The Nevada Club Baseball team had a victorious season this year, with many new and exciting experiences. All in one day, the club beat Oregon, the defending National Champions, 4-0, Thursday, June 2 in the semifinal of the National Club Baseball Association World Series. The win allowed the team to advance to the 2016 NCBA Division I World Series game later that day in Paducah, Kentucky.

"We played two games in one day," Anthony Novak, vice president of the club, third-base coach and third baseman/pitcher, said. "We drove 360 miles, played 18 innings of baseball, and won both games to be crowned the best team in the nation."

With a score of 7-4 against East Carolina, the Nevada Club Baseball team celebrated its first ever win in the World Series. To top it off, this was the first playoff appearance as a club program. Besides Nevada, all players at the World Series were returning teams, and four of the eight teams playing that day were returning teams from the previous year.

"We were the big question mark of the tournament and the underdogs in the minds of most," Novak said. "That just made it much more of an accomplishment for our guys."

The Nevada Club Baseball team is a competitive club that was initiated nine years ago and officially sanctioned in 2014. The club participates in the National Club Baseball Association in the Southern Pacific-North Division 1, and is student-run and completely self-sufficient. They rely on their own funds and the generous donations given by fans and supporters to fund equipment, travel and lodging.

Novak said the lack of organization and motivation to progress and win within the team led to some shaky beginnings. The team desperately needed the help of a leader. Eventually, Novak began wanting a larger role within the team his freshman year, and Dylan DuHamel became the club's president in 2015. With newfound authority, Duhamel and Novak began to recruit new members, and asked their team to give more, both mentally and physically, to succeed.

In DuHamel's and Novak's senior year, the team earned their first ever Southern Pacific - North conference title with their undefeated score of 13-0. Following this, the team won all three games in regionals against Arizona State and California Polytechnic State University. These wins earned the team the No. 5 seed in the World Series tournament which put their team fifth in the nation.

Team member Cameron Cole won the World Series' most valuable player this year. Cole earned this title by posting a 1.98 ERA, a save while also hitting .409 with a HR and eight RBI's. Throughout the week, in the ninth innings alone, Cole went 4-4 with a HR and three RBI doubles making him the most clutch hitter of the week as well. The team's overall offense was what made the team stand out and ultimately win the championship.

"Drew Andary led the nation in home runs and Nick Kinsman was a very close second," Novak said. "That's what made us so successful, we can hit better than any team in the nation."

The club plans to get earn a spot back in the regional tournament next season and have an opportunity to get back to the World Series and ultimately to bring home another trophy. The club also plans to recruit new members, as recruiting is one of the biggest aspects of club baseball.

The Nevada Club Baseball team quietly dedicated their successful season to the memory of two team members who the team lost earlier this year.

"Our team has always been a very close group and dealing with the loss of two former teammates and friends hit home for a lot of us," Novak said. "They've been with us every step of the way, and they were there right when things started looking up, so it's only right that they are included in the rewards of being National Champions."

To support the Nevada Club Baseball team, go to http://moonorato1323.wix.com/nevada-clubbaseball.