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November
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Men's Summer Softball League 2008
2008 Final Regular Season Standings
|
Team
|
Won
|
Lost
|
Pct
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| New Hope Green |
17
|
1
|
.944 |
| Mt. Pleasant Baptist |
12
|
6
|
.667 |
| Rockingham Court |
11
|
7
|
.611 |
| Thrasher UMC |
8
|
10
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.444 |
| Summerdean |
7
|
11
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.389 |
| Church of the Brethren |
4
|
14
|
.222 |
| New Hope Red |
4
|
14
|
.222 |
BS (Bad Sportswriters) Press
...this just in...
Warriors Flawless Entering Third Round of Playoffs
July 23, 2008
Roanoke County, VA - Round two
of the 2008 Roanoke County Church League playoff opened up on Thursday night as
the Mt. Pleasant Warriors faced Rockingham Court. The Warriors came into
tonight’s contest with a shortened bench. “Doc” Spano was away and (A-Rob) Alex
Roberts, Nathan Wilson and Chase “BamBam” Emerson are all on rehabilitation tour
in the Coastal League. Outfielder Seth Mullen is on call up to the Liberty
Olympic Ski team. Chris Rhodes was also out.
The grounds crew had the Pitzer Rd. Stadium in great shape in spite of the arid
conditions, as the die hard fans once again had to endure the threat of storms.
“Our staff was dealing with some real pre-game jitters when we realized just
how many of our regulars were out. Greg Belcher is back in the line up for us.
We had to juggle some of the positions around but with the depth of talent and
determination of our team, we came out pretty good”, Coach Parr said after the
game.
Rockingham picked up a quick 1-zip lead in the first. But the focus of the
Warriors team did not waver. In the bottom of the 3rd, runners were on second
and third with no outs. Jason “the Spider” Cockayne sailed one into the
outfield and Brian “Bad Dog” Dogan scored from third. From second, Dave “swan
dive” Richardson rounded third and slid under the tag as the throw from the
outfield was not in time. Mt. Pleasant took a 2 to 1 lead. Jamie Lyle pitched
another stellar game, and was big with the glove, picking off several liners and
a big 1 – 6 – 3 double play. Golden glove short stop, Carey Sink accounted for
several DP’s. Sink and Parr would knock in runs in the 4th, making it 4 - 1.
Giving up just one more run to the Rockies, the Warriors tacked on a couple
insurance runs to get the 6 – 2 win. “Jerome Mossor (at the plate) and DH Jeff
Smith, were key to the game. Our outfield was huge for us tonight as well with
Danny “Red Sox” Ryan, JC, Dogan, and Todd “Blizzard” Rowland making incredible
game saving catches.” Coach/Utility player, Tom Parr said in the post game press
conference. “We owe so much to our fans who came out to support us. Some of
‘em would have taken the field with us if we needed ‘em. Thanks for being there
Harpers”
The Warrior’s next game is this Thursday at 8:30 against the Greenies of New
Hope.
Warriors Solid in First Round
July 18, 2008
Roanoke Co. Va. - Warriors
coach, Tom Parr was presented with the "Regular Season- 2nd Place" plaque last
evening prior to the opening round of the 2008 playoffs. The Mt. Pleasant
Baptist team has greatly improved in their three year franchise history. Going
from a 1 and 17 record in year one to a 6 – 12 tally last season, and reversing
the win – loss columns to a 12 wins and 6 losses this year. Well done Warriors,
well done. The team is quick to express their gratitude to the loyal fans that
have been there through all varieties of weather to support them. “Without the
support, cheers, and encouragement, we would have never been able to play at the
level we did”, stated Coach Parr. Warrior management is making plans to present
this plaque to the church after the completion of the season. This would be a
nice thing to have hanging in the organizations newly constructed training
facility.
Prior to the start of last
nights round one play-off game, the fans already rocking with so much excitement
that some were literally falling out of their seats.
Mt. Pleasant continued their strong play as they
faced the Red Hope. Rejoining the team for last nights game, Eric “Dr. Spanoman”
Spano, who played solid at 3rd base as well as from the batters box.
