The Five Points Bank/Creighton Prep baseball team had quite the run this summer in American Legion Baseball. The team was initially overlooked, especially for a Prep team. Their resiliency truly shined during their national championship run.

Five Points ended the season 58-7 ending in a heartbreaking loss in the American Legion World Series championships. The team was led by veteran “Legion Babies” – players that had graduated, but were still eligible to play – such as Zac Luckey, Dane Hansen and Lucas Ripa.

“The Legion Babies really melded well with everyone and made an immediate impact,” catcher Noah Peyton said.

Peyton was new to the experience of the American Legion World Series, unlike many of the players who had been a part of the 2016 Regional Champs.  The senior described the experience as “crazy” and “time-consuming”, but “absolutely worth it.”

For almost 3 months, the team logged over 1200 hours dedicated to the cause. The team only had 17 days off and was gone for a 16 day stretch in late July and early August.

After winning the midwest regional, the team packed up for the trip to Shelby, NC for the ALWS.

In Shelby, the team performed well above expectations, beating the eventual champions Nevada in the first round, 9-1 behind the stellar pitching of Minnesota commit Josh Culliver.  The mood of the team was pretty light for the duration of the tournament, taking in the national attention with smiles and humor. The bench squad enjoyed the camera attention and the new found fans.

The team rallied with two more wins beating Michigan 6-3 and Massachusetts 8-5 to go 3-0 in pool play and advance to the semifinals.

In a tournament soaked with rain, the impact upon the team was felt. Games were delayed and the field was drenched. “It isn’t to blame for the loss but it didn’t help” said Peyton. The implications for Prep were huge, no rest days and playing twice on Tuesday.  The second game Tuesday night for the national championship.

In that national championship game, they lost a 1-0 thriller to the Nevada team they previously beat.

The final game was “heartbreaking” says Peyton, but “the experience will be remembered forever.”