Glory Days: They just wanted to win 1 game in 1985, they became sectional champs
Someone could make a movie about the 1985 Bishop Flaget baseball team. They had only 12 players and no one expected them to win.
But they did.
The headline on the sports page of the April 16, 1985 Chillicothe Gazette read, "Flaget's baseball low in numbers, big on play."
Tim Warsinsky wrote, "At 6-foot and a mere 140 pounds, Chris Stocklin is the epitome of the Bishop Flaget baseball team: The Panthers won't strike fear in anyone's eyes, but they have an appealing staying power. They have to. With just 12 players on the roster — and no reserve team — the loss of one or two could mean the end of the program."
The Panthers were known for being gutsy and playing as a team, which helped make up for their lack of numbers.
"Everybody knows each other and gets along real well," said senior Bill Thomas at the time. "With only 12 guys, we couldn't play well if we didn't like each other. Everybody knows what the other guy can do."
For Stocklin, that meant throwing fastballs.
About 70% of his throws were fastballs, and all he had to say about it was, "I guess I know how to throw it."
But his coach, Richard Sparks, laughed and came up with a different answer, "Can't you hear him grunt out there? It's the grunts."
On that April day, Bishop Flaget downed Zane Trace 3-2. Stocklin pitched a five-hitter and allowed one walk. He only struck out one but that was Shawn Miller who already had four home runs that season.
Stocklin also scored the winning run in the fourth. After lining a double, he stole third and scored on an errant throw.
"These guys back each other up 100 percent," said Sparks, who was in his 15th year coaching. "They don't let the losses get to them. That's the thing about a small school (105 enrollment). They all play basketball and baseball together, so they're real close."
At the time, they were 2-1 in the Scioto Valley Conference and 2-5 overall.
"We really didn't want to go with 12 players," said Thomas. "But we though we had 12 pretty good guys and so did (Sparks). He's pretty gung-ho. He wants us to play as much as anyone."
Given the status of the team, no one probably gave them much of a chance. But this was a team that made it to the district tournament.
They had two goals to start the season — 1. To finish with 12 players, and 2. To win a game.
They not only did both, but they won the sectional, too.
But the district loss was a heartbreaker.
It was a 4-3 loss in the bottom of the ninth to Leesburg.
Stocklin had held Leesburg in check for eight innings, but he was tiring in the ninth and gave up a one-out single, followed by a double that tied the game. With two outs and a full count, Mark Sawders, the ninth man in the Leesburg lineup hit a grounder to third that scored the winning run.
"It isn't losing that hurts so bad; I've lost before," Sparks said. "It's losing with these kids. They came from what everyone thought was nothing and became a class team. I'm more proud of this team than any team I've coached in my life. They just kept coming back and fighting."
With winter sports over, we now move into spring sports for the Glory Days feature. If you have a suggestion for what you would like to see here, let us know at tshipley@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Chillicothe Gazette: 1985 Bishop Flaget: They wanted to win 1 game, they became champs
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