Unfortunately for the Warriors, the Dr. has been called back to the Florida
Marlins. The top of the order got things off to a quick start in the 1st,
scoring four runs on 2 RBI’s from clean-up Carey “Scoop” Sink, and a 2 RBI’s
double from catcher Jerome Mossor. MP would pad their 4–1 lead in the bottom of
the 3rd. Turning a single into a triple, Jason “the Jet” Cockayne
would score off the double by “the Spanoman”. Spano scored with a single
from pitcher Jamie Lyle. Red Hope would pick up a couple of runs in the 4th,
making it a 6-3 game. The Warriors tacked on four more in the fifth, again from
the top of the order, as Cockayne, Chase “bam-bam” Emerson, made it home off a
hit by SS Sink. One fan was over heard, “I ain’t never seen anything that
quick...JC took off like he’d been bit on the neck or something. And Emerson,
nailed that sucker clear over the left fielder to the fence. Totally awesome!”
Spanoman, and Sink scored off the sacrifice fly by Lyle. Rookies Chris Rhodes,
DH Danny Ryan, and re-signed Dave Richardson saw limited action tonight , but
were vital to the team just as well. Now leading 10 to 4 in the bottom of the
sixth, 1st baseman “T-Row” Rowland made solid contact, drilling one to the fence
for a triple. He scored on a single by Parr. A sacrifice fly to deep center by
Alex “A-Rob” Roberts brought Parr home. Left fielder Nathan Wilson was left
stranded on the bags at the close of the inning. Both Wilson and Brian “the
glove” Dogan gave some solid fielding tonight. Red Hope, down 12 to 4, failed
to score in the top of the 7th, giving the Mt. Pleasant Warriors the
win. Special thanks to team statistician Heather “the Aunt” Dogan and her
assistant Gary for all you’ve done.
The Warriors move on to face
Rockingham Court next Tuesday, game time is at 6:30pm.
Warriors Enter Playoffs
July 16, 2008
Roanoke Co. Va. - The 2008
Regular Season came to an close with the Mt. Pleasant Warriors playing a
historic triple header, playing 22 consecutive innings. Going into the evenings
events, the Warriors with a hold on second place, behind the undefeated New Hope
Greenies. Mt. Pleasant needed just one win out of the three games to lock up
the number two slot.
The Mt. Pleasant sports complex
would host a total of four contest on the evening.
Game one: The New Hope Greenies
faced the Rockinghamies. In a unique game of itself lasting just 45 minutes for
the seven innings, the Rocks got the 1-0 win, putting a blemish on the Greenies
"wanna be" perfect season.
Game Two: MP Warriors facing
the just spanked Greenies. Mt. Pleasant's line-up for the night saw action from
Dave Richardson, serving a rehab stint from his tour in the majors. The
Warriors would be without the talents of Jeff Smith and Seth “gone yard”
Mullen. Dr. Eric Spano, our hearts and prayers for you, our friend and
brother. Coach Tom “tan lined” Parr, relied heavily on the winning
line-up of Todd “the Architect” Rowland. The Warriors took a quick lead in the
game taking advantage of NHG errors, but would see their lead knotted on one
error filled inning. In extra innings, the Warriors would fall by one run in
the bottom of the eighth.
Game Three: MP Warriors hosted
Thrasher. Besides NHG, Thrasher is the only other team that has had the
Warriors number all season. The Warriors looked to the veteran leadership of
Pitcher Jamie Lyle, Carey Sink at the short spot, Dan “bare handed” Ryan, Todd
“T-Row” Roland, Alex “A-Rob” Roberts, and Tommy “sandy shorts” Parr in the
infield. Greg Belcher, with a bad hammy, called the signals at third. Ja-Rome
Mossor and Chris “the banker” Rhodes held down the DH spots. Nate “bald tires”
Wilson, Chase Emerson, Brian “TWO HANDS” Dogan, and Jason “All Star” Cockayne,
kept the outfield sealed up. Picking up some runs in each inning, the Warriors
once again saw their lead tied up with just one error stained inning. But the
Warriors, got some momentum on a game saving relay throw from “T-Row” at first
to Parr for the easy put out at home. The Warriors picked up two runs in the
bottom of the 7th for the 16 –14 win. This solidified second place.
Game Four: The Warriors faced
the Rockinghammies, still remember the last meeting when the game ended in a Mt.
Pleasant "slaughter rule" win. BD Dogan, took the mound, moving Lyle to third,
replacing the bruised new daddy Dan Ryan. Richardson took the right-center spot
and Mossor to catch. TP and Rhodes were the designated hitters. With fatigue
setting in, MP couldn't quite stand up to the well rested Rocks. Playing
twenty-two straight innings, Mt. Pleasant ran out of gas dropping this game 10
to 1.
