Russ' Softball

In case you don't know....

2010-04-29T21:18:00.000-07:00

... the softball field is near 100th and Riley, in Zeeland. If you can find the Family Fare, you'll be able to find our field.

Schedule now available!

2010-04-28T22:47:00.001-07:00

Please direct your attention to the right hand side of your screen for the 2010 schedule.
Thanks!

The Final Score Was 19-1

2009-07-29T20:57:00.001-07:00

What else more is there to say? :)

Rain Delay

2009-07-22T22:22:00.003-07:00

July 22's game has been postponed to July 29, 9:00 p.m., due to inclement weather.

Video: The last game of the 2009 regular season

2009-07-15T20:43:00.000-07:00

For those new to these videos, I do not trim them down into a highlight reel. Instead, I post the raw video. As if you were slipping in and out of consciousness during a game and only caught bits and pieces, so are these videos. When you are 80 and in an assisted living facility, you can watch these videos and better remember the good times you had watching Russ' Softball in 2009.

Next game: Wednesday, 9 p.m. (It might be 9:10, but, be safe... be there at 9:00.)

Photo Spread: Did you know you can only recharge batteries for a limited amount of time?

2009-07-15T20:38:00.000-07:00

Photos! My camera's batteries died shortly into this short game. And the extra set of batteries I grabbed, I think, have died for good. We'll see, but, rechargeable batteries do have a limited lifespan. They may be at the end of their life. Which didn't work out too well for me, since I still wanted stills, in addition to moving photos. Nevertheless, I took the best out of what I had. Its still a big post. Its just not the best stuff ever. Enjoy(!)(?).

Jason gets ready to pitch

John gets ready for practice

Waiting for the game to start. We waited a little over ten minutes past our start time.

Another image of waiting around. This time, its vertical, so its different. ;)

Melissa and Grace chat about Grace being done with school.

Sitting all alone... he is such a zero. :P

Brian and a kid. (Hey, if I knew everyone's name, I'd have a different job, m'kay?)

I love the sky and sunlight in this photo! So cool.

Aah... blue skies, bright lights, but everyone's in focus... *sigh* Its so pretty!

Dan the Man.

Its (un)lucky number 13! Seriously, if its both a luck and unlucky number, then isn't it just... a number?

Brian, laughing it up as pitcher.

An umpire. For no other reason than I could. :)

Sarah. (Again, my batteries died, so I'm going with what I've got!)

Cool shadow, cool sky... Just... cool!

"Go after it!" is probably what they were saying... in the peanut gallery! Oh, snap.

Melissa, trying to be all cool with her hat and shades, hiding from the cameras.

Not a good picture of Mike, but, I'd rather have some Mike than no Mike at all. :)

Sarah laughs, disbelieving that she swung when she knew she shouldn't.

Jason goes up to bat. This is apparently taken during the second inning.

Normally, I don't publish photos of the pets that make an appearance. However, since this is the Jurries family dog, I'll allow an exception. This is Fred, a Basset Hound.

Good thing I'm almost out of photos... I'm getting to the point where I write really weird, nonsensical captions just for the sake of taking up space. Like this caption, for example.

And... that's it! The last picture my camera took for the 2009 Softball regular season.

Next week: Tournaments start! Wednesday at 9 p.m. Be there, or... not be there. If you are on the team, be there. If you are a fan, be there. If you are not either one of those... I can't imagine this blog holds much interest for you (nor the other two groups, but especially you!), so... I guess you can skip.

Recap: Mercy me! That's the last game of regular season

2009-07-15T17:58:00.000-07:00

Hello, readers! It has been a while. In addition to our week off, your not-so-humble writer has been working. Ergo, blog content has been light. Not this week! (Well, kind of this week.) I was able to get away and go to the game, which went down like this:

1st Inning
Top: Nate gets to second base. (NOT LIKE THAT. Unless you were thinking about softball. Then, like that.) Becki gets to first base. Which, how many other sports are there where if you get to the third of something, its a compliment? Anyways. Becki gets out, same with Julie. Nate runs home, shows emotion. Dan gets to first. Kelli strikes out, bringing Russ' to three outs.
Bottom: Brian pitches the first inning. Kyle and Julie work together to make a good play for the first out. Kyle makes a great catch. However, the ball was going so fast, Kyle said that it "might have broke my glove."
Score: 2-1, Buntes favor

2st Inning
Top: Mike goes to first. And then he's tagged out, Sarah gets out as well. Jason makes it to first base (insert "and he'll only ever make it to first base" joke here), Melissa strikes out. Our half of the inning goes remarkably fast -- a lesson the other team could have heeded later on...
Bottom: Jason takes the pitcher's mound. Nate makes a good try to get someone out at first. Dan catches a high and pretty.
Score: 6-1, Buntes favor

