One baseball fan got a special treat Friday, an afternoon he will not forget. It wasn’t just the teams at Rosenblatt Stadium who have fought hard to reach the College World Series. Bucky Ribbeck has also had a pretty incredible journey to Omaha.

There was a family in the stands that knew no matter what the outcome of the game, they have already won. “I overcame it and I'm a better man for it,” said Ribbeck of Houston. "I played baseball all my life. Just coming and enjoying this great college baseball atmosphere is great.”

Last fall, the high school senior and all-star pitcher was diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma. A tumor was removed from his throwing arm. A year ago, he was in the hospital. Friday, it was the College World Series and all the festivities that go with it.

"It's kind of unreal. I mean going through an experience like that was and going through all the hardships, up and downs and then coming here and feeling this great, intense, emotional atmosphere is just fun. It's a great turnaround.”

While cancer may have taken some of the use of his arm, his family says Bucky wasn't about to let it take his spirit. "During his treatment he would walk down the hall and he would take care of the kids,” said Phillip Ribbeck.

“He would sit there and play cards with them, if they were having bad days he would joke around with them, try to get them back together and doing what would make them feel a little bit better going through chemotherapy.”

While Bucky would have loved the chance to play in the series, just being here is a victory his family will gladly take. "I looked into the dugout yesterday and I was thinking back when I used to play ball and just thinking like what went on in the dugout and all the festivities we had. Just looking back, if I could have done that here in Rosenblatt it would have been fantastic, but from the stands it's still a great experience.”

Bucky's cancer is in remission. The chemo destroyed a lot of the bone in his arm, so it is still a healing process. He is maybe a year or so away before he can use it.

Bucky will attend the University of Texas next year. A big reason why is so he can continue to be active in raising money and awareness in fighting cancer.