Mighty Mohawk Packing blew through the first half of the 1975 season like they owned it, routinely scoring in the 20's and 30s while finishing the spring half with a perfect 6-0 record. The Mohawks' most difficult victory of the half was a 13-8 win over AWA, a game in which we held an early lead, but ultinately threw away with critical errors. With their spot in the playoffs secure, Mohawk Packing was moved up to a higher division for the second half, while AWA remained in the C-2 division for the summer half, and the right to meet Mohawk Packing in the league finals at the end of the year.

The second half was a complete turnaround for AWA. While pitcher Earl Yagi was as unhittable as a slow pitch hurler can be, the team found the solid defense that was missing in the spring. AWA started its second half run in the third game when the team staged a thrilling come from behind win over contending P&J Air Conditioning. Trailing 8-3 in the bottom of the seventh AWA scored six runs after two were out to pull off the 9-8 victory. The team would not lose another game.

AWA easily won the next three regular season games to finish the second half with a 5-1 record, good enough for a share of first place with good old P&J Air Cinditioning. To solve the tie, the city scheduled a playoff doubleheader at Calabazas Park. AWA and P&J would play the opener for the for the second half title, with the winner advancing to meet Mohawk Packing for the overall league championship.

This September evening was a particularly muggy Indian Summer night, and the opener proved to be a grueling and highly-charged effort, with AWA finally pulling out a 10-7 extra inning victory. The guys were physically drained as they gulped down water and tried to cool off before meeting the powerful Mohawks, who had been doing some cooling off of their own watching AWA grind out its win.

There was an impressive turnout of AWA fans this night, and the Mohawks had their supporters out in force as well, giving this game the added element of raucous cheering on both sides, aided by a fair amount of alcohol present in the Mohawk Packing stands.

The game started auspiciously for AWA as Earl retired the Mohawks in order in the top of the first. Then, in the bottom of the inning, after Gary Matsushita and Neil Christie each hit singles, Steve Barrett kept up his second half hitting tear by blasting a three-run homer to left. The fiery players in the AWA dugout were teeming with adrenaline.

But then things started going badly for AWA in the second, as miscues in the field opened the gates for the Mohawks, a team that didn't need much help to do what they did best, which was scoring runs in bunches. They pushed across four runs in the second, added two more in the third, and then posted four more in a mistake-filled fourth to take a commanding 10-3 lead. Steve threw out a runner at the plate to put an end to the second inning, and then squashed the rally in the fourth when he picked off a runner who had rounded the bag to aggressively at first. Both were really nice defensive plays, but at the time it seemed the only significance of these baserunning gaffes was that it kept the game from becoming even more of a rout than it already was.

As the game stretched into the middle innings, the AWA players were slowly succumbing to the withering humidity. Though Mohawk failed to score in the fifth inning, the were totally in command, and the boys of AWA were pretty much beaten. The guys were tired, frustrated, and demoralized. The rowdy Mohawk fans serenaded every AWA miscue with laughter and mock cheers. Okay, so AWA wasn't expected to win against a better team, but the realization that we would finally fall in defeat after such a good stretch run put the AWA dugout into disheartened silence. What the team needed now was a miracle. Or a couple of heroes.

Enter Steve Barrett and John Koeplin. With nobody out in the bottom of the fifth, Steve gave AWA life by drilling a two-run triple to center, cutting the the score to 10-5. Mike Applegate then reached on a throwing error by the shortstop, which got the sixth run home. After Dave Jackson lined out, Pat Koeplin stroked a single to left. putting runners at fiest and secon. John, who had entered the game as a replacement in the fourth, then stepped up and drove a high fly down the left field line. The ball landed just inches inside the foul line and just beyond the reach of the left fielder, rolling into the distant night for a three-run homer. AWA had cut the deficit to 10-9.

The suddenly rattled Mohawks tried to get something going in the sixth, but they failed to score, and AWA roared ahead in the bottom of the inning. Tom Sukup started it with a one-out single through the middle. Steve then roped a hit to center that skipped through the charging left centerfielder. Tom came all the way around to score on the error as Steve raced into third. One out later, Dave smacked a hit to center. AWA had the lead!

The wildly vocal Mohawk fans, who had been having a raucous time in the stands, now began to fight amongst each other and argue with the Mohawk players, who, in their frustration, began yelling back. Meanwhile the AWA stands were roaring with every hit and everyone in the dugout was on his feet. We were stoked!

Pat slapped a single to left. Dave, running hard, made an ill-advised dash for third, and got himself hung up between second and third. He was a dead duck, but the relay man threw the ball away. Dave pulled safely into third as Pat scooted into second. John then stepped up and drove the AWA side into a frenzy with a line drive single into center field. Both runners crossed the plate, giving AWA a 13-10 lead. It was a madhouse. Players and fans alike were jumping and running all around. A fight broke out in the Mohawk stands. The whole scene was surreal.

As AWA fans cheered with every pitch, Earl finished off the bewildered Mohawks in the seventh. With the final out, a Tony Franklin to Gary force play at second, the players erupted in celebration, mobbing each other like it was the seventh game of the World Series. This championship was the game AWA couldn't possible win, but did!

After the game, the Mohawk manager came over and offered his reluctant congratulations. "You know," he said, "if we played you guys ten times, we'd win nine of those."

Maybe. But not this night. Not this unbelievable dream of a night.