Payback for patience
Prior to Lou Musso taking over as head baseball coach at Priest River High School in 1997, he coached for two decades just across the state line at Newport, where he started in 1961.
His Newport teams won more than 300 games during that span. It stands to reason that when Musso resigned to become the school’s principal, the field was named in his honor.
Three years after taking early retirement from education in Washington, Musso decided to return to coaching at age 63 when the coach who helped found Priest River’s program two years earlier resigned.
Musso didn’t return because he wanted to pile more wins onto his career record. In fact, ask him how many wins his teams posted at Newport and all he can come up with is a ballpark number – more than 300 and less than 400.
As it has turned out, Musso’s Priest River teams have had more losses than victories in nine years. His first team stumbled to a 7-16 overall record and went 0-12 in the Intermountain League. Counting this season, the Spartans are 92-136 under Musso with just one winning season.
Until this season that is. The 71-year-old Musso, who has served as the school’s athletic director the past six years, will not return in the administrative position. This will likely be his final season as coach, too.
Musso had a hunch 2005 could be a breakthrough year for the Spartans, whose previous highest finish in the IML is third. That’s why he didn’t retire last year.
The Spartans swept defending league and district champion Timberlake by 10-2 and 9-6 counts Saturday. They improved their conference-leading record to 7-0 and moved to 12-1 overall with a 6-4 win over Kellogg on Tuesday. It was the Spartans’ ninth consecutive win since their lone loss, a 1-0 decision at Riverside.
Eleven seniors, 10 of whom have been in the program since they were freshman, are largely responsible for the Spartans’ turnaround. Most of them also played together for three years in Babe Ruth prior to high school.
“These kids are throwbacks to the type of kids I had in my early years at Newport,” said Musso, who starts all seniors but plays all 14 on his roster in most games. “They show up early to practice and they like each other. I don’t have to worry about them getting into trouble. They don’t swear, drink or smoke.”
The Spartans have utmost respect for their coach. They want to send him off with a couple of parting gifts in the form of league and district championships.
“He deserves it,” senior shortstop Jeremy Patterson said. “He’s put a lot of time into us. We need to pay him back and take him to state.”
Patterson and outfielder/pitcher Jake Flaherty have been four-year starters. Third baseman/pitcher Casey DeLand, a three-year starter, would have probably been a four-year starter but didn’t turn out his freshman year. First baseman/pitcher Chris Johnson is a four-year letterman and three-year starter.
Most of the seniors are two- or three-sport athletes, too.
Look at the Spartans’ statistics and some familiar names are among Priest River’s most productive players. DeLand, the team’s lone all-league pick last year, is leading the team in hitting for a third straight year (.576) and has a 5-0 record mostly in relief. Patterson is hitting .518 and Flaherty is next at .481. Johnson, the team’s No. 1 pitcher, is 5-0 and is batting .343 with a team-leading three homers.
All four played on the same fall league team in Spokane, and the team won the season-ending tourney. Another senior, pitcher Steve Gleese, also played in the league.
“We’ve always had some pretty good ballplayers here, but not the numbers like this year,” Musso said. “They took some heat the last couple of years when we were getting beat.”
Some of the Spartans’ classmates couldn’t resist an opportunity to poke fun.
“They took some digs at them,” Musso said. “When the softball team was doing well, some kids would say, ‘Why don’t you get some of them (softball players) to play with you?’ So they’ve had to put up with stuff like that.”
The Spartans have resisted any ‘I told you so’ comebacks this year. Instead, they’ve let their play on the field speak for itself.
A junior-laden team a year ago, the Spartans showed signs of things to come. But when they got to district they collapsed.
“It was a lack of experience, a lack of confidence – a lack of believing in ourselves,” Patterson said.
So the returners knew they needed to build on that experience for this season. Key leadership also has stepped forward. Count Flaherty among the leaders.
“Our big thing is this is all about the team,” said Flaherty, who chooses his words like he’s sizing up pitches. “I expected us to do well. Now that we’re there, all the hard work we’ve put in is paying off. The key is to keep playing as a team and go into every game as if it’s the most important league game we’ll play.”
Musso deflects any credit for his team’s success.
“They’re not just quality baseball players. They’re quality individuals – every one of them,” Musso said. “That’s what this whole season is all about. It’s not about me. It’s all about them.”