PARMA, Ohio — The Cuyahoga County Community College baseball team got a taste of losing early in the season. The Triceratops lost five of their first seven games. That rocky start, however, was no indication of how their season would go.
If you ask Justin "JT" Theisen, a sophomore infielder, he thinks the reality of their season really sunk in back in March.
The Triceratops had lost their first game of a doubleheader to Macomb Community College on February 28, but snapped a four-game losing streak in the second game of the day. Following that win, Tri-C swept their series with Lorain Community College, and then swept SUNY Broome Community College, and then swept John Carroll JV.
"Baseball's a hard sport. It's hard to win eight in a row, let alone 15 in a row, let alone 25 in a row, let alone 38 in a row. It's just crazy," Theisen said.
But that's exactly what Tri-C has done.
Game after game has turned into win after win. The Triceratops are on a 38-game win streak, the longest win streak in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA).
"I have not in my, my coaching career experienced anything like that. I don't believe any of the other coaches have as well. I know these guys haven't, so they're just really enjoying every moment that they're out here throughout this streak," said Tri-C baseball head coach Kyle Stahlberg.
Stahlberg credits the team's chemistry and shared belief around a specific idea: Tops Ball.
Tops Ball is what the team refers to as their brand. It's similar to the Cleveland Guardians' "Guards Ball," but Tri-C is claiming dibs.
"I don't want to steal it from the Guardians but we were saying it first," Stahlberg said. "We're calling it Tops Ball and it's just that gritty sort of play where we're trying to take every bag that we can and trying to execute all the little details so it just makes the game a little bit easier."
The Triceratops have adapted to the idea. It's ingrained in the style of play they bring to the field each game.
"Run the bases hard. Make the routine plays look routine. Make the difficult plays look routine," Theisen said. "Just play aggressive. Tops Ball is aggressive."
Tops Ball, as freshman outfielder Patrick "Diddy" Farrell will tell you, is also about that chemistry they've embraced this season.
"Tops Ball, it's just the chemistry. We're all so close. We're a family. So when you're able to bring that out here on the field, one person makes a mistake, it's not just one person picking that guy up, it's the whole team. And when you're able to get the whole team to pick you up, it makes you want to make the next play even more," Farrell said.
However you describe their play, it's working. Tri-C has won 38 games in a row. Their success has led them to crack the NJCAA's Top 25 rankings for the first time in school history. That's a feat they've been thrilled to accomplish.
"Going online and clicking that link to see all the Top 25 and you see teams from Florida, down south, you see teams from all around the nation, and then you see Cuyahoga Community College and it just really gets your heart going," Farrell said.
However, no matter how impressive the Triceratops' streak is, for them, the accomplishments they're eyeing are still around the corner, waiting to be achieved.
"We have a lot of real, tangible goals in front of us.. Although it's very exciting, very historical for the school, we've got a lot of goals in front of us," Stahlberg said. "We've got two more non-conference games this weekend to kind of sharpen up...we've got a doubleheader on the 8th and a single game on the 9th for the opening round of the regional. And we're hoping to make it through the regional and onto the World Series in Oklahoma."
A big goal—but one they hope to get done their way. Playing Tops Ball.
"That natty. We want that natty real bad. We're coming for it. We want that National really bad," Theisen said.
