the calm before the storm.

7:25  My internet works!  I later find out from the IWU head baseball coach that the wireless service wasn’t working correctly throughout the facility, but has since been recycled in some fashion.

7:28  National anthem by four ladies from a local church singing a capella.  Nice job.

7:33  Introductions

7:36  Tipoff is late.  But the main event is here.

From this point forward, the game is a wrestling match.  A football game.  A rugby match.  I’m not sure which descriptor applies, only that the game is physical.  And entertaining.

At 12:47 remaining in the 1^st half, Giovanine’s sport coat is off and his first rage of the night takes place.  My rule of thumb is that the over/under is six minutes before Grey tosses his coat.  He hit the over this year.  I hate to sound disappointed.

With 6:04 left in the 1^st half, the score is 18-16.  There have been more bodies on the floor than shots in the basket.

Augie leads 32-31 at halftime.  You know there’s more to come.

The second half is more of the first.  At one point, a loose ball looks like an NFL fumble recovery.  I never did hear a whistle.  I also note there are no blue jerseys helping up white jerseys, and vice versa.

My notes get sketchy at this point, mostly because I decide to stop writing and spend more time watching the game.  Foul trouble brings in a local player named Tate Musselman, who provides a big lift in consideration of the situation and his limited playing time.  A huge three-pointer at the 12:28 mark gives IWU the lead.  Everyone in the crowd was thinking the same thing I was – no, no, no, GREAT shot.

Augie answers and the lead is exchanged a few more times, but at 10:23 Andrew Ziemnik, another sparingly used player, knocks down a three to give Wesleyan the lead for good, slowly creeping away to a 10-point victory.  There were 12 ties and 15 lead changes.  Augie commits 24 fouls and Wesleyan 26 – just another typical CCIW matchup.

Grey Giovanine concedes at the end, telling his players not to foul.

The Titan faithful are on their feet, celebrating another victory in the Shirk center.

As Grey leaves the court, he is very gracious with the IWU coaches and players during the postgame hand shake.  Two conference losses in a row for Augie.

Wish I could watch his practice tomorrow.

The College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) men’s soccer (women too) starts tonight with the two semifinal matches.  This is an annual ritual where there the top four teams earn a berth based on standard soccer scoring methodology (3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie).

Illinois Wesleyan, a team I follow, didn’t make the cut this year.  A 3-2 overtime loss to Carthage left the Titans in 5^th place, one point out of the money.

End of story, right?

Except for a moment, looking back through an entire season of games (both conference and non-conference), it’s somewhat baffling how a small break or two can make such a big difference in the final standings.

The final game against Carthage was filled with positive expectations as time wound down.  IWU led by two goals before Carthage scored with about 13 minutes left in regular time.  At that point, Elmhurst trailed 2-0 at Augustana.  Both scenarios put the Titans in the tournament; in fact, an Elmhurst loss and an IWU tie also put the Titans into post-season play.

Ten minutes later, Carthage scores, Elmhurst ties up their match at Augustana, and it’s anybody’s guess on the outcome.

As it stands, IWU losses on a penalty kick when a ball is played off the arm of one of their players.  A just call, except it appeared the same scenario happened moments early on IWU’s offensive end with no whistle.  Such are the subtleties of soccer – it’s a very subjective game, and these things happen.

Even though Elmhurst ended up losing in overtime, they finish ahead of IWU (who beat them head-to-head) because they had tied one additional game (which IWU had lost).  They play at Carthage tonight, a match that ended in one of those ties earlier.

How close was IWU really?  By virtue of the loss to Carthage, they end up in fifth place.  But a scoring chance late in the game that went just wide (and was ultimately called a foul) could have swung the outcome the Titan’s way.

The win would have given IWU the head-to-head over Carthage, and potentially eliminated the Red Men from postseason play.  Instead, by virtue of a North Central victory over North Park later that evening, Carthage wins the league outright.

How close?

IWU beats Carthage, and the subsequent Elmhurst and North Park ties would have moved the Titans into a four-way tie for the conference title.  If not for a split-second call by a referee, or a shot attempt that’s just wide, IWU is hoisting a trophy.

Wait ‘til next year.

I’ve been critical of certain things related to the inception of Independent League Baseball in Bloomington/Normal, predominantly related to decisions made with the stadium construction.  I’ve been less than enthused with some of the rhetoric coming from the front office as well, but I’ll just chalk it up to the growing pains that come with starting a professional franchise. 

