Mount Union’s first state-championship baseball team found its best form at precisely the right time, sweeping four state-playoff games and finishing an improbable title season with a 17–6–1 record.
Mount Union had reached the PIAA Class AA playoffs six times between 1980 and 1987 without winning the championship. The 1988 Trojans entered the District 6 postseason at 12–6–1 after finishing fifth in their Blair County League division, but successfully defended their district title with victories over Bellwood-Antis, Kishacoquillas and top-seeded Forest Hills.
The Trojans then defeated Union City 9–0, Elderton 8–7 in ten innings and defending state champion Ford City 10–6. In the championship game at Shippensburg University, Troy Park pitched a complete game and Mount Union defeated Oley Valley 6–1. Daniel Atherton collected two hits and drove in three runs, while Jamie Cornelius added two hits and scored once.
Head coach Nick Imperioli described a calm, determined team without individual superstars. The championship gave him the first of his three PIAA gold medals. In 2012, the Huntingdon County Sports Hall of Fame honored the squad as its Team Achievement selection. It was the first baseball team recognized during the award’s first four years.
The eighteen-player roster is grouped by graduating class:
Jamie Cornelius and Scott Knepper had died by the time of the Hall of Fame recognition in 2012 and were remembered by their teammates as the team gathered again.
Source: Terry Bowser, “Trojans’ 1988 state title team got hot at right time,” The Daily News, June 16, 2012.