Even 50 Years Later, Memories of Title Still Special for ‘73 Leps
Friday at their 50th anniversary reunion, the 1973 state champion La Grange baseball players lined up with the state title trophy in the same order as they did a half-century ago after winning the title. Back row, left to right: Mickey Muzny, Richard Wagner, Dennis Winkler, Bill Miller, Jim Quinn, John Schramm, Neal Miller and Ronnie Sulik. Front row: Daniel Cernoch, Blake Koether holding a picture of his dad, the late Charles Koether, Kenny Hatfield, Buddy Grobe, Marcus Cook, Steve Kovar, Mark Muzny, Harold Lindemann, Larry Hatfield and Eddie Oppermann. Above photo by Jeff Wick. Below photo by Warren O. Albrecht Members of the 1973 team look through old newspaper clippings from their championship season, which were displayed behind the dugout, along with the state title trophy, during Friday’s game. Photo by Jeff Wick
Even a half-century later, the members of the 1973 La Grange baseball team – and their fans – are still celebrating their magical state title.
Friday the team held a 50th anniversary reunion, and as part of the festivities, the team members (almost all of whom attended) were honored on the field before the Friday varsity baseball game.
They got a standing ovation from the largest crowd of the season.
“I wouldn’t have missed this for the world,” said Harold Lindemann, an outfielder on the team, who is now retired in the Hill Country after an insurance career.
Bill Miller, the 1973 Lep first baseman and pitcher went on to do some amazing things at the collegiate level. He was a two-time football national champ as a player at Texas Lutheran University and then won 530 games as TLU’s baseball coach and now serves as the school’s athletic director.
But he said that 1973 season holds a special place in his heart.
“I’ve been fortunate to play on some really good teams and got to coach some great teams, but this team was the best,” Miller said. “I don’t think today’s players get to enjoy the experience we had. You don’t start first grade with the guys you graduate with, like we did ... La Grange is a special place to all of us. The town was behind us and we had big crowds at every game. I feel very privileged to be on the same team with my brother (Neal) and to win a state championship with my brother, and with my best friends growing up.”
The Leps grew up together and were taught fundamentals by the likes of Lawrence Hatfield, and Red Miller, and Frank Kana, and Clinton Bippert and Billy Mike Roberts. Then they really blossomed when they got to high school, going 21-4 in 1973 and outscoring opponents 142-55.
“Everybody pitchedin, every player contributed something,” Lindemann said. “We never beat ourselves.”
“What I remember is that we had such a great bunch of seniors,” said Neal Miller, the team’s lone sophomore player.
In the playoffs they beat West Columbia, Uvalde and Mercedes in postseason series to advance to the state tournament at Austin’s Nelson Field.
See They beat Pecos 5-2 in the state semifinals with Bill Miller pitching a complete game four-hitter and Grobe and Zatopek each getting two hits. That set up a fairytale matchup for the state title against neighboring Brenham, which was coached by Paul Hoelscher, who had been the Leps’ coach just the year before.
“That was interesting. I loved Coach Hoelscher. He was a great coach,” said, Jimmy Quinn, the Leps catcherturned outfielder because of an injury his senior year. Quinn is now a Clinical Psychologist in Plano.
The Leps may have loved their old head coach but not enough to give him a state title.
Head coach Leonard May and assistant Bill Riskin led the Leps in 1973.
In that championship game Charles Koether was the starting pitcher for the Leps. He was represented Friday by his son Blake, who came out on the field with the 1973 guys, holding a pitcher of his father.
Koether, who had been a stellar pitcher all season for the Leps gave up an early run to Brenham and was relieved by 15-year-old Kenny Hatfield in the second inning. Hatfield was the only freshman on the team.
Hatfield gave up only one hit in 5.2 innings of relief.
“Sometimes you get lucky and that was one of those days,” Hatfield said. “Nerves weren’t a factor. I just went out there and tried to do what I normally did.”
Back-to-back doubles by La Grange’s Bubby Grobe and Steve Kovar tied the game at 1-1 in the fourth.
It stayed that way until the top of the seventh when a bloop single by David Zatopek scored Quinn and Kenny Hatfield with the go-ahead runs.
Hatfield than retired Brenham in order in the bottom of the seventh to clinch the title – and the youngster was carried off the field by his teammates.
“We were treated like kings back home,” said Kenny Hatfield, who went on to win three Southwest Conference titles as a football player for the University of Houston and now runs a big real estate investment company in Houston. “La Grange had never won a state title in baseball before.”
Those 1973 Leps paved the way for La Grange to become one of the most respected baseball programs in the state. More baseball state titles would follow for the Leps in 2001, 2004 and 2013.
But these 1973 Leps were the first – and always will be.
“50 years is a long time,” Bill Miller said. “It hits home when you look at some of these guys. I hadn’t seen some of them in 30 years ... Whoever put this together, I can’t thank them enough.”