It’s nice to have professional baseball locally, even devoid of a Major League affliation.  As transient as this community is, I’m not sure the fanbase will ever be what team owners would like (or projected to potential investors), but crafting a sustainable organization with corporate sponsorships and steadily improving game promotions would be a great thing for BloNo.

With that in mind, I’ve been to a couple games recently, and decided to make notes on ONLY the good things about Normal Baseball, et.al.  Just the positives:

• Tickets – unlike a Major League game, tickets are affordable to most, making an evening of entertainment less than a monthly utility bill.  For season ticket holders, a missed game is not necessarily a donation; those unused tickets can be redeemed for tickets to another game.
• Parking – it’s never been a problem for me at the Corn Crib.  I haven’t been to a game anywhere nearing a sellout, so perhaps the evenings where there are higher attendance figures make the parking situation a little more tenuous.  Even if forced to park on the temporary, unpaved area, your walk to the front game is only a minute or so.
• Field Turf – unlike the old model of fields that have dirt on the mound, home plate and bases, the Corn Crib is an all-turf facility, meaning very few rainouts.  To the fan, that ensures you’ll get to see a game when you plan to, whether it’s a birthday party or simply a Thirsty Thursday when you already had Friday scheduled off from work.  The stadium itself is also laid out in such a way that shade covers almost all of the reserved seating by the second inning of those July games with the 7:00pm start times.  Everyone is happy except perhaps the left fielder.
• Radio – our friend and local fixture Greg Halbreib is manning the mike this year, and although working alone, I’ve never noticed any lingering dead airtime.  I can’t imagine how hard it is to do a game by yourself – you have to appreciate the man’s craft.  Kudos to Vin Scully while I’m at it.
• Kid Friendly – okay, Corny is a bit scary at times, but he is a friendly chap, regardless of who is donning the costume at any given time.  I say this after watching a 4-year old slug him last night and he never changed expression OR hit the kid back.  There is also that area on the 3^rd base side with the bouncing Corny house in the Family Fun Zone.
• Pet Friendly – at least on Dog Days Wednesdays, where you can bring your pet and sit on the lawn beyond the left and right field fences.  Stadium workers carry around dog treats, and
• Free Program – it might lack wonderful design elements with blurry photos, but it does contain a fairly up to date roster, some player profiles and team records, along with a scoresheet if that is part of your fan experience.  And it’s free!
• Experienced Manager – Hal Lanier not only owns a World Series Ring from his coaching tenure with the St. Louis Cardinals, but he’s also managed at the Major League level with Houston.  Clearly, he’s not some team principal masquerading as a baseball guy.
• All-Stars –five CornBelter players have been named to the Frontier League All-Star game for 2011, including Steve Alexander (featured photo, above) who leads the league in home runs currently.
• Local Influence – this week, local U-High and Illinois State University player Tyler McNeely has signed with the CornBelters.
• Website – only the positives here….
• World’s Greatest Bathroom – haven’t seen it, as it happens to be for the ladies.  But I’ve heard it is wonderful, with a red velvet couch and granite floors.
• Concessions – first off, beer is $1 a glass during Thursday night games.  Corndogs are a $1 for Monday night games.  Those promotions aside, I found the concession offerings ample and reasonably priced.  Last night, I had a Lemon Shakeup that was cheaper than the County Fair, and bigger.  Again, affordable pricing per the Minor League baseball model.

I’m sure there are others.  Bottom line – it’s nice to have professional sports in a community this size.  Although the fan support is sometimes hit and miss, at present the CornBelters are in the playoff race.

Plenty of good things to talk about.

For years, I just assumed Martensdale St. Mary’s (IA) was a small Catholic school with stellar baseball, bolstered by a non-boundaried policy that allowed players to drive from miles away to join a successful program.

I was wrong.

In the midst of following a winning streak building off a 43-0 state championship run in 2010, I learned that it’s Martensdale-St. Marys, and that it isn’t a private school at all.  It’s a consolidated school with rural boundaries that include the town of Martensdale (pop. 459*) and St. Marys (pop. 127.*).  Had I bothered to note that their mascot was the “Blue Devils,” I likely could have concluded they weren’t a school of religious influence pretty quickly.

Martensdale-St. Marys has a long-standing baseball tradition, but one could reasonbly argue the program is hitting its apex in 2011.  That’s a strong statement considering they won a state title in 2004 under the guidance of Hall of Fame and now retired coach Jim Donohue ( career record of 752-299), and six prior state tournament appearances prior to that.  But I believe the current success has eclipsed anything previously.

As I write this, the former state record of 59 consecutive wins is a week removed.   MStM, as they are commonly referred, now sits at 23-0 on the season and in the midst of an Iowa high school record 66 straight wins.  You never like to put the collar on anyone, but it’s going to take bad luck or a really good team to stop the streak this season.

