VALLIANT EFFORT Exhausted Indians Fall to Esky in U.P. Final MENOMINEE---They walked off the field for the 44th time the same way they had walked off so many times this season: drained. The Gladstone Indians, playing many games with only nine, ten, or eleven players, had given just about all they could give. In a season that was like a roller coaster ride, the Indians somehow managed to win four games at the Upper Peninsula Championship tournament in Menominee. But in the title game against Escanaba, it was clear that the Gladstone players had run out of gas. Escanaba won the championship, 6-2, at Spies Field. But for those who watched the Indians play all season long, there was a lot of pride in what had been accomplished by this group of guys. "The kids definitely deserved to be in the championship game," Indians Manager Chris Reynolds said. "All year long, we've had a short bench. We weren't sure how we'd get through six games this weekend. But the guys toughed it out, and showed maturity." Reynolds said he could tell the guys were playing Saturday's games with whatever heart and competiveness they could muster. "I think we ran out of gas yesterday (Friday), to be honest with you," Reynolds said. "I kept pushing them to dig deep, and they did. But by the middle of the game, a lot of the guys had nothing to give. It took all of their energy just to jog off the field between innings." The Indians had found a way to beat Sault Ste. Marie in the semifinal earlier in the day (see seperate story posted below). But in the title game, Escanaba's Troy Rodman was virtually unhittable. Even a rain delay of more than an hour didn't slow him down. Rodman gave up a double to Jake Stenlund in the first inning and did not allow another baserunner until the seventh inning. By that time, the Cubs had a 6-0 lead. The Cubs scored in the first inning on when Chris Hillesheim walked and scored on a double off the left field fence by Tony Peacock. Escanaba added another run in the third inning when Travis Villeneuve was hit by a pitch, stole second, and on the play, went to third on a throwing error by catcher Nick Kotowski. He scored on a sacrafice fly by Hillesheim. In the fourth inning, the rains came. And after the weather cleared, the Cubs put the game away with four runs in the fifth inning. Bruce singled to start the rally, and was bunted to second by Rodman. A wild pitch moved Bruce to third, then Villeneuve was safe on an error. He stole second, then Hillesheim was hit by a pitch (again). That loaded the bases, then Beattie was hit by a pitch to force in a run. Another error by Kotowski gave Escanaba a run when he dropped a throw at the plate, then LeMire rapped a two-run single to center to make it 6-0. That was all for Gladstone pitcher Cody Darling, and believe it or not, Shane Garvey, who had thrown two complete-games on the weekend, came in to pitch again. He got the final four outs to keep the Cubs on six runs, but the story continued to be Rodman. "His pitch count was real low the first time he pitched," Reynolds said. "I didn't expect to use him as much as I did, but he came in gthere, just threw strikes, and pitched great." Rodman was still cruising until the final inning, when Jamie Alworden singled, Kotowski doubled, and Aaron Frazer doubled in two runs with a shot off the fence. Cleary the tournament's Most Valuable Player, Frazer ended up with 14 runs batted in during the six games he played in the tournament. But Escanaba's championship was completed when Zach Lipinski lined one to Beattie at short. Frazer was doubled off, and the Cubs celebrated their Upper Peninsula title. Rodman would up allowing two runs on four hits, striking out six and walking none. Darling took the loss for Gladstone, allowing six runs (only one earned) on three hits in 4 2/3 innings. Darling did walk two and hit three batters. Gladstone finishes the season with a 25-19 record, remarkable considering the situation the program was in at the start of the season. And as for Reynolds, the 26-year-old rookie coach? Well, this was his last stand, at least for a while. "They offered me the head coaching job for next year, but I turned it down," Reynolds said. "There's just a lot going on in my life right now (new baby, new home, new job). I do want to stay involved in the program, but I'm not sure yet to what extent." Reynolds says he has no regrets in taking the job. "I'm very happy that I did it," he said. "I had a lot of people, even other coaches, warning me not to do it. They told me a lot of things about how this team is just a bunch of thugs and they don't listen to their coaches. But I found out that these kids aren't as bad as what people were saying." The Gladstone Indians statistics page has been updated.

Garvey Sucks It Up; Tribe Wins Second Complete Game Sends Indians to Finals MENOMINEE---The Gladstone Indians entered Saturday's Upper Peninsula semifinals with a serious shortage of pitching. After playing four games in two days, Indians Manager Chris Reynolds looked down the bench. Who would it be? Shane Garvey said he'd give it a go, and he did, pitching a complete game as the Indians beat Sault Ste. Marie, 7-3, Saturday, at Menominee's Spies Field. The win moved Gladstone into the U.P. Championship Game. Garvey pitched a complete-game win over Ishpeming on Friday, but got the ball again on Saturday, and worked in and out of trouble. The Travelers scored in the first inning when Steve Seriano doubled, got balked to second, then scored on a ground ball by Jeff Perry. Gladstone tied it in the second inning when Paul Tomaszewski, Jack Lipinski and Jake Stenlund had back-to-back-to-back singles. Then the Indians scored three times in the third inning to take the lead. Nick Kotowski and Zach Lipinski had RBI singles during the inning, and Stenlund was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force in the fourth run. Cody Darling popped up, leaving the bases full. In the fourth inning, the Soo bounced back. Logan Paquette led off with a triple, then Tim Hall walked and stole second. Frank Pingatore followed with an RBI single to make it 4-2, then Brian Killups singled in a run to cut the Indians lead to one. The bases were still loaded with no outs when the Travelers tried a suicide squeeze. It didn't work, and Killups was thrown out. Garvey got the next two batters to ground out, and Gladstone still lead. The Indians got back-to-back walks for Alworden and Garvey to lead off the bottom of the fourth, and starting pitcher Marc Pomeroy was removed from the hill. Kevin Killups took over, and the Soo defense fell apart behind him. Nick Kotowski's grounder to short was booted, so the bases were loaded. Aaron Frazer ripped a base hit to right to score a run, and a second runner came home when the right fielder missplayed the ball. Kotowski later scored on a passed ball to make it 7-3. Gladstone could have added more runs in the fifth when Stenlund walked and Darling singled, but the next three Indians went out. But it was enough offense for Garvey, who finished off the Travelers in the final two innings. He threw a six-hitter for the victory. Eight of the nine Indians players who played in the game got base hits. The only one who didn't, Alworden, got on with a walk. To read stories of games from earlier this season, click the PREVIOUS GAME STORIES buttons on the left side of this page.

2009 American Legion U.P. Finals Saturday, July 25: Menominee Spies Field Semifinal: Gladstone 7, Sault Ste. Marie 3 Semifinal: Escanaba 6, Soo Canada 3 Championship: Escanaba 6, Gladstone 2 Friday, July 24: Menominee Spies Field Negaunee 5, Soo Canada 4 Sault Ste. Marie 14, Ishpeming 2 Gladstone 6, Ishpeming 2 Menominee 10, Negaunee 7 Soo Canada 15, Kingsford 14 Escanaba 9, Kingsford 0 Gladstone 14, Marquette 5 Iron Mountain 15, Sault Ste. Marie 14 Marquette 11, Iron Mountain 3 Menominee 8, Escanaba 4 Thursday, July 23, Menominee Spies Field Escanaba 6, Negaunee 2 Kingsford 11, Menominee 2 Marquette 7, Ishpeming 4 Negaunee 12, Kingsford 8 Sault Ste. Marie 8, Marquette 0 Iron Mountain 6, Gladstone 5 Soo Canada 6, Escanaba 1 Ishpeming 9, Iron Mountain 5 Soo Canada 2, Menominee 1 Gladstone 7, Sault Ste. Marie 6

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