Former All-American baseball player Josh Sorge has had a lot to be proud of since he graduated from Ohio University in 1996.
As an OU graduate assistant coach, Sorge helped lead the Bobcats to a Mid-American Conference Championship just one year after earning his diploma. He then went on to win an Atlantic Coast Conference Championship with Georgia Tech as a volunteer coach in 1999 and landed his first paying job at the University of Hawaii two years later.
But no achievement matches the Division I State Championship to which he lead the Strongsville High School Mustangs this season as its head coach, Sorge said.
This is at the top
he said. There were some things I was really proud of in my playing and coaching career before I came to Strongsville but this is without a doubt the most rewarding because of the great story behind it.
Hired to teach English and coach junior varsity baseball, Sorge arrived at a school known mostly for its football and soccer programs. After one year, he took over the head coaching duties of the varsity baseball team and the atmosphere in Strongsville quickly changed.
When he came here a few years ago the program was just terrible Mustang center fielder Anthony Gallas said. But when he got here he changed things around and taught us to play baseball at a college level.
After steady improvement with Sorge at the helm in his first two seasons as head coach, it all came together for Strongsville this season as the Mustangs made their first ever State Final Four appearance.
A dominant 9-2 victory over Miamisburg propelled Strongsville to the championship game where, after falling behind 6-3, the Mustangs came back to defeat Lewis Center Olentangy, 12-7, to capture the state title on June 5.
Sorge said that it was the team's drive to win that propelled them to their unlikely status as state champion.
When you get to that stage of the tournament
you're not going to out-talent the other team
he said. It comes down to the team's will and these kids truly believed they were going to win it all.
First baseman and designated hitter Nick Bendzuck said that Sorge was the major reason why the team was confident even in such unfamiliar circumstances.
We always had the talent to do what we did
Bendzuck said. But he really made us believe we could take it to the next level.
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