Henry Sibley coach Greg Fehrman wanted his squad to embrace its losing record. It doesn’t have to any longer.
The Warriors won the Class 3A championship with an improbable season-ending run, defeating conference-rival Mahtomedi 8-4 on Monday at Target Field. They won 11 of their last 12 games to get to the .500 mark (15-15) — the worst record to win a championship in the history of the state tournament.
“We’re .500. We don’t have a losing record any more,” Henry Sibley outfielder Sam Gantman yelled as he waited to hoist the championship trophy. He singled in the first run, and had an RBI in each of their three state tournament games.
Willmar had the previous lowest winning percentage (.609) to win a state title since the tournament got underway in 1947. The Cardinals won the Class 2A title in 1987 with a 14-9 record.
“Baseball is about streaks, and we got hot at the right time,” said Henry Sibley catcher Matt Richards, who had two hits and scored two runs. “If somebody would’ve said we would be state champions, nobody would’ve believed it.”
Richards found himself at the bottom of the celebration pile after getting tackled by jubilant winning pitcher Joe Ihrke, who gave up two runs on four hits over the last four innings in relief of starter Malik Wilson.
“He called such a good game that I had to tackle him,” said Ihrke, who chucked his glove to new heights following the final out. “This is unbelievable.”
The victory also snapped a seven-game losing streak to Mahtomedi, including two earlier this season (7-3 and 14-4). Both teams play in the Metro East Conference.
“I’m at a loss for words,” said Fehrman, an assistant coach with the Warriors when they won their other state championship (Class 2A) in 1994. “Hats off to the kids. It was quite exciting to watch.”
The Warriors broke a two-all deadlock with four runs, aided by two Mahtomedi errors, with two outs in the third. Ihrke doubled over the centerfielder’s head, and was allowed to score when an errant relay throw bounced into the stands.
The Warriors scored three more times using four consecutive singles. Walter Matos singled in the first run and two more scored on Max Buell’s infield single followed by a throwing error.
As he did in the Warriors' semifinal victory, Ihrke took the mound after being provided with the lead. Mahtomedi’s Trevor Moses greeted him with a solo home run to left field — the third since the championship games were moved to Target Field and first since Burnsville hit two en route to the Class 3A championship in 2011. Moses also singled and scored in the first.
Ihrke allowed his final run in the seventh on John Peterson’s triple before getting the final out on a ground ball to second, touching off the Warriors’ celebration.
“We’ve had a lot of lows and highs this year,” Ihrke said. “It’s been a roller coaster ride. I’m glad the ride ended on top.”
