Junior American Legion baseball team completes successful season

SPARTA — The Sparta Junior American Legion Post 491 Baseball Team recently completed an extremely successful summer season.
This 17U team is comprised of 18 Sparta teenagers, entering their sophomore, junior, and senior years at Sparta High School and Pope John High School. The team’s accomplishments included:

Morris/Sussex Junior American Legion League Championship with a 20-2 record
Qualifying for the State Finals by finishing 4-1 at District Play in Clinton, NJ
Finishing the season as First Runner-Up in the State Final Four Tournament in Westville, NJ.
Eliminated Haddon Heights and league rival, Denville, before losing to Brooklawn in the state final game.

Sparta finished with a 26-5 overall record
Players on the Sparta Junior American Legion Team are: Gordy Bonker, Alec Bowie, Matt Chemis, Ethan Collins, Sean Dilger, T.J. Estanislau, Kevin Foulds, Drew Garger, Anthony Gigantelli, Grant Hagedorn, Anthony Longo, Nick Makowitz, Michael Meisel, Matt Pampin, Matt Piwko, Thomas Ruddy, Matt Seville, Austin Unglaub. The team is managed by Head Coach Andy Garger and coaches are: Bob Pampin, Dave Collins, and Joe Estanislau.
According to Coach Garger, the team’s mantra was “Work hard, have fun.” Garger said, “These talented young men became family and it is the most unselfish group I have ever had the privilege of coaching. They played over 30 games in just 60 days. They rooted on each other’s successes and motivated each other to play their best. They finished as one of the top two teams in New Jersey out of over 250 17u teams.”
In a few short weeks, these young men will head back to high school but they will never forget the fun they had and what they accomplished together in the summer of 2012.