Parkland High School Baseball

No matter what part of the country you are from, or which team you play for, or which position you play on the field, every kid that grows up loving the game of baseball has at least one thing in common.  They all have that same dream that repeats itself over and over again, year after year, from the days of T-ball to high school ball.  The dream has numerous variations, but has the common theme where they step into the batter's box in the bottom of the 9th inning of the seventh game of the world series with the game tied, the count is 3-2, and then whack.....a long fly ball to the deep outfield.  The crowd roars and as the ball clears the fence for the walk-off homerun that wins the world series, you jog around the bases as everyone screams with euphoria, and then your teammates rush the field and mob you as you reach home plate.  Joe Carter of the Toronto Blue Jays knows that dream well, and now so does Jeff Strisovsky.

Strisovsky played out his own variation of that dream as the Parkland Trojans faced the Easton Red Rovers in the 2015 District XI championship game at Coca-Cola Park on Tuesday night.  The Trojans were playing for their third straight District championship, a feat never accomplished by a 4A high school team in Pennsylvania.  The Trojans were playing in front of a much larger crowd than a typical regular season high school game, and the atmosphere was surreal as the game was played at a professional ball park while being broadcast live on two TV channels. 

With the game tied 3-3 in the bottom of the 7th inning the Trojans had a runner on second base with one out.  Strisovsky stepped into the batter's box and drove a line drive to centerfield for a single that drove in the game-winning, walk-off run to give the Trojans the 4-3 victory and their third straight Distict XI title.  "I was excited.  I was a little anxious," Strisovsky said of his feelings when he came to bat in the bottom of the seventh inning. "I just told myself to calm down, just have fun and stay loose, and do the best I could."

Jeff has been a consistent bat for the Trojans all season in the lead off spot of the batting order.  He is batting .307 and has scored 22 runs.  He leads the Trojans with 10 stolen bases.  Jeff is also a top defender in the outfield and has made several outstanding defensive plays this season.  For his heroics in the District XI championship game, The Morning Call, in conjunction with Coordinated Health, selected Jeff as their Athlete of the Week.  Coordinated Health has awarded Strisovsky with a $1,000 scholarship.

CONGRATULATIONS TO JEFF!