I made the 11 hour round trip eight days ago (June 16^th) because I wanted to witness history.  You’d think there might be some tension in the air when the local high school is embarking on such a milestone, but there was nothing but a calm confidence among the players.  I arrived before the scheduled batting practice time to see several players engaged in a game of “fungo golf” in the outfield.  There were no pregame jitters, just an attitude of focus coupled with relaxation.

I still haven’t figured out these towns – casually driving around Martensdale I came upon a brand new track and football complex complete with artificial turf/synthetic grass, despite the program only winning two football games in the past four seasons.  I was told at the one gas station I found in town that there was an opportunity to buy the land, and the complex was funded by the passage of a one-percent sales tax.  I didn’t bother with the math – clearly there’s more sales revenue in these small towns than I realized.

Ironically, as I stood there discussing this with one of the attendants, one of the MStM players came in looking for something for “motion sickness.”  Perhaps there were some nerves afterall – he left with a package of Dramamine.

Back to the ballpark.  St. Marys is about five miles south of Martensdale, and the high school team plays their games in a well-manicured park that sits on Country Road R45.  It’s the first thing of significance you see when you enter the town, and it’s bordered by a cornfield that immediately brings the movie Field of Dreams to mind (although the corn was in the early stages on this day, I wonder how many baseballs get lost later in the schedule as Iowa’s summer baseball season moves through July.)

Justin Dehmer is the current coach at MStM.  A native Arizonan – “where baseball is king” he once told me in an email, the fourth year coach has been friendly and approachable since the first time I contacted him to get details on the approaching record.  With pregame starting two hours before the first pitch, there are outfielders in the gym taking batting practice (which contains batting cages inside it’s brick exterior that also serves as part of the left field wall) while Coach Dehmer hits ground balls and works through various fielding and throwing drills with his infield group.   Although 31 years of age, Coach Dehmer is a former college baseball player that looks like he could still have some high school eligibility remaining.  It’s evident he can still play the game.

When the groups rotate, its fly balls to the outfielders in various positions, every drill with a purpose.  You don’t win this many consecutive games just by showing up.

Curious as to who is supervising batting practice, I take a peak in the gym long enough to see their volunteer assistant working individually with a couple players.  Steve Westphal isn’t on the payroll at Martensdale-St. Marys, and happens to be the father of the Blue Devils’ top pitcher, who tossed a shutout in last year’s state final.  Both Westphal’s migrated to MStM after leading Lenox to a Class A state runnerup finish in 2009, despite playing much of the season with a nine-player roster.  Incidentally, Coach Westphal just happens to be a Hall of Fame coach himself with over 600 victories in his career, retiring from tiny Lenox after that 2009 season.  As friendly as he was successful, my brief chat with him left me anxious for a more in-depth conversation at some point in the future.  This is a guy with years of baseball under his belt, and surely is sitting on a goldmine of baseball stories.  You get the picture.

I have a theory that every small town with a storied baseball program has an elderly fan or two that can give you the entire history of team, from its top players to the town’s greatest disappointments.  I didn’t run across that person this evening, but I have to believe he’s there, somewhere.  Perhaps that person is the former coach.  I didn’t run across him this evening either.

I’ve also learned over the years that the best coaches in these small towns also take a huge sense of pride in their ballparks.  On this evening, head coach and volunteer assistant both spent part of their pregame readying the field – there was no maintenance staff standing by to pull out the nail drag.  This is the ongoing reality of a high school baseball coach, especially in Iowa’s smallest class.

While the field preparation is completed, I walked back to the entry point to pay my admission (I had arrived early, and I know high school booster clubs can never have too much money).  I was rewarded with a “thank you punkin,” and moments later a “there you go hon” as I bought a freshly-grilled chicken sandwich at the concession stand.  I love my home state if for no other reason than appreciating the kindness I encounter whenever I make these journeys.

As I wait for the first pitch, I strike up a conversation with a parent that told me there were eight kids that “threw 80-plus.”  For a school with an enrollment of 122, this is phenomenal, and goes a long way towards explaining why this streak has endured a schedule that includes six games a week in most cases.  I didn’t validate this statistic with Coach Dehmer, but it’s believable when I look back at the schedule and results up to this point.  On this evening, the junior pitcher has plenty of velocity to stifle the opponent’s hitters, and if not for an uncharacteristic error or two could have finished the night with a shutout.

