One for the record books

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August 18, 2009

2009 AAABA tourney has many highlights

Anonymous The Tribune-Democrat Tue Aug 18, 2009, 03:02 PM EDT

The baseball was great – as always.

The weather cooperated – sometimes.

And the fans came out – like we haven’t seen in years.

Maybe it was the presence of a second Johnstown team. Perhaps it was the overall competitiveness of the play.

Whatever the reason, we think the 2009 All American Amateur Baseball Association Tournament will be remembered as one of the best ever.

New Orleans defeated New Brunswick in the championship game to cap seven days of fun at Point Stadium and on fields across the region.

Other AAABA highlights included:

-- More than 6,000 fans packing into the Point on Friday to see local rivals Delweld and Martella’s Pharmacy square off.

Those fans were treated to a bonus – a no-hitter thrown by Delweld pitcher Drew Shaulis.

-- Big crowds all week for Delweld’s night games at the Point. Monday night’s official opener was rained out before a pitch could be thrown, but the fans came back the next night and watched the Johnstown team roll over Zanesville.

-- Delweld and Martella’s were a combined 5-4 for the week – a remarkable accomplishment, especially considering Martella’s 2-0 start in the upper bracket as a late replacement for Washington.

-- Fun promotions at the Point, including the Pittsburgh Pirate Parrot and Pierogie Races on Tuesday, the same night fans could take home a replica of Point Stadium.

New Orleans is always a fan favorite, and for good reason. Not only do the Boosters annually bring a quality team to Johnstown, but their squads are always made up of courteous young men – many of whom filled the front rows at St. John Gualbert Cathedral for a weekend Mass.

New Brunswick made its first appearance in the AAABA final, and the team’s lively and upbeat manager, Glenn Fredericks, vowed to be back in 2010. We hope so, too.

And Brooklyn finished third on Sunday, and took home the tournament’s Sportsmanship Award in the process. The Brooklyn Bonnie Rams had a fun week, including a pair of battles against Delweld, prompting Coach Dharyl Russell to say of his players’ reaction to the AAABA Tournament: “We built it up. And then it exceeded their expectations.”

Congratulations to the AAABA Tournament officials, who put on a great show – for both baseball fans and visiting teams – despite some challenging weather conditions.

Hats off to all of the teams and their coaches and managers, who performed well and showed class all week.

And thanks to the fans, who turned out to support the Johnstown teams and ended up rooting for some other teams as well.

These are the things that make the AAABA great, and made the 2009 tournament one to remember.

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