Congrats to all the Warriors for
a strong season. Well done. The Warriors organization wishes to say thanks to
all the fans and family who came out to support the Mt. Pleasant team. The 2008
World Series of Mt. Pleasant begins this Thursday night. The SECOND Place
Warriors go up against the New Hope Reds in the 8:30 game slot. Tickets are
still available, but are going fast. Round two takes place on the the 22nd,
round three on the 24th, and finals on the 29th.
Warriors Maintaining Second Place
June 20, 2008
Roanoke Co. Va. - The Mt. Pleasant Warriors took on the Summerdean’s
on Tuesday night at the Pitzer Road Stadium.
For the first time in several weeks
the air was clear, humidity low, temperature very pleasant in the 70’s. The
6:30 game time being just right so that the bright sun could be enjoyed for it’s
last hour of golden glow. As the Silver Maples began casting their shadows over
home plate and slowly growing across the infield until that grand ole Mill
Mountain would conceal the bright sun, bringing this day into evening time.
A serene setting for the romantics
and poets, but for those playing anywhere from left field to right center field
as well as the center of the infield, was at times like fighting a fire
breathing dragon.
But fight they did, as the Warriors strong
offense carried over from the past games. Strong hitting and smart at bats let
Mt. Pleasant take advantage of a struggling Summerdean pitcher. Taking the lead
at the top of the first and not letting up till the last out was made in the
bottom of the fifth. This game was called short at the end of five innings due
to time limitations. Trailing 19 to 11 going into the bottom of the fourth,
the home team Summerdean would pull out all the stops, picking up three runs.
The Warriors stand fast though winning this one 23 – 17.
“Our guys played great tonight”, says
coach Tom “slow moves” Parr. “Our players are an inspiration, talking about
great plays from Smitty on first, or several times it was 6-5,
Carey Sink to Spano for run saving put outs
at third. Spanoman is the kind of athlete you love to have on your team,
sacrificing his body game after game, playing thru untold pain just for the
team. Todd Rowland too, in the outfield fighting the blazing sun, having to use
his glove to shield its glare, would instead stop the fly balls with his
shoulder, head, whatever it takes.”
Jamie Lyle pitched another good solid game
with Jereme “Lamaze” Mossor behind the plate.
Dan “#3’s almost here” Ryan and Alex “A-Rob”
Roberts took over the left and left center positions with Chris Rhodes at right
and Rowland rounding out the outfield.” The Warriors bench being shortened
tonight with Jason Cockayne on call up with the Toronto Blue Jays organization,
Seth Mullen, Matt Parr, Chase Emerson were away, and Greg Belcher on IR..
For the Third time in as many weeks,
The Warriors would suffer game postponements. Thursday’s scheduled game against
first place New Hope Greenies had to be put on hold due to “equipment failure”.
Apparently there was a glitz in the high tech, state of the art lighting system
used in the Pitzer Rd. Stadium.
Mt. Pleasant is now 7 and 3 for second place
going into the last third of the season with five games left on the regular
schedule and three games to be made up against Rockingham, Thrasher, and NHG.
Warriors Take Huge Win
June 13, 2008
Roanoke Co. Va. - For this edition of the
Warriors Wrap-up, I’ll be covering the last three games played in the same
amount of weeks. Memorial Day week saw the most action thus far with both
scheduled games being played. As the league faced opposition from unusual
sources such as a tornado and high school graduations.
As observed in the standings above,
the Mt. Pleasant Warriors now find themselves in unknown territory, Second Place
with a six and 3 record.
The May 27th game with the first
place New Hope Greenies has been the only speed bump in the Warriors season.
The Greenies started off hitting well and never slowed down, and our Warriors
just never seemed able to find the handle on their batting game. New Hope Green
took this game 12 to 3 over the Warriors.
The Warriors faced Oak Grove Brethren
on Thursday May 29th. In what may have ended up being a very costly game. Mt.
Pleasant came out with some strong hitting taking the early lead. Oak Grove
picked up runs on a few MP errors, but the Warriors kept consistent thru the
batting order. Late in the game, the Warriors nearly lost Eric “The Doctor”
Spano for the season. On a third and long, Quarterback Jason Cockayne, looks
long to hit wide receiver Spano on a down and in, leaping for the catch he takes
a big hit from the linebacker Belcher, nailing him in the chest area, nearly
fracturing several ribs and displacing some internal organs. After a weeks
rest, the Dr is back ready for action. The Warriors do hold off to win this one
10 to 9.
Mt. Pleasant was scheduled to play
just one game last week on June 3rd, and a “bye” on Thursday. The Tuesday game
ended up being postponed due to an unusual weather event. Some in the team’s
organization feel that the Warriors clerical staff used their Divine
connections, as a historic tornado came into the area blowing out any chance for
play that night, thus allowing more time for Spanoman’s recuperation.
