Photo submitted Senior Little League All-Star Coach Mike Wendel, left, and Hoss’s Manager Merideth Bon are shown with a signed team photo of the 2009 Senior Little League All-Star State Championship team. This picture and individual photos of all of the players are currently on display at Hoss’s.

Senior Little League All-Star coach Mike Wendel noted that an autographed team photo as well as individual player photos prominently displayed in the restaurant. Wendel expressed his gratitude to Daghir Diagnostics and Allegheny Laser Technologies for donating the pictures and frames and to Hoss’s for helping to preserve the memory of the team’s state championship run.

“It was nice to see such great support from the community during our state championship run and during the regional finals in West Deptford, N.J.,” Wendel said of the team’s magical tournament run.

He added that Hoss’s previously displayed pictures from Elk County Catholic High School’s boys’ basketball state championship season and decided to do the same for Little League.

Hoss’s Manager Merideth Bon said Hoss’s is proud to be part of the community.

“The kids worked hard and deserve the recognition,” Bon said.

The photos were taken by a variety of individuals and were given to Hoss’s by the team.

“When we played for the state title in Emporium some of the photos were taken by Wayne Bauer and Jim Mulcahy from The Daily Press, as well as several individuals from the area,” Wendel said. “When we traveled to West Deptford, N.J. for the regional finals there was a professional photographer who does photos for the Philadelphia Eagles and Phillies. We purchased a disk from him with several hundred photos from each game we played.”

Wendel added having the photos on display for the public to view means a lot to the team.

“When Hoss’s offered to display the photos shortly after we won the title in August, my players would often ask when the pictures would be displayed. We had to go through several hundred photos and do some editing before we put the whole thing together, so it did take some time,” Wendel said.

The photos will likely be on display until another team wins a state title, a feat Wendel expects to happen in the near future.

“We are hoping that the photos will be on display until another team wins a state title,” Wendel said. “Pennsylvania is a large state with a good number of athletes. It is a great accomplishment to with a Pennsylvania state championship in any sport. We have a lot of talent in this area. I wouldn’t be surprised to see another state title in the near future.”