[5/28/04]After Meridian Community College wrapped up the NJCAA Super Regional on May 15 to secure a spot in the JUCO World Series, coach Mike Federico gave his players a few days off to relax.

With the time off, former Warren Central standout Joey Lieberman and two of his teammates decided to make a short trip to Atlanta and take in a Braves baseball game. Little did they know they’d be a part of history.

The trio witnessed Arizona pitcher Randy Johnson’s perfect game the 17th perfect game in major league history on May 18.

“It was probably the coolest thing I’ve ever seen,” Lieberman said. “After about six innings you could hear the whole crowd start to change from being Braves fans to being Diamondbacks fans.

“You could hear everybody talking about it around you, and you kind of realized that there’s something special happening. It was absolutely amazing.”

Lieberman and his teammates are hoping to create their own special memories next week with a junior college national championship.

Meridian will face Pensacola (Fla.) Junior College on Saturday in the opening game of the 10-team Junior College World Series in Grand Junction, Colo.

Pensacola reached the World Series by sweeping through the Florida state tournament, despite entering as the No. 8 seed.

Earlier this season, Meridian beat Pensacola 9-7, but Federico warns that a lot has changed since then.

“They’re probably a totally different team than they were at the beginning of the year, like we are,” he said. “The freshmen have made adjustments, and people have established their roles and things like that.”

If the Eagles (46-12) win, they will face the winner between Indian Hills (Iowa) and Grayson County (Texas).

“It’s going to be a tough field,” Federico said. “Anytime you get to this point the teams are going to be good.”

The Eagles almost didn’t make it this far.

Meridian lost the first game of its Super Regional to Faulkner State (Ala.) 7-4, but bounced back to sweep a Saturday doubleheader, 4-3 and 11-2.

Meridian then had to wait two weeks before playing again this Saturday. The Eagles spent the time preparing in practice, including some intrasquad scrimmages.

“You can look at it both ways. One thing that’s good is you get a little bit of rest and kind of get your legs back under you,” said Federico, adding that the time off also helped his players with exams. “But at the same time, not playing baseball is not good.

“The more you play and the more often you play, the more you get into a rhythm.”

The team completed the excruciating 27-hour bus ride to Colorado on Wednesday night and took the morning off before practicing Thursday afternoon.

“It was long,” Aaron George, a former St. Aloysius star of the cross-country trip said. “But once we got to the mountains we had some scenery to look at, so it wasn’t so bad.”

The Eagles won’t get much time to prepare before Saturday’s 9 a.m. game. And that’s fine with Lieberman, who is especially eager to start playing.

Meridian made it to the World Series last year, but a hand injury forced him to be a spectator.

“I can’t wait. I’m excited,” he said. “Last year was real tough. Coming to the World Series and having to sit in the dugout and watch my team play is real tough. I can’t wait to get out there and step on that field for the first time.”

Lieberman and George are two of seven returning starters from last year’s squad, which was eliminated in three games.

“I think we’re a little bit older and experienced,” Federico said. “But at the same time, it just comes down to execution and who’s going to make the least amount of mistakes.

“I feel confident that we’ll be ready.”

Both the coaches and players say things are different this time around.

“Last year we were just kind of happy to be here,” George said. “This year we feel like we can win it. We know what it takes.

“We saw last year what it took to win.”