30 hours of Wiffle ball: a world record and $1,200 to fight cancer

David Brewster, Star Tribune

Two Prior Lake brothers and about 70 of their friends went after the Guinness World Records mark for the longest Wiffle ball game. Players took turns every two hours to be on the field and in the game or resting off it.

As the game continued in the back yard of the Prior Lake home of the Sticha family Sunday afternoon, it was difficult to tell just from watching that the group of boys and close friends had kept this single game of Wiffle ball going for 24 hours straight.

By JEANNINE AQUINO, Star Tribune

Last update: September 1, 2008 - 2:07 PM

The score was 215-198, and Anders Daniel was trying to steal second base.

A pitcher and a teammate ran to stop him, the three meeting in a collision of long limbs, baseball caps and athletic shoes.

"My foot blocked it," pitcher Dominic Reed, 14, said good-naturedly as he picked himself up from the ground.

The call was close, but Daniel was safe.

And by 9 p.m., the boys had played for 30 hours, their goal to get into the Guinness World Records for the longest Wiffle ball game.

"We wanted to show that we liked Wiffle ball," said Chris Sticha, 14, one of the masterminds behind the event. "We've always wanted to have a record in the Guinness book, so we thought it was the perfect idea."

Chris, his brother, Tommy, 13, and about 70 friends started playing at 3 p.m. Saturday. The group, mostly made up of 13- and 14-year old boys, played in two-hour shifts.

The Sticha brothers came up with the idea for the record-setting attempt in June and decided to expand the event into a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society.

Both of the brothers' grandmothers died of breast cancer, said their mom, Sue Sticha. Two aunts and a neighbor also have the disease.

"When they first brought it up, I kind of rolled my eyes, like, 'How would we ever pull this off?'" Sue Sticha said.

"But as I thought about it more, I realized what a creative, fun opportunity it was. And an opportunity to raise money for the American Cancer Society -- I felt like I couldn't deny them the chance to do it," she added.

The Stichas worked all summer to make the game a reality. They filled out an application with Guinness and waited several weeks to get it approved.

The brothers sent letters to friends who might be interested in playing and to businesses that might be willing to donate to the fundraiser raffle.

Daniel, 18, of Prior Lake, said he wanted to be part of the record-setting attempt because most people don't get a chance to be included in the Guinness record book. He skipped a family trip up north to participate in the game.

Daniel, whose mother had breast cancer, said the charity drive was also important to him. He called it "special to help out, knowing you've made a difference toward a cause like cancer."

The effort raised $1,200, an amount that will be matched by Sue Sticha's employer, Goodrich Sensor Systems of Burnsville.

Chris Sticha said trying to set a world record is a "pretty neat idea."

"I think we are gonna try to break it again if somebody else tries to break it," he said. "We're gonna keep going with it."

Jeannine Aquino • 952-882-9056

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