Golden celebration coming up in Russia

50 years ago this monument was erected in the Village of Russia

The Russia Alumni Softball Tournament will take place August 8th-10th and this year is of particular significance for the annual event. Not only will Raider alums be celebrating the 25th anniversary of the tournament, but they'll also be honoring the 50th anniversary of Russia Community Park. 

On Saturday evening, August 9th at 8:00, a ceremony will take place recognizing volunteers and donors who established the park in 1975. A display will also be on hand with enlarged newspaper articles documenting the original planning and construction. Current Park Board President, Mitch Bergman, is inviting every Park Board member that served the past 50 years to attend for a group picture scheduled at the end of the ceremony. Highlighting the festivities will be a ceremonial pitch between Russia's first Park Board President, Ed Borchers, and Village Mayor, Terry Daugherty. 

The entire three day event is the biggest fundraiser of the year for the Russia Park Board, which uses proceeds for improvements and maintenance to Russia Community Park. Below is the entire rundown of pool play games, tournament bracket, and rules. 

Former Fairlawn Jet reaching new heights on the golf course

Matt Mullen was one to watch in the fall of 2021

Fairlawn alum Matt Mullen was once a star golfer in the Shelby County Athletic League. Mullen graduated high school in 2022 with many golfing accolades, including an individual state qualifier his senior year with the Jets. These days he competes with the Ave Marie University men's golf team in Florida and also stays sharp on the national tournament circuit. 

This past Monday, Mullen marked the biggest accomplishment of his career so far, when he earned a place in Final Qualifying for the 125th U.S. Amateur Championship. The letter Mullen received from the United States Golf Association congratulated him on his quest to become the next U.S. Amateur Champion and noted that the most elite players from around the world annually vie for a place in the championship. On July 3rd, Mullen will be notified of his Final Qualifying site to take place July 14-21.

A big smile on Monday after receiving his letter from the USGA!

To earn the spot, Mullen had to finish in the top nine at a tournament at The Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Florida. Things weren't looking good when he was +5 through 15 holes. Then Mullen went birdie, birdie, birdie to finish +2 and tied for 9th-place with four other golfers. Next was a five man playoff for one remaining spot. On the first playoff hole Mullen knocked his ball to two feet on his approach for a tap-in birdie, his fourth in a row on the 19th hole of the day.

Just a kid from Sidney, Ohio!

Until the Final Qualifying date, Mullen will continue to play additional tournaments. This Wednesday and Thursday he's competing at PGA National Fazio Course in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida on the Minor League Golf Tour. To follow Mullen's progress, click here.

Seven Divisions in Baseball.. Much Ado About Nothing

Critics were concerned about a watered-down state tournament this year. In fact, Division-VII will showcase four of Ohio's top programs. (Photo by Luke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News)

Zeb Borchers and the Raiders tuned up with 

a scrimmage hosting Graham on Monday. 

Russia's senior class will soon close out a

remarkable run of success the past four years.

When the Ohio High School Athletic Association expanded football from six divisions to seven divisions in 2013, the pigskin purists initially scoffed. The same can be said when basketball went from four divisions to seven this past season. Now folks are hollerin' about baseball! Calm down. Marion Local was winning football titles before 2013 and still are today. Russia has also been a recent regular at the state final four on the court and the diamond, including this weekend. Winning state championships will always be really, really hard. Ask former Russia basketball coach Spencer Cordonnier if that gold trophy his Raiders hoisted in March was given just for participating. Turns out, all those grandpas complaining about extra divisions and high school sports being better in the good ole days is much ado about nothing. 

The Division VII Baseball State Tournament pairings at Canal Park in Akron is exactly as it should be. When the action starts on Thursday at 1:00 PM state-ranked #1 Tiffin Calvert meets #6 Newark Catholic. Calvert was a small school state semi-finalist in both 2022 and 2023. Their opponent from Newark will be making their 18th trip to the final four and has nine titles. The 4:00 PM game will be #2 Minster versus #8 Russia. The Wildcats are appearing for the sixth time and previously earned three championships. The Raiders are returning for their seventh time in school history and have hauled home 1st-place hardware twice. Rest assured, none of the state media panel will need to open their Rand McNally's to find those schools on the map.

That latter matchup will surely create a parade of vehicles with orange M's and gold R's across US 30 on Thursday. Fans from both Minster and Russia always show up in full strength for baseball. However, the most common wisecrack in local coffee shops this week has been suggesting the game be played in Ft. Loramie. That'd be the halfway point between both communities they explain. It would also save burning all that expensive gasoline for the six hour round-trip commute. True, but the Redskin's ballpark wouldn't contain the 5,000 people that might enjoy stadium seats. That attendance figure is at least how many spectators saw the Wildcats and Raiders battle in 2017, at the D-IV state championship game at Huntington Park in Columbus. Minster beat Russia 2-1 in a thriller, on a walk-off base hit in the bottom of the seventh inning. This 2025 rematch is anticipated to have all that same drama. Even despite the fact it's in D-VII.

Russia's one run against Minster in 2017 came when Hunter Cohee scored on an Evan Monnier single. Area experts believe one run will likely decide the winner on Thursday.

Finally, one fact is certain in Akron when it comes to Minster coach Mike Wiss matching wits with Russia coach Kevin Phlipot. This will be a business trip and the business is winning. It's safe to assume the Minster and Russia skippers expected their programs to be in this position when the season started. It's also unquestionable the crowds for both schools would enjoy nothing more than a state semifinal victory over their powerhouse neighbor. When the brick dust settles between the Wildcats and Raiders, half of the Canal Park stadium is going to be disappointed. Nothing wrong with that. However, it'll be no surprise to Fish Report if the losing coach also tells his players to smile because it happened. Nothing wrong with that either. Because baseball culture like Minster and Russia share is one of the biggest reasons they're back in the state tournament. Regardless of how many divisions OHSAA gives us.

As seen above, Mike Wiss and Kevin Phlipot played a full schedule of games in 2020 after baseball was cancelled across the country. That dedication was a life lesson for their players even bigger than winning.