JOURNAL SPORTS
It seemed too good an idea to come true – until it did Monday.
Never before has a college baseball team played its entire season, won a national championship and been undefeated, but that’s what all the celebration was about at lunchtime Monday in downtown Shreveport at Festival Plaza as hundreds of supporters and dignitaries converged to salute the LSUS Pilots baseball team.
Never before, in the very conspicuous parade of championship sports teams to make visits to the White House, had a so-called “small school” been invited to share the stage with the President of the United States. Title teams in the NFL, NBA, MLB and major college football and basketball routinely get the call to come to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
The notion that the NAIA baseball champions should be invited to make the trip? Unconventional. But owing to the very unique nature of their accomplishment, never done before and unlikely to be done again at any level of college baseball, why not break precedent just like the Pilots did?
And school and local officials had an influential insider to pave the way. Speculation bounded about over the weekend, before and after LSUS broke the unbeaten streak record and capped the championship season Friday night with a 13-7 win over Southeastern (Fla.) in Lewiston, Idaho, at the NAIA World Series.
Monday’s on-stage festivities saluting the team were halted by a very welcome phone call.
The word came in from U.S. Congressman Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the House of Representatives who serves Louisiana’s Fourth District, which includes Shreveport.
Johnson extended an invitation to the White House on behalf of President Donald Trump.
“President Trump acknowledging us and wanting us to visit the White House is just amazing,” said Ian Montz, an outfielder from Lafayette who hit the go-ahead home run in the championship win. “It’s special to bring back a championship to the city of Shreveport and its people.”
The team can add the Washington, D.C., visit to an already-confirmed Louisiana state capitol trip coming up, likely next week. There was no immediate word when the Pilots will travel to the White House.