I’d like to write more about the game, but the environment stole the show for me.  A nice crowd for a small town, there were also several media outlets on-hand.  MStM took a 6-3 lead into the bottom of the third inning, suggesting win #60 might not be an easy task.  Another conversation with a player’s mother as I take pictures through the fence by the dugout, and the next thing I know the opponent’s left-fielder overruns a single, allowing the 18^th run score.  It’s the bottom of the fourth inning, and MStM leads by 15 runs.  Game over.

The amount of overt celebration was minimal.  It took 29 baseballs to formulate a “60” in the grass, and the team lined up for photos before parents and the media on hand.  A few interviews were given, but the field had to be cleared for the junior varsity game scheduled to follow.  The lack of pandemonium made it clear that this was just one marker on the way to something bigger.

Enrollment 122.  Yet there are enough players to field a junior varsity squad.  Baseball is alive and well at Martensdale-St. Marys High School.

When I started researching this streak, Homer (Mich) High School had a national record of 71 consecutive wins in 2004-2005.  That record was recently surpassed by Portsmouth (NH) High School, who last Saturday registered their fourth consecutive state championship and winning an unprecedented 84^th straight game in the process.

MStM graduates two seniors this year.  Imagine the possibilities.

Take in a game.  It’s worth the drive.

* 2009 figure from www.city-data.com

The MStM Coaching Staff.

Martensdale-St. Marys High School - 60 Consecutive Victories

Coach Dehmer answers questions for the media.

Martensdale-St. Marys home field in St. Marys, Iowa.

The ball trickled into the net with 1:19 remaining on the clock, a seemingly unfair ending to a determined effort by a bunch of kids that play soccer as an afterthought.

Many of these kids have three, and some four, consecutive football championships under their belt.

A few have a state baseball title or track title on their resume.  Some have both.

You get the point – this is a school that has had its share of athletic successes, soccer being the latest.

It’s hard to describe the setting, other than to say there was a moderate crowd of parents and students.  A town housing a high school this successful doesn’t close up its shops to watch the boys compete in state soccer championships.  The sport just hasn’t penetrated the Iowa culture that deeply yet.

On this day, the opponent was Iowa City Regina, a private school that just happened to be the two-time defending state champion.  When the final 1:19 ticked off the clock, they would complete the three-peat, as the Solon players could only look on with disappointment.

Generally speaking, the result wasn’t that surprising.  It was clear the Regina players had superior technical skills, yet Solon’s athleticism and competitive desire kept them in the match.  A game a month or so ago between the two teams ended in a Regina overtime victory; clearly the margin of error was minimal for either side.

Now knowing the result, this commentary is really about the Solon kids.

In their first visit to the state tournament, they finish as state runner-up to a school that is considered a perennial soccer power.  There was no intimidation once they stepped on the field, no hesitation.  Simply put, this was just the latest collection of successful athletes the town has produced of late.

One player will be vying for a kicking position at the University of Iowa next season, even though he clearly could have his college paid for by a baseball or soccer coach at another university.  An all-state soccer player last year, he clearly will be recognized this year as well.  That recognition can be added to his all-state honors in football and baseball.

Another teammate just completed a track season with 3rd and 5th place finishes in the high jump and long jump, respectively.  He will play baseball at the University of Iowa next season – he also excelled on the basketball court.

The goalie, with all his athleticism, completed his first year of soccer in that championship game.  Ranked by Baseball America as the 10th best prospect in Iowa for the upcoming Major League Draft, he too will be in a Hawkeye baseball uniform next season.

The names don’t matter.

There are others, including the son of two of my classmates from years ago, setting the tempo in the midfield while playing through an ankle injury.  It was refreshing to see the heart, that same display I witnessed on the football field even though he was smaller than many.  Few hit harder.

As the game wound down, the three Division I athletes charged the box for a final corner kick.  When the ball was cleared and the outcome no longer in doubt, a few thoughts remained.

What an impressive collection of athletes at a small public school.

What an incredible feat to see them competing, in some cases, in three sports simultaneously.

Losing a state championship has to be so disappointing, as the photo at the top illustrates.  The athletes in Solon aren’t used to losing these games, and their faces told the story.

For those three players mentioned earlier, the mourning lasted about an hour.  They drove across town, and the defending 2A state champion (enrollment 330) now competing in 3A beat West Des Moines Valley, the largest school in Iowa (enrollment 2038) by a 7-0 score.  Each player contributed.  One player hit a home run.  The beat goes on.

My trip to Des Moines included the unfortunate experience of hitting a deer with my automobile.  No one was hurt (except the deer, I presume).  But adding my deductible to the ticket price, my game admission was now $508.

Worth every penny.