3rd Inning
Top: Jason goes to first. Same with Becki and John. Brian strikes out. Becki gets out, same with John. Two runs are scored in-between.
Bottom: The third inning, otherwise known as the inning where WE GOT THE POINT ALREADY STOP SCORING RUNS. They honestly reached the limit for home runs in an inning. That's how bad the inning went. Ten runs were made. Becki and Julie worked together to get the first out. As Grace pointed out, throughout the season, Julie has gotten very good at doing the splits!
Score: 16-1, Buntes favor

4th Inning
Top: Nate walks to second. Kelli gets out. Nate makes it all the way home. Kyle gets home, Sarah gets to second, Dan and Melissa get out. And... that kind of ends the game. We got mercied. And we got mercied good. What a way to end the regular season.

Next week begins Tournaments, which lasts for three weeks. Its always odd, because you never know if the team will last one, two, or all three weeks. The first game for us is next week, July 22, at 9 p.m. ET. Beyond that, I don't know the times... times will be posted on a as-I-find-them-out basis. :)

(Thanks to recent cosmetology school-graduate Grace for the notes!)

Play like Mickey Mantle

2009-06-21T20:33:00.001-07:00

During my 18 years I came to bat almost 10,000 times. I struck out about 1,700 times and walked maybe 1,800 times. You figure a ballplayer will average about 500 at bats a season. That means I played seven years without ever hitting the ball.
-- Mickey Mantle

VIDEO: June 17, 2009

2009-06-18T10:14:00.000-07:00

Here are assorted video clips from the June 17, 2009 softball game. A little over 22 minutes total of video is represented here.

You may notice the videos are not in widescreen, like the last ones. I was experimenting with another shooting mode my pocket camcorder has. Instead of taking HD video at 60 frames per second, I used the VGA mode, which is supposed to be more web-friendly, but at lesser quality. (By the time I got done exporting and uploading to YouTube, my HD videos looked less than stellar... trust me, the source files looked better.)

Next week's game is June 24, at 6:15 p.m. Eastern Time. We are the visitors that week.

Photo Spread: June 17, 2009 game

2009-06-17T19:54:00.000-07:00

The morning saw rain, and the afternoon was very gray and dreary. However, by the time we got to practice, it started to clear up a little, and was a little bit sunny for the game.

Coach Nate supervises practice time.

Brian takes some hits. As in, softball practice. Not as in physical abuse.

Hi, slightly-out-of-focus Leslie!

And its off to the main field for the game!

Some unnamed people try to avoid the camera.

Its laughing time!

See? Laughing time.

No one's laughing, Jason. You can stop.

Nate looks on from the bench, as Alyssa writes in the scorebook.

This is my favorite picture of the night. Dan and Kyle look on after a play. Don't ask me which play, I don't know. For all I know, they were looking at a squirrel. Very intensely.

Lots of players and fans tonight!

Hi, Rebecca!

John gets ready to bat.

This photo of Grace brought to you by... Meijer. (Because of the blue Meijer bag? Sponsorship joke? Yeah? .... anyone?)

Derek came by to watch the team play, so, naturally, he and Brian smoked together.

Oohh! Steep angle!

This week's challenge: Whose shoes are these?
Last week's answer: Julie VanVoorst

Devan smiles on.

Mike tosses one bat in and he goes up to home plate.

From zero to... well, its still zero, actually.

It's Kelli! And lucky number 13.

It is a laughing kind of a night, isn't it?

Smile smile. (Yes, I'm running out of caption material already.)

Sometimes, I actually bother to get an action shot. Like right here.

Brian gets ready to hit the ball, which is thrown by the pitcher to the batter. (There, did I change the captions up enough?)

Dan and John discuss the game thus far.

And from their talk, John goes out onto the field.

Nice hat, Jason.

And now the game is done. Goodbye, Russ' team + fans!

Next week's game is at 6:05 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. For those who are on Pacific time, please adjust accordingly./

In Summary: The June 17, 2009 game

2009-06-17T19:51:00.000-07:00

As you may have noticed, I was not around for the June 10th game, hence, no documentation. Not so for this week! Photographs and video were taken my yours truly, while Grace took copious notes. Those notes are what can make this recap happen. (Thanks, Grace!)

1st Inning

Brian pitches the first inning. Nate caught the ball! Not fast enough to get to first. But he gets first out. Kelli just about caught a high and pretty. Two runs scored by the Independents.
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Nate gets to first. Becki gets out, but we still love you Becki and you still love softball, for pete's sake. Kyle brings the ball over the fence! And then? Home run! Two runs scored by Russ'. Julie walked to first, Dan went to first also.

2nd Inning

Its Jason's turn to pitch. Becki gets the first out, Dan catches a high and pretty.
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Mike and Sarah strike out fairly quickly. Jason gets to second base (in sports, people!), Melissa strikes out. Neither team wins any points.

3rd Inning

Brian is back to pitching. He... doesn't take it completely well. "Butler. You're pitching the rest of the game," he exclaimed. Dan and Melissa both made great catches, which I know is absolutely compelling to read about when I have no visuals to demonstrate, but, trust us: they were good. Grace then wrote on the notes: "Think Dan gave B(rian)T(enBrock) a heart attack. 'Sarah, don't get hit by the bat!'"
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Brian gets to third. Becki gets out. Devan gets to first. Julie out. John out. I think someone got a run in this inning, but, I don't know who. Just... give it to yourself, gentle reader. Congratulations. The inning closed out, 2-3, Russ' favor.

4th Inning

Butler gets the first out. Kelli makes a good catch, and Julie does the splits to get the last out. Yoga in the ballfield? (That's my commentary, not Grace's.)
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A few people made it up to bat, and most didn't score. Fine. I can repeat this for every inning, for every game, even the good ones. What made this inning special was this: we were playing, when suddenly we heard a player yell "whose kid is this?" Out by the outfield, one of Brian's kids had found a small hole in the fence, climbed through and was now on the playing field. He was quickly escorted out, to the amusement of everyone. Nate, Sarah and Kyle all make it home, ending the inning 2-6.

5th Inning

Brian is pitching again, and is one big basket of nerves. Julie advises him to "shake it off." So, Brian does some shaking there on the pitcher's mound. Good. for. him. Julie does the splits, again. Showoff. Kelli makes one good catch, prompting Grace to write "WTB Kelli!" A long story short: The Independents score a lot of runs.
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Mike walks to second. Julie strikes out, same with Jason. Mike the makes it home, so, good job Mike! Kelli gets out, closing the inning 6-7, Russ' favor. (I have to say, I was busy taking pictures and video that I never really noticed that we were winning for a couple innings. That's pretty cool!)

6th Inning

Melissa catches a foul ball, proving her dedication to catching no matter what. Kyle gets the second out, and then dives for the third. The other team scores one run total.
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Brian strikes out. Same with Devan and John. Melissa makes it to first base, while Sarah gets to home. (Sometimes, I wish baseball terms weren't used as metaphors for dating. You can read this all totally the wrong way!) Inning ends 7-8, Russ' favor.

7th Inning

Brian doesn't want to pitch, because, this is how he is. There's some good teamwork on the field to get some outs, even through the other team scores two runs, bringing them into the lead. The same kid who walked out into the field almost got injured by a stray pop up ball. Poor kid.
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Becki gets out. Nate gets out. Julie gets out. Just like that. And the game ends, Independents 9, Russ' 8.

Next Week

June 24: vs. Southside Party Store, 6:15 p.m. (V)

Video: 2009 Softball Game 5

2009-06-03T22:15:00.000-07:00

Above is a collection of short videos taking during Game 5 of the 2009 season. I didn't edit it down to a 90 second package, like a good journalist would have. Instead, I took the lazy option: I stitched together all 9 minutes worth of footage. Worse, my good video editing programs still won't cooperate, so, you get these clips without any fading, audio editing, transitions, titles, or anything else. It is just raw video. Like watching a home movie.

Highlights to look out for:
2:00 - Mike's battle for home plate
3:45 - Start of the triple play.
And... somewhere in there, is one fan's shout-out to a player who couldn't play because of an injury, plus lots of video of people swinging the bat. LOTS.

EDIT: If that video doesn't work, here's a YouTube version (which allows for fullscreen):

Photo Spread: June 3, 2009

2009-06-03T18:41:00.001-07:00

Here we are, another week of Russ' Softball. This was the fifth week on the schedule, the fourth week we've played. Isn't that incredible? The time is going by so fast. Anywho, here's what you guys visit the blog for: the photos!

Warming up before the game.

Nate takes a turn throwing during practice for a minute.

John gets ready for some practice.

Mike smiles ahead.

Dan keeps his eye on the target. Its like he's the got the eye... of the tiger. (That would be funnier if I could SAY that joke to you, so I could sing that last little bit.)

Sarah lets her hair down during practice. Literally.

John, Alyssa and Dan keep note of what's happening on the field.

I think its here that Kyle scrapped his knee up really well.

Get him out, Kyle, get him out!

And he keeps on running!

The girls strike up a pose.

WHOSE SHOES ARE THESE?
Last week's answer: Brian

Jason takes off running. See that dust cloud by his feet?

Rebecca takes a turn up at bat.

John gets ready to score a run.

Nate's looking a little blue, but, that's a white balance thing, not his attitude or anything. Seriously, there's a bit of a blue tint to that photo, isn't there?

Sarah takes her turn as catcher.

What do you get when you add one and one? Eleven.

Hey, the