In case you missed it: High school pitcher Ty Koehn struck out the final opposing batter Jack Kocon to secure his team the section championship and a spot at the Minnesota state titles. But that’s not the story. Here’s the story: after securing the win, Koehn brushed aside his excited catcher and embraced Kocon in a bear hug while his teammates celebrated wildly in the infield.
The reason for the gesture was more than just sportsmanship though – the two players are good friends from their days playing in the Shoreview Area youth baseball league in the northern suburbs of Minneapolis.
“I knew I had to say something. Our friendship is more important than just the silly outcome of a game. I had to make sure he knew that before we celebrated,” Koehn told local area news.
“We are very close friends,” Koehn said. “I knew him from all the way back when we were 13. We were on the same little league team. It was tough when we went to separate schools but we kept in touch.”
WINNING MORE THAN THE GAME.
If you missed it, here’s a link (be sure to watch the teammates behind): https://twitter.com/espn/status/1006264953345576960
