With an open coaching position available, close friends and longtime players Andrew Bergeron and Dennis Conklin decided to take over the Cloquet 14-year-old traveling baseball team this summer.
The pair of rookie coaches never expected what came next.
After dominating local league play and qualifying for the state tournament, the Cloquet boys found themselves in the state championship game.
"Not in million years would I have ever thought we'd get there," said Conklin, who played traveling ball with Bergeron for several years. "It was absolutely unreal."
"I expected us to do well," added Bergeron. "But that was a surprise to everyone involved. It was a lot of fun."
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Cloquet fell to Waconia for the title 8-4. Yet the final score doesn't come close to reflecting the accomplishment of the young Cloquet sluggers.
"We made a run to the title game," repeated Bergeron. "I don't think those kids ever made it past the round of 16 before that. They just didn't want to lose and never gave up."
The MBT state tournament was held in mid-July in Apple Valley, Minn., and Cloquet posted a 6-1 record in three days.
"We were down at times," said Conklin, "but those kids didn't let anything get in their way down there. They deserved to be there."
Cloquet came into the 32-team tournament ranked No. 20. However, the young players never let numbers get in their way of performance.
"We told them seeds don't matter," said Bergeron. "And the kids just wanted to prove everyone wrong."
They did just that.
Cloquet stormed through pool play on Friday and Saturday, defeating Brooklyn Park, Eden Prairie and Lake Elmo, before knocking off Belle Plaine in the opening elimination round.
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Sunday, Cloquet slipped past Goodview in the quarterfinals, and then won on a walk-off hit to surprise New Ulm in the semis. Waconia then ended Cloquet's magical run - but they'll settle for runner-up.
"We played well all over," continued Bergeron. "Our defense had been shaky throughout the year, but at state it was the best I've seen. Our pitching was good, too. Hitting, pitching and defense were our keys."
Cloquet scored 57 runs at state, never lost a game in local Superior League play and finished the summer with a 28-6 overall record.
"They came to practice and worked hard every day," said Bergeron. "They're good kids and they really improved."
And as for coaching, let's just say Bergeron and Conklin are naturals.
"I've never been so excited for baseball," said Conklin. "We had a blast."
Team members include Dylan Gerard, Maxx Brenner, Justin Ketola, Logan Towne, Dillon Johnson, Drew Marciniak, Westin Michaud, Austin Gotchnik, Ryan Lind and Jake Bushey. Team manager is Cole Ketola and team book boy is Nick Lind.
