Special coach gets special championship

Lisa Billings/Chesterfield Observer Coach Ed Aloma hugs his son, Alex, after the Woolridge Wildcats win the Stallion league title.

If you saw Woolridge Wildcats coach Ed Aloma on his motorized scooter at the recent Chesterfield Baseball Club's Stallion title game at Harry G. Daniel Park, you may have thought it a bit unusual.

No one else at the game did, and Aloma, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1991, likes that just fine, thank you. "I just consider it an inconvenience," said Aloma, a retired Navy missile radar technician.

Aloma, wife Nancy, children Alex, 14, and Katie, 12, moved to the county from Tidewater two years ago. Alex plays baseball for Woolridge.

Aloma is the team's head coach, helping the Woolridge "Dirtbags" earn local bragging rights recently by winning this year's Stallion title. They bested Robious 14-10 in a thrilling, seesaw event that was in doubt until the last out.

Following the title win, he savored the turnaround from his first year as coach. He and assistants Scott Nagel and Bob Colarossi shepherded the team through a 3-15 year in 2007, building experience and a basis to be optimistic this year. They were not disappointed with the result.

The backyard, hometown special flavor of the title was not lost on Aloma and his squad.

"They go to school with kids from the other teams. They see each other, and I know they talk a lot about the game. I know before the game they were telling me they saw this guy, and he's telling us they're going to beat us. It is bragging right," he reckoned.

Aloma coached in Tidewater and also played ball extensively through his 20s. That included a stint with a Puerto Rican AA team. He was a pitcher and learned a lot about the game.

Woolridge was well schooled, and Aloma gives all the credit to the sacrifices of the parents, his coaching staff and the players.

"I practice a lot. I get the kids and the parents to practice a lot. We practice at least three times a week and sometimes five," he stated. The title game was a test of all that knowledge and practice. It was a baseball game that will never be forgotten by the Woolridge team.

Tied at one run apiece entering the second inning, the game had some of those rare moments of drama that make baseball the wonderful, ever-shifting sport it has always been.

Woolridge pitcher Ronnie Mangano had given up a single to Trae Jones of Robious, a walk, and then a single to Will Edwards. That's base loaded and no outs. Mangano proceeded to suck it up and strike out the next three batters, keeping the score tied in a situation where runs are usually scored.

In the third, Mangano again fanned the side, recording six strikeouts in a row. The game then saw lots of timely hitting by Mangano, Stephen Semones, Nicholas Colarossi, Ryu Yano and Kevin Foley, lead changes and runs scored.

Aloma was thrilled with Mangano's pitching stint. "That kid is really something, isn't he? Not only did he go bases loaded and no outs, but he also went 3-0 (in the count) to the next batter. That's the type of kid he is; when it's tough he buckles down," he recalled.

In the end though, Aloma's son, Alex, took the mound and threw enough quality strikes to throttle a last-ditch rally by Robious and seal the win.

Aloma was ecstatic and emotional as his team raced around the field whooping it up and pausing from time to time to reach out to their coach with a hug or two.

And what was it like to watch your son pitch the last inning? "It was a relief. The kids worked hard for it. It was the greatest feeling you can imagine. Alex and I do it because we enjoy it, and it's a thrill to watch him," Aloma said.

The multiple sclerosis has affected some of Aloma's motor and walking skills, but there is no way it's a factor with him or his team.

"If it doesn't bother them, it doesn't bother me. I've never had that problem in coaching. The kids have always responded to me, and I think it's because if you treat them with respect, they kind of reciprocate that back to you," he concluded.

At the title game, that mutual respect between coach and players was in full sight.