Coastal Carolina beat Arizona 4-3 Thursday to win the Chanticleers first College World Series title.
TRENTON -- When Kevin Schnall returned last summer to the Coastal Carolina University baseball program he knew so well, he was conscious of the fact the squad had some talent in the fold.
What Schnall, the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator who grew up in Hamilton, or assistant Matt Schilling, who is from Hightstown, could never have known is that this Chanticleers team would make history.
OMAHA, NEBRASKA JUNE 30: Kevin Schnall, the associate head baseball coach for Coastal Carolina University, poses with the NCAA national championship trophy with his father, legendary coach Steve Schnall. Coastal Carolina beat Arizona 4-3 Thursday, to win the Chanticleers first College World Series title.
Coastal came out of the losers bracket to make the final series, then came back from a game down to hoist the trophy.
It was also the first Division 1 title in any sport for Chanticleers, which has been a force on the college baseball scene for the better part of the new millennium.
Schnall was one of the pioneers for head coach Gary Gilmore's program, when the catcher was named MVP of the team in his senior season in 1999, and led the Chants to a 43-15 record.
Coastal just missed out on a trip to a regional that year, but following a stint in the minor leagues, Schnall returned to Conway, S.C. as a coach in 2001, and the program took off, making 14 regionals in the last 16 years.
"I can tell you, first as a coach, but also as an alum, how extra special it is right now to do this," Schnall said. "I got back this summer, and I knew when I came back we had a lot of position players on the roster, and some good pitching. We just lacked experience."
Coastal Carolina had never been to Omaha prior to 2016.
The Chanticleers had lost twice in the Super Regionals (2008, North Carolina, and 2010, South Carolina), but they finally made the breakthrough after sweeping LSU in Baton Rouge to advance to the CWS.
Once in Omaha, Coastal fought out of the losers bracket to beat TCU twice, then knocked off the Wildcats twice in one-run games after trailing 1-0 in the series.
"We had never experienced this before," Schnall said. "Going to Omaha, or winning a national championship. We had a really good group of kids to work with this year. What is so funny about this group is that they had never won a Big South title, and they were really hungry this year. They had a good fall season, and were ready to go."
With players up and down rosters all throughout professional baseball, the Chanticleers program had been one of the most successful to never win a title. But that is something that this Coastal Carolina team ended, with a series of dramatic victories along the way to the championship. The Chanticleers also ended the year with the most wins in the nation, as they finished the 2016 season at 55-18.
"It is extra special to do this in front of all the players that came out here," Schnall said. "They laid the foundation. I have got relationships and friendships still with so many of the guys. My dad Steve was out there for all 15 days, and my brother Tim came out for a few days. We have the parade at home Friday at 1 p.m., and it should be something special."
Contact Sean Miller at seanmillertrentontimes@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @TheProdigalSean