Southern Juniors West All-Stars Come Up Just Short

Chuck Tanner, former MLB player and coach, once said, “It is hard to win a pennant,
but it is harder to lose one.” The SLL West Juniors Baseball All Star team experienced the full
measure of the truth of that famous quote on Sunday at Pinery Park as they dropped
a 5-1 decision to Western Little League in the District 9 championship game. The
team’s bats went silent after a series of games where they were able to run up
double-digit scores on their opponents.

Coach Mike Horjus’ squad was the odds-on favorite going into the weekend, having
taken one from Western Little League by a score of 10-1 earlier in the tournament,
but a determined Western squad prevailed in the end. The team was led in the
tournament by the formidable hitting of Jack Bates, Carter Masek, Sam Jansen, and
Casey Horjus. Matt Reglin, AJ Zawacki, Masek, and others turned in outstanding
defensive efforts, including more than a few “web gems.” All 13 players on the squad
contributed to the team’s outstanding post-season run.

While no one on the team was satisfied with the second-place finish on Sunday,
there is no taking away the memories and friendships made throughout the post-
season. There were great moments for both players and fans of the SLL squad along
every step of the way. As Yogi Berra once said, “It ain’t over till it’s over” and while
the season may have ended just a little earlier than the team would have liked, there
is little doubt in the minds of those who know and love these guys that they will be
heard from again; these guys aren’t done yet!! Baseball is the greatest game on earth
and the coaches and fans of the 2011 Juniors’ West All Stars are proud of the effort
this team made and look forward already to another season of pulling for our SLL
squads.