August 9, 2020 at 6:55 a.m.
You're making all those memories
For 2010 Post 7 Rebels, celebration continues 10 years later
You're making all those memories
When Lucas Michlig made his diving catch against Kimberly to clinch the 2010 Wisconsin AA American Legion state championship, that year's Rhinelander Post 7 squad accomplished something no other Rhinelander high-school-aged baseball team had ever accomplished.
It was the Rebels' first appearance in the legion state tournament. They would return two years later in Onalaska but have not been back since. Rival Antigo has stood in the way twice in regional championship games. Rhinelander High School has only reached the WIAA state tournament twice, falling in the Division 1 quarterfinals in both 1996 and 2003.
In the final installment of our oral history of the 2010 state champion Rebels, we look back at what happened after the final out.
The mob scene subsided for the Rebels and, following the handshakes, the awards were handed out. Four members of that 2010 squad received all-tournament honors led by Huebner, who was voted the tournament's most valuable player. Kellen, Comer and Henkel were also on the all-tournament team.
Huebner allowed only one run on six hits in 13 innings pitched during the tournament, to go along with 18 strikeouts. Additionally, he went 9 for 15 at the plate with a pair of doubles and 5 RBIs.
Kellen and Comer both had complete game pitching wins during the tournament and each hit a pair of home runs. Kellen was 11 of 17 overall while seven of Comer's eight hits over the five days went for extra bases.
Henkel was credited with five hits and three RBIs in the tournament - though he still contends he had six hits and five RBIs after getting the short end of a hit/error call from the official scorekeeper on his slicer to right during the sixth inning of the championship game.
In all, the Rebels went 19-13 in 2010, including a 6-3 postseason record. All the bumps along the way, the practices, the hours in the batting cage - it all culminated in a magical finish.
Kellen: We had been playing together for 10 years and that felt like the culmination of everything. Everything paid off by winning that one thing.
John Huebner, third base coach: Everything kind of clicked. It was a total team effort. If I could say anything to any kid about the legacy of this team, it was a team in every sense of the word. That's it, in a nutshell, right there. These guys were an actual team. There were no individuals that thought they were better than anyone else and I think everybody understood we win together, we lose together.
Nate Schmidt, junior IF/P: We didn't have no responsibility in the world, basically. Everyone would just show up, play baseball with your best friends and have fun. It was a blast. Especially to end it that way, with a state championship, made it 10 times better.
Sam Huebner: I don't know how much time I've spent in the cage with Dan Kellen, Kyle Comer, Tyler Henkel, Alex Henkel, all those guys. Ben Prom, I could go down every guy on that list, how many hours and time that we put in just giving it, practicing, putting in the effort.
Henkel: That was one of the best summers of our lives. We all had our little summer jobs. We do those and then meet at the park every day at 3 or 4 and we'd be there until 9 or 10 at night. You'd wake up the next day and do it all over again. We were constantly at the park. There was nothing else to do. It was kind of like the sandlot in a way where you'd meet up every day and you're just having a great time and you're making all those memories.
John Huebner: Their legacy should be we had great baseball players but yet, if you look at every one of those kids, what they're doing now, they're all grown up and they're doing something good. I was lucky to be able to coach these guys.
In a way that game was a beginning and an end for the squad. The ride was over for the Huebners, with Sam heading off to college and John ready to ride off into the sunset. Both eventually moved out to North Dakota where they reside today. The 2010 legion team was the end of a long ride in the game of baseball for John Huebner. Even though he played in college and made it into the minors, he said he considers the 2010 title run the pinnacle of his baseball career.
John Huebner: It was the most stressful time of my life, I believe, going through that tournament. Honestly, I couldn't wait for that game to be over with because, I'm done. That's my last game I'm coaching.
Sam Huebner: It was a cool way to end that chapter of my life, high school, my hometown. It was awesome, kind of the perfect time to win a championship, your senior year. For me, it was a perfect way to end things, go out with a championship with an awesome group of guys.
John Huebner: I look at my minor league career and stuff I did in college, I was always on a winning team it seemed like. We won in college, we won in the minor leagues. We won the California League, the Pioneer League moving up, but I don't remember any of that stuff. It doesn't stick in your head. This is the stuff you remember, because you're with your buddies and your friends. I don't care what people say, when you're in college or playing professionally, the team part really isn't there, because you're all competing against each other. You're competing against two other catchers, like I was. Honestly, you hoped that they did crappy that game because you wanted to play. That's the way it is. Obviously, you get into a situation where you're trying to win a title, that's different. That's why, when I look at accomplishment, I look at that state tournament and winning conference my junior year of high school. That's the stuff I'll never forget.
Meanwhile, it was only the beginning for the majority of the team. Expectations were high entering 2011 as Rhinelander entered the Great Northern Conference for high school play. The Hodags were a perfect 12-0 in league play, and 20-4 overall in the regular season, checking in at No. 8 in the final Wisconsin Baseball Coaches Association D1 poll. But disaster struck in the playoffs as Wausau East, thanks to a parade of seeing-eye hits, tagged Kellen for eight runs over 1 2/3 innings and shocked the top-seeded Hodags 13-0 in the regional finals.
It was a similar story in the summer for the defending state champs. The Rebels started the year 9-0 and had the benefit of hosting regionals that year, but a loss in the first game against Antigo sent the team into the loser's bracket. After a win over Minocqua, a loss to Merrill ended the Rebels' title defense.
The Rebels got back to state in 2012 and started 2-0 in that tournament before losing 5-1 to Holmen and eventually settling for fourth place.
Comer: We didn't go there expecting to win like we did in 2010. It's a lot easier to expect to win when you're at the field every day all summer leading up to that. 2012 was just a little different feel. Yeah, we still wanted to win but, at the same time, it probably wasn't our first priority all summer long, to get better at baseball and win another state championship.
Lucas Michlig: We all knew it was the last ride. We all knew we were good ball players and we just went out and played. Whatever happened, we were just there to end it right, the best we could.
Huhnstock: We did make it back to state two years later with some of the same core group of players. Obviously, we did not win state that year, but just that core group of players was just so fun to coach.
There are still relics of that championship season down at Hodag Park. On the back of the home dugout is a sign commemorating the championship team. Inside the pavilion, which was opened and dedicated two weeks after the Rebels' state title win, a trophy case displays the championship trophy, a team picture, a proclamation from then-mayor Dick Johns regarding the Rebels accomplishments and several other items.
While some of the accolades may have faded in the 10 years since the Rebels made their championship run, the memories and the bond that squad shares has not. If anything, time has only further underscored how special that team was.
Henkel: We're all friends. Maybe we don't talk as much as we used to but we hop on here and it's just like old times. These guys are my brothers.
Comer: Every time I'm down at Hodag (Park), it's tough to miss that one plaque in the (pavilion). Rhinelander doesn't get many of those so to get our names stamped on one of them, that's pretty special for me.
Henkel: We'll never get to have another summer like that. That was really special in that regard.
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Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected]
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