Team History
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The roots of Cooper Cleaning date back to the early 1990s, with team founder George Cooper running the Parkville Royals, a men's unlimited team that participated in the Susquehanna League at Harford Community College. In the mid-1990s, the Royals morphed into the Della Roses Overlea Anxious, which was jointly run by Cooper, Chris Manouse, and Jon Horner. Another elder statesman of the current Cooper Cleaning, Elliot DeGroot, joined Della Roses in the summer of 1996, when he was still playing at Johns Hopkins.
Della Roses turned into Cooper Cleaning, the commercial cleaning company owned by George Cooper, in 1997. The team continued its participation in the Susquehanna League and contined to be a highly competitive team thanks in large part to the consistently strong performances of veteran pitchers Rick Riddle and Tony Pezzica.
The team attended the 4th of July Firecracker Tourney in Harrisburg, PA through the 1990s, but began to struggle in the tourney in the mid-1990s, mainly due to limited personnel. So the decision was made in 1998 to attend the tourney in combination with the Cyclones, a fellow Susky League Team, and this joint effort immediately became a more competitive entry in the tourney. The partnership continued in the 1999 and 2000 Firecracker Tourneys, as well as the Grover Frye Labor Day Tourney (Frederick, MD) in 1998, 1999, and 2000.
The makeup of Cooper Cleaning changed rapidly in 1999 and 2000, with several long-time players retiring or scaling back their playing time considerably and a variety of college players joining, but not fitting into the team as well as anticipated. So the decision was made following the 2000 season to enter into a full-scale merger with the Cyclones, with the team to continue to be known as Cooper Cleaning. This much larger roster necessitated more games than the Susky League could offer, so the team joined the Baltimore Baseball League in addition to the Susky League.
The new-look Cooper Cleaning was immediately a strong team, thanks in large part to the addition of talented Cyclone players like Dave Feltman, Craig Miller, Steve Farling, Matt Hasenei, and Rich Keyes. The Cyclones also brought several players who are still key members of today's team: Adam Keim, Chris Kalck, and Phil Hutson. The 2001 season was a whirlwind, as playing in 2 leagues amounted to the team playing 5-6 games a week. That season's Firecracker Tourney was also a resounding success, as the team went 5 games deep into the tourney, before being edged out by perennial powerhouse the Norristown A's. In the BBL, Cooper Cleaning knocked off the Midtown Panthers in the Quarterfinal Round of the playoffs, thanks to a walk-off Grand Slam HR by Charlie Petr, who is still the team's most feared power hitter. Then we took the Degroen's Brewers to a full 3 games in the Semifinals, before losing in a close one. The team also advanced to the championship game of the Susky League before losing to Crouse Construction. Cooper Cleaning decided not to attend a Labor Day Tourney in 2001. Including the fall season, the team's overall record was 48 wins, 31 losses, and 1 tie.
The 2002 season again saw some turnover, as Craig Miller, Steve Farling, and Dave Feltman all moved on, but their loss was partially offset by the addition of current Cooper Cleaning ace left-hander Chris Korzun. In addition to his strong pitching, Korzun slammed a whopping 14 HRs in his debut season with Cooper Cleaning. The team again participated in both the BBL and the Susky League, and went 4 games deep in the Firecracker Tourney. Cooper Cleaning decided to try a brand new Labor Day Tourney, heading to Charlottesville, VA for a 4-day weekend. With limited personnel (due to the return of college players to school), several team members turned in heroic performances. Matt Hasenei threw 15 consecutive innings to start the tourney, while pickup Josh Itzoe also logged 12 innings over the course of the weekend. Elliot DeGroot also threw a complete game gem against a talented team from Greenville, SC. The team finished in 3rd place (out of 12 teams) in the Tourney with a 2-1-1 record. The overall record for the 2002 season was 40 wins, 34 losses, and 1 tie.
In 2003, Cooper Cleaning again played in both the BBL and the Susky League, which was down to only 4 teams. The team again continued to be ambitious in attending new tourneys, this time heading to Chicago for the 4th of July Mid-Summer Classic, where we finished with a 2-1-1 record. Cooper Cleaning collected its first league championship, winning the Susky League title in a thriller against the Presstman Cardinals. The team returned to Charlottesville for Labor, finishing with a 3-2 record and making it all the way to the title game before losing a heartbreaker to the host Charlottesville Orioles. 2003 was one of Cooper Cleaning's most successful seasons to date, with a final record of 39 wins, 26 losses, and 1 tie. Our success was rewarded with a post-season ranking as the 5th best aluminum bat team in Maryland and 15th best team in the entire Mid-Atlantic region.
