About The Team
A few of their players never played baseball before, let alone softball, so the team struggled to win games throughout their first season. Although they had the most fun of any team in the league, a fire burned within short stop and future coach Luke Stolte. Young Stolte wanted to win games and have fun. He was willing to do whatever it took to accomplish this feat. During the offseason, Sedlacek handed over the front office reigns to Stolte, who had nothing but victory on his mind.
Cuts were made. Friendships were broken. Practices were scheduled. Players even tried out. After a spring of preparations and fine-tuning, the team appeared to be ready. A long summer proved to be a step in the right direction, but the championship was not theirs. More work had to be done after losing in the semi-final round, and taking 3rd place.
Stolte's acquistions in the next offseason, are what a lot of analyst believe took them to the next level. A Tribe Called Best added a whole new outfield, led by former American Legion ringer Jacob Pence (who was previously A Tribe Called Best's pitcher), along with former Edwardsville Tiger catcher Tyler Hasty. Sam Stolte, Luke's cousin, who pitched for just about every Edwardsville team, also made appearances in the outfield. All three of these fielders have strong arms, which helped to improve the defense drastically. They also added hitting prodegy Tim Messer, who would rotate with Ben Link at first throughout year, and consistantly bring in runs all season long.
Along with the new additions, most of the roster stayed the same. Dallas Levey, another 4-year veteran of the Edwardsville Tiger Program, stayed at third. Luke Stolte, player/coach and shortshop, remained at his postion, along with Todd Ambuel Jr staying at second. Travis Opel, former outfielder, moved to pitcher, and Zack Sedlacek moved from Right Field to Left Center. Catcher was always an open position, where Coach Stolte puts any player who has a minor injury or other issue.
All season long, the team hit the casing off the ball. Statistics weren't recorded that year, but anyone would tell you, they scored a lot of runs. That season, they only lost 
twice, and they won the league plaque. It was a great accomplishment, considering how much work and change needed to be made. Luke Stolte turned the franchise around in just a two year period.
Following their championship run, no roster changes were made. They were and are perfect. The only changes that were made were the team's sponsor, and their team name. They changed their name to 22U Tigers Select Softball, which sounds like dynasty if you say it slow enough. Incredible Events, previously 62 sports, decided to help sponser the team and provided a new bat, in agreement they wear thick, cotton, neon-green shirts with their logo on them. The new "jerseys" are what separate this the 22U Tigers Select Softball from other teams, well besides their talent and consistent winning.
