1974 Lower Loudoun Champions!

by Rodger M. Wood

The Championship Season

Starting in early July, 1974 and lasting to late August, this team of fifteen, then 14 and 15 year old Lower Loudoun Little League Senior Division baseball players, won 6 straight ball games against long odds. They defeated well-established Little League Senior Division teams from Norfolk, North Springfield, Richmond, and Shenandoah Valley to win the District and State of Virginia championships.

Not ending their winning streak there, they traveled by airplane to Louisville, KY to beat the odds again. In a 3-game series the Lower Loudoun Little League Seniors team defeated the strong State Champions from both West Virginia and Kentucky to win the Division title.

With no time to lose because of rainouts, they flew out of Louisville after the last game to Atlanta GA. From Atlanta the team rode a rickety old school bus to a little hamlet, Elberton, GA, 20 miles northwest of Athens GA. In Elberton they beat the mighty state of Texas championship team. Our team then lost twice to a strong Florida team out of Tampa that went on to the National World Series in Gary IN.

Newspaper headlines and articles in the Evening Star, Loudoun Times Mirror, and Washington Post all touted the feats of these boys.

Crowds heralded them on their return to Loudoun County at “ticker tape” parades and ceremonies (twice) at Bill Allen Field.

The Loudoun Board of Supervisors recognized their outstanding sportsmanship in a proclamation presented to them at a special Board meeting in the team’s honor in Leesburg.

1974 Lower Loudoun Little League, Senior Division Roster

Manager: Ben Anch

Bench Coach: Rodger M. Wood

Coach: Hubert Goode

Pitching Coach: Dan Fritz

Coach: Tommy Thompson

Players:

Brent Byer

Billy Dellinger

Chris Donaldson

Danny Fritz (deceased)

Jim Hamrick

John Keesling

Mike Kegley

Tom Meredith

Kevin Miller

Kevin O’Malley

Tom Schray

Curt Sieber (deceased)

Mark Smith

Matt Smith

Skip Young

Posted in History