2004 saw Cooper Cleaning only compete in the BBL, as the team decided to drop out of the Susky League due to overwhelming number of games. The team compiled a season record of 33-30-2. The preseason polls ranked Cooper Cleaning as the 4th best Maryland aluminum bat team. Cooper Cleaning again traveled to a new tournament, the Rawlings Berkshire Showdown, Reading, PA; which was Cooper Cleaning's first appearance in a wood bat tourney. The team also added a Memorial Day Tourney to our schedule, heading to Charlottesville, where we lost in the semifinals. Cooper Cleaning again returned to Charlottesville for Labor Day, losing in the quarterfinals of the Tourney. Cooper Cleaning capped off the season by finishing first in the Gunpowder Fall League with a record of 12-1-1.
2005 saw Cooper Cleaning compile a record of 33-20-1. The team once again traveled to Reading, PA to participate in the Rawlings Berkshire Showdown Tournament, losing in the semifinals with a record of 2-3. After many tournaments Cooper Cleaning was able to capture their first tournament championship at the Charlottesville, VA Labor Day tournament.
2006 saw Cooper Cleaning compile a record of 25-30. For the first time the team traveled to the Reno Powell Memorial Day Tournament in Hagerstown, MD, losing in the semifinals. The team once again made a good showing in the Rawlings Berkshire Showdown in Reading, PA, losing in the semifinals. The team defended their 2005 Charlottesville, VA Labor Day Tournament Championship but was unable to pull off a repeat. The team wrapped up the season by competing in the Gunpowder Fall Baseball League.
2007 saw Cooper Cleaning compile a record of 21-32. The team once again traveled to the Reno Powell Memorial Day Tournament in Hagerstown, MD. For the third year in a row the team lost in the semifinals of the Rawlings Berkshire Tournament. For the first time in several years Cooper Cleaning did not travel to the Charlottesville, VA Labor Day Tournament. The team completed the season by participating in the Gunpowder Fall Baseball League with a young development squad.
2008 saw a very successful year for Cooper Cleaning as they compiled a combined record of 34-24-1. Many young talented players joined the team leading to a successful 2008. Once again the team traveled to the Reno Powell Memorial Day Tournament in Hagerstown, MD losing in the semifinals. For the first time since participating the in the Rawlings Berkshire Tournament the team was able to reach the championship eventually losing to a tough Linglestown Team. The team completed the season by participating in the Gunpowder Fall Baseball League with a record of 7-5.
Cooper Cleaning looks to build upon 2008 and mount a successful 2009 campaign.
Della Roses turned into Cooper Cleaning, the commercial cleaning company owned by George Cooper, in 1997. The team continued its participation in the Susquehanna League and contined to be a highly competitive team thanks in large part to the consistently strong performances of veteran pitchers Rick Riddle and Tony Pezzica.
The team attended the 4th of July Firecracker Tourney in Harrisburg, PA through the 1990s, but began to struggle in the tourney in the mid-1990s, mainly due to limited personnel. So the decision was made in 1998 to attend the tourney in combination with the Cyclones, a fellow Susky League Team, and this joint effort immediately became a more competitive entry in the tourney. The partnership continued in the 1999 and 2000 Firecracker Tourneys, as well as the Grover Frye Labor Day Tourney (Frederick, MD) in 1998, 1999, and 2000.
The makeup of Cooper Cleaning changed rapidly in 1999 and 2000, with several long-time players retiring or scaling back their playing time considerably and a variety of college players joining, but not fitting into the team as well as anticipated. So the decision was made following the 2000 season to enter into a full-scale merger with the Cyclones, with the team to continue to be known as Cooper Cleaning. This much larger roster necessitated more games than the Susky League could offer, so the team joined the Baltimore Baseball League in addition to the Susky League.
The new-look Cooper Cleaning was immediately a strong team, thanks in large part to the addition of talented Cyclone players like Dave Feltman, Craig Miller, Steve Farling, Matt Hasenei, and Rich Keyes. The Cyclones also brought several players who are still key members of today's team: Adam Keim, Chris Kalck, and Phil Hutson. The 2001 season was a whirlwind, as playing in 2 leagues amounted to the team playing 5-6 games a week. That season's Firecracker Tourney was also a resounding success, as the team went 5 games deep into the tourney, before being edged out by perennial powerhouse the Norristown A's. In the BBL, Cooper Cleaning knocked off the Midtown Panthers in the Quarterfinal Round of the playoffs, thanks to a walk-off Grand Slam HR by Charlie Petr, who is still the team's most feared power hitter. Then we took the Degroen's Brewers to a full 3 games in the Semifinals, before losing in a close one. The team also advanced to the championship game of the Susky League before losing to Crouse Construction. Cooper Cleaning decided not to attend a Labor Day Tourney in 2001. Including the fall season, the team's overall record was 48 wins, 31 losses, and 1 tie.