More weather came into the picture
for the June 10th game against the New Hope Red’s. This game went on as
scheduled as mild showers continued most of the evening. Some lightning was
seen in the area and not just in the sky’s. The Warriors bats provided much of
the high powered blast that night. Coming out of the gates, MP’s line up hit as
never before. The Shell shocked Red’s were never able to recover from the high
powered offense and Coach Parr was tested to work in the fourteen Warrior bench
into the game as this one would last just 5 innings. The Mt. Pleasant Warriors
take this one 26 to 1.
The June 12th game against Rockingham
Court has been postponed. Mt. Pleasant’s Mayor decreed Thursday as a holiday in
recognition of the Honorable Chase Emerson upon his Graduation.
Congrats Chaser.
Warriors In Second Place
May 23, 2008
Roanoke Co. Va. - Most of us are too young to
remember the 1967 Boston Red Sox. Carl Yastrzemski,
Jim Lonborg, Mike Ryan and team became known as the Cardiac Kids. They had
the habit of falling behind early in games, then make some sort of dramatic
comeback.
Last night at the Pitzer Road Stadium, the
Mt. Pleasant Warriors took on Summerdean. Fans of all ages came out in droves to
make it a standing room only crowd. Not unlike the ’67 Sox, the Warriors are
resurrecting the Cardiac Kids nickname. Could it be that we too have a
Bostonian named Ryan on the roster. Maybe it’s the way the team has been able
to keep the fans on the edge of their seats.
Summerdean came out strong in the top of the first, bringing in 6 runs on 10
hits. Pitcher Jamie Lyle, shaken but not stirred, kept his cool and helped keep
his teammates focused. Mount Pleasant
virtually went three up, three down until the bottom of the third. Then the
Warriors would get singles from Todd Rowland, Greg Belcher, and Jeff Smith.
With bases loaded, lead off hitter Jason “Turbo” Cockayne bust one over the
glove of the ‘Deans' right centerfielder. Determined for the grand slam,
Cockayne put on so much speed rounding third, as Coach Parr put it, Smitty had
to be heads up knowing that someone had to whoa him up or Jason would have taken
out half the back stop. The Warriors trailed by just two. Then in the
bottom of the fifth, Lyle singled to left field. Nathan Wilson then doubled to
left putting two in scoring position. Jeff Smith stepped up to bat (one down,
two on) and put up the sacrifice fly to deep left field bringing in the tying
runs.
In the bottom of the 6th, the game was tied
at 6. Short stop Carey Sink singled, followed by a single from Seth Mullen.
Dan “Red Sox” Ryan singled to left for the RBI as Sink scores to take the lead.
In the top of seventh with a 7 -6 lead,
Summerdean was at the heart of their batting order.
The pitch. A grounder back to the mound,
Lyle to Ryan, out one.
Second batter, the pitch, hard grounder to
Spano at third, 5 – 3 out two.
Third up. Warriors get the win with this
out. Pitch, ball one. Pitch, ball two. Silence from the stands.
Pitch, hit, fly ball over the short stop, but
Carey Sink comes up big with a huge leap, making the game saving catch. Out
three, game over. Warriors pull out a heart stopping victory. “The guys just
have a never say die mentality, a real winning attitude”, Parr said. “We had to
switch out some of the outfielders just to keep the legs fresh out there, Alex
Roberts and Chris Rhodes make big plays in the field and big hits at the right
times.”
The Warriors now hold a 4 – 2 record, tied
for second place at the end of the first round of the schedule.
Mt. Pleasant will again take the field on
Tuesday, May 27th as they take on the first place undefeated New Hope Greenies.
Warriors Starting Off With Winning Record
May 20, 2008
Roanoke Co.
Va.- Boy oh’ boy, if you missed the last couple of Mt. Pleasant Warriors games,
well then you just missed some fierce and competitive softball games.
Since my last
report, the Warriors faced the Thrashers on May 8th, in what proved
to be a strong offensive battle. Or as someone put it, “a comedy of errors”.
Both teams struggled defensively, especially the Warriors, who were without
their top infielder. He, who wears many titles (“the Spanoman”, “the Doctor”,
“Dr. E.”, Eric Spano), was taking time away to receive his Knighthood. There is
also a rumor, but being a rumor, you won’t hear it here, that he was somewhere
down south wearing a funny robe and weird looking hat.
