Strange, but true
Mike White examines one of the longest losing streaks in WPIAL history.
Past the outfield fence at Aliquippa’s baseball field and a short walk through some woods sits Carl A. Aschman Stadium, home to one of the most glorious high school football programs in the history of Pennsylvania. Situated only three blocks from the baseball field, up Main Street, is Aliquippa High School’s gymnasium, home to an extremely successful boys basketball program.
In proximity terms, the home of the Aliquippa baseball team is so close to the football stadium and basketball court that, if greatness was tangible, you could almost touch it sitting in the stands at Moreell Field.
But in terms of greatness, Aliquippa baseball is miles away. In fact, it might as well be in another world.
This is the sobering fact of Aliquippa baseball: The Quips’ losing streak turned 92 Saturday.
It is one of the great paradoxes of WPIAL sports. Aliquippa has won more WPIAL football titles (15) than any other school, and more WPIAL basketball titles (11) than than any other active school in the league. But after Saturday’s loss against Union, the Aliquippa baseball team was riding one of the longest losing streaks of any sport in the 100-plus years of the WPIAL. Aliquippa hasn’t won a baseball game since 2008.
Wednesday’s loss marked 2,569 days without a win.
“It’s real frustrating,” said Darrien Fields, a senior center fielder who has never tasted victory in four varsity seasons. He played on Aliquppa’s 12-1 football team this past season and on the Quips’ 29-1 basketball team.
“You know how we are just expected to win all the time in football? It’s kind of like everybody just expects us to lose all the time in baseball. Winning would shock a lot of people.”
But Aliquippa doesn’t just lose baseball games. The Quips often lose badly; 74 of the 92 losses have been by 10 runs or more. They have been outscored during the streak by an average of 13.8-2.3. But the losing isn’t just recent. The Quips went from 2001-05 without a win. The last winning record came in 1993 when Aliquippa was 12-4 and made the WPIAL playoffs. From 1994 through Saturday’s loss, the Quips were 16-294.
It is so hard to explain. Aliquippa has produced four first-round NFL draft picks in the past 25 years and countless Division I college players. Over the past three decades, Aliquippa has also produced some Division I college basketball players.
But the baseball team hasn’t produced a win in seven-plus years. For Mike Ditka’s sake, why?
“That’s a good question. I wish I could give you the answer.” coach Dan Bible said. “I know we can’t go much more downhill. About the only thing we can do is go up.”
Everyone from Bible to athletic director/football coach Mike Zmijanac, from baseball players to athletes who don’t play, say there are a few reasons Aliquippa baseball has deteriorated from a once-respectable program. Some blame a virtually nonexistent feeder program. Some say it is the result of the best athletes in the school not wanting to play. Others say it is simply an effect of fewer African-American youths around the country playing baseball (Zmijanac estimated that 15 percent of Aliquippa’s male student body is white).
In Aliquippa, football and basketball have a strong pull on kids. The football midget leagues are popular. A big white sign on a vacant house next to Morrell Field promotes upcoming signups for midget-league football. During Wednesday’s baseball game against Western Beaver, five elementaryschool students played basketball on a concrete court just beyond the outfield fence.
It’s interesting to think what Aliquippa football stars such as Darrelle Revis, Jonathan Baldwin or Dravon Henry might have been like as baseball players. This year’s team started with 19 players, but now there are 17. Five are white.
“Here, people don’t look at [baseball] as a cool thing to do,” said Fields, an African-American. “It kind of hurts, to know a lot of my friends could be out here playing baseball, and could really help the team, but they’re not playing.”
Zmijanac contends the biggest problem is the lack of a feeder program. There is no Pony League program (13- and 14-year-olds) in Aliquippa. Baseball stops after Little League. Bible coaches his son in an Aliquippa league for 9and 10-year-olds, but there are only two teams.
Jassir Jordan is an Aliquippa junior who is a football and basketball player, but stopped playing baseball after Little League.
“I still like baseball and sometimes I do think about playing,” said Jordan. “But after basketball, there are other things to do in the spring, like AAU basketball or track.”
Bible is determined to change the baseball program. He is 39, a former Aliquippa quarterback and baseball player who is in his second season as coach. One of his players is his sophomore son, Nico. Four other sophomores start and Bible said the players’ attitudes are generally good.
“I took this job because I’m tired of people saying Aliquippa doesn’t have a baseball program or the program should fold,” Bible said. “We’re getting better. We’re scoring more runs. ... Personally, I think we might have a shot at the playoffs next year, but that’s how I feel.”
For now, Aliquippa just wants to feel a win.
“I still have a whole lot of fun playing baseball,” Fields said.
“It’s just the outcome that’s bad.”
“You know how we are just expected to win all the time in football? It’s kind of like everybody
just expects us to lose all the time in baseball.”
Darrien Fields