The 2002 season again saw some turnover, as Craig Miller, Steve Farling, and Dave Feltman all moved on, but their loss was partially offset by the addition of current Cooper Cleaning ace left-hander Chris Korzun. In addition to his strong pitching, Korzun slammed a whopping 14 HRs in his debut season with Cooper Cleaning. The team again participated in both the BBL and the Susky League, and went 4 games deep in the Firecracker Tourney. Cooper Cleaning decided to try a brand new Labor Day Tourney, heading to Charlottesville, VA for a 4-day weekend. With limited personnel (due to the return of college players to school), several team members turned in heroic performances. Matt Hasenei threw 15 consecutive innings to start the tourney, while pickup Josh Itzoe also logged 12 innings over the course of the weekend. Elliot DeGroot also threw a complete game gem against a talented team from Greenville, SC. The team finished in 3rd place (out of 12 teams) in the Tourney with a 2-1-1 record. The overall record for the 2002 season was 40 wins, 34 losses, and 1 tie.
In 2003, Cooper Cleaning again played in both the BBL and the Susky League, which was down to only 4 teams. The team again continued to be ambitious in attending new tourneys, this time heading to Chicago for the 4th of July Mid-Summer Classic, where we finished with a 2-1-1 record. Cooper Cleaning collected its first league championship, winning the Susky League title in a thriller against the Presstman Cardinals. The team returned to Charlottesville for Labor, finishing with a 3-2 record and making it all the way to the title game before losing a heartbreaker to the host Charlottesville Orioles. 2003 was one of Cooper Cleaning's most successful seasons to date, with a final record of 39 wins, 26 losses, and 1 tie. Our success was rewarded with a post-season ranking as the 5th best aluminum bat team in Maryland and 15th best team in the entire Mid-Atlantic region.
2004 saw Cooper Cleaning only compete in the BBL, as the team decided to drop out of the Susky League due to overwhelming number of games. The team compiled a season record of 33-30-2. The preseason polls ranked Cooper Cleaning as the 4th best Maryland aluminum bat team. Cooper Cleaning again traveled to a new tournament, the Rawlings Berkshire Showdown, Reading, PA; which was Cooper Cleaning's first appearance in a wood bat tourney. The team also added a Memorial Day Tourney to our schedule, heading to Charlottesville, where we lost in the semifinals. Cooper Cleaning again returned to Charlottesville for Labor Day, losing in the quarterfinals of the Tourney. Cooper Cleaning capped off the season by finishing first in the Gunpowder Fall League with a record of 12-1-1.
2005 saw Cooper Cleaning compile a record of 33-20-1. The team once again traveled to Reading, PA to participate in the Rawlings Berkshire Showdown Tournament, losing in the semifinals with a record of 2-3. After many tournaments Cooper Cleaning was able to capture their first tournament championship at the Charlottesville, VA Labor Day tournament.
2006 saw Cooper Cleaning compile a record of 25-30. For the first time the team traveled to the Reno Powell Memorial Day Tournament in Hagerstown, MD, losing in the semifinals. The team once again made a good showing in the Rawlings Berkshire Showdown in Reading, PA, losing in the semifinals. The team defended their 2005 Charlottesville, VA Labor Day Tournament Championship but was unable to pull off a repeat. The team wrapped up the season by competing in the Gunpowder Fall Baseball League.
2007 saw Cooper Cleaning compile a record of 21-32. The team once again traveled to the Reno Powell Memorial Day Tournament in Hagerstown, MD. For the third year in a row the team lost in the semifinals of the Rawlings Berkshire Tournament. For the first time in several years Cooper Cleaning did not travel to the Charlottesville, VA Labor Day Tournament. The team completed the season by participating in the Gunpowder Fall Baseball League with a young development squad.
2008 saw a very successful year for Cooper Cleaning as they compiled a combined record of 34-24-1. Many young talented players joined the team leading to a successful 2008. Once again the team traveled to the Reno Powell Memorial Day Tournament in Hagerstown, MD losing in the semifinals. For the first time since participating the in the Rawlings Berkshire Tournament the team was able to reach the championship eventually losing to a tough Linglestown Team. The team completed the season by participating in the Gunpowder Fall Baseball League with a record of 7-5.
Cooper Cleaning looks to build upon 2008 and mount a successful 2009 campaign.