Thrasher had
their offense going strong, early, and constant throughout the game. The
Warriors waited till almost the 5th inning to wake up their bats, but
a little too late, Mt. Pleasant fell 18 – 16 in regulation.
Going up
against the New Hope Reds on May 15th, MP took a lesson from their
last outing and got their offense going from the start. Great fielding from our
stars, Jason "Go Daddy” Cockayne, the Honorable Chase Emerson, Seth Mullen, and
Nathan Wilson, kept us in the game as they held off a Reds fifth inning rally.
Starter, Jamie Lyle gets the win as the Warriors take this one 10 to 8. Giving
them a 500 record for the season at 2 – 2.
Last evening, MP took on the
Rockingham Court Rockies at the Pitzer Road Stadium. Dealing with a short
bench, Coach Tom “howmanyouts?” Parr had to make some adjustments. Spano,
Lyle, Greg Belcher, and Todd Rowland were all out on assignment to the Warriors
Farm teams. Matt Parr and Seth Mullen were also out. Parr called on relief
pitcher, Brian (I can’t take my sister anywhere) Dogan. Thanks Heather.
Falling to 5 zip at the middle of two, the Warriors pick up 4 runs from Dogan,
Wilson, A-Rob, and Smith. Tom “go Penguins” Parr started off the bottom of the
third with what would be a 14 hit and 9 run rally,
giving MP a 13 – 9 lead. Brian Dogan received his first win of the season with
a 15 – 12 victory over the Rockies, giving the Warriors a winning .600 record to
begin the season.
In a post
game interview, Outfielder Jason Cockayne pointed out that the team has come a
long way in the last couple a years to finally get on the winning side. Parr is
cautious, adding “We need to stay focused on what we need to do. Our fielding is
the weak spot right now, but it’s getting better each game. Most of the team is
batting .500 or better, six of the guys are well over .700.” “That’s
incredible,” he said, “but it’s a long season...we gotta keep hitting hard and
confident, think ahead, and communicate on the offense.” “There’s a lot of
versatility on this team. Were able to move guys around with out missing a
beat.” That’s the team concept the organization has talked about. Several of
their guys have commitments with our lower “A” farm teams striving to work hard
on developing the Warriors of the future.
Join the team
Thursday night at 8:30 as they face the Summerdean Caps.
Warriors
Kick Off New Season
May 7, 2008
Ah, spring is in the air, flowers
blooming, birds singing and building their nest, pollen covering everything.
Time once again for a new season of softball.
Pre-season training camp got under
way in early April. Most of last year’s team returned, with the addition of
several new players to the Warriors bench. Veteran Coach, Tom Parr relates that
several players did not return due to retirements, call-ups or trades.
New to the team is rookie Alex
Roberts, called up from the MPBC Hoops league. Our scouts brought in
free-agents Chris Rhodes and Darin Duffy. Dan Ryan has been acquired in a
multi-player trade deal with the Red Sox organization. “Danny brings some speed,
batting and sure-footedness to the infield. Chris will add some depth to our
fielding. “A-Rob” will add some speed and versatility to the in-field.
Regretfully, Duffy is dealing with reoccurring back spasms and may be out of
the line up for some time.”
The returning Warriors roster
includes. Greg Belcher, Jason Cockayne, Brian Dogan, Chase Emerson, Jamie
Lyle, Jereme Mossor, Seth Mullen, Matt Parr, Todd Rowland, Carey Sink, Jeff
Smith, Eric “Dr. Spanoman” Spano, and Nathan Wilson. Dave Richardson and
Patrick Harper are currently on call-ups.
The season got under way last
Thursday, 5/1 against last years league champions, New Hope Greenies. “We just
got off to a slow start, call it first game jitters.” Parr said. Falling
behind 7 to 1 thru the first 4 innings, the Warriors got their bats working but
just ran out of time, losing 11 to 9 in regulation.
Game two met with the Brethren
last night as the MP picks up their first win. “We picked up right where we
left off with the bats.” Pitcher Jamie Lyle said. Showing our versatility, Parr
states, “We got some players that can play anywhere on the field, even on the
other team. I’m really proud of these guys.”
Next game it tomorrow night, taking on
Thrasher at 6:30 at the Mt. Pleasant Sports Complex.
There will also be a meet and greet this
Sunday morning at the teams organizational facility located at 3000 Pitzer Rd.
Two times:
9:45 (smaller groups for skill training)
and
10:45 Large group instructional
conference, lead by outfielder Jason Cockayne.
All players should be on hand. Fans are
encouraged to come out and meet your favorite players. Press and photo ops are
allowed.
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