Jayson Schlappich and his young family barely had time to get settled in Wilmington last year when they relocated from Myerstown, Pennsylvania, for him to start a new job with General Electric Aviation when he found out his U.S. Army Reserve unit was being deployed to Afghanistan.
Jayson Schlappich left for training in September 2013, and flew into Bagram, Afghanistan in November, and he wasn’t due home to August. But his unit’s mission was winding down so his unit had an opportunity to come home early.
Initially the Wilmington Sharks were trying to arrange a surprise for Jessica Schlappich and their two-year old son, Mayson, but – when you are a military family – things don’t always go as planned. The surprise part of the homecoming was scrapped but the Sharks still took the time to honor Jayson Schlappich last night at their Coastal Plain League game against the Florence (S.C.) RedWolves.
“We were just an engineering battalion doing maintenance for a bunch of out-clearance companies and I was a retro-operator, the military’s version of a tow-truck driver, and I did that and did a lot of welding,” said Jayson Schlappich as he humbly attempted to downplay the mission that led him and his unit into danger. “Other than that we got lucky as far as not seeing any combat. We got rocketed a lot, a lot of mortars, but we took no causalities. It’s not a place I’d ever want to ever go again. What I saw over there makes you really appreciate what you have here in the United States.”
But leaving your family so soon after a move was tough and he used them as motivation during his deployment. Still, the danger was always there.
“What kept me going was fairly constant contact with my wife. That’s why I got Facebook before I left, to keep in contact with my wife and my son,” Jayson Schlappich said. “Just seeing pictures, whether it was an email or on Facebook, and an occasional video when the internet was good enough, it was special and gave me the motivation to get through what we had to do and go home.
“The constant mortar barrages and the danger, it’s always in your mind. You try not to think about it but it happens. You just move along and do your job and hope you’re not the unlucky one I guess.”
They didn’t expect their reunion to happen until August when his deployment was supposed to end, but things began winding down and he got a reprieve.
“I was trying to surprise my wife because all of the stuff she was doing back home in taking care of our son. I just wanted to do something special for her but, as usual, the military doesn’t always stay true to their plan when they tell you something so we had to scrap the surprise.
“I got in around 3 p.m. and they, my wife, my son, and my family, were waiting for me. I actually called her last night and filled her in on what was happening and what was supposed to happen so it is what it is. I’m just happy to be home. But we weren’t suppose to be home until August so it was still a surprise of sorts.”
Getting back late Friday afternoon put coming to Buck Hardee Field in a bit of a hurry-up proposition but Jayson Schlappich said it was something he and Jessica Schlappich wanted to do.
Jayson Schlappich still has another month on his deployment orders but he does not anticipate any more call-ups. After almost 11 years in the Army Reserves he is going to stay with it until he hits the retirement time.
“I still have orders until Aug. 15 but there’s no chance of going back because within a year after you being back they can’t re-deploy you unless you sign a waiver,” Jayson Schlappich said. “Next November it will be 11 years so I’m over halfway through a career in the reserves so I’m going to go all the way.
“I can go to work if I wanted to but they give you down time to relax and get into a little routine and wind down. I know a couple of guys who were going right back to work but I’m going home and enjoy my family and take the 90 days I got.”
Jessica Schlappich said she was happy to have her husband home safe and sound.
“I’m excited and relieved that he was safe,” Jessica Schlappich said. “It was tough, especially with everything going on in the news, and when I didn’t hear from him for a period of time I was like, ‘Oh my God, is he okay?’ It was a constant worry. Mayson was really excited, he was excited to see daddy on an airplane and ran up to him right away.”
Sharks game
Tied at 3-3 entering the bottom of the sixth inning the Wilmington Sharks scored three times and rode the excellent relief pitching of Matthew Vogel and Kyler Stout to a 6-3 win over the Florence (S.C.) RedWolves.
Nate Moorhouse (Mercer University) got things going in the sixth with a walk, quickly moving to third on a double by Michael Montville (Maryland). Moorhouse scored the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly to centerfield off the bat of Cam McRae (Presbyterian).
Joe Bertone, a rising junior at UNC-Wilmington, singled to put runners on first-and-third, and Collin Steagall (South Carolina) singled to plate Montville for a 5-3 lead. Sam Foy (New Hanover/Davidson) then hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Bertone.
Vogel came on to pitch the eighth inning and fanned the side on an austere 15 pitchers. Stout came on and allowed a walk and a single but recorded two strikeouts and a pop-up to earn the save.
Florence 100 200 000=3-5-0
Wilmington 120 003 00x=6-8-0
WP: Tyler Haswell; LP: Jacob Milliman; Save: Kyler Stout; 2B: Michael Montville (W), Sam Foy (W), Tyler Best.
Leading Hitters: (W) – Joe Bertone 2-for-4, 2 R/S; Sam Foy 1-for-3, R/S, 2B, Sac., 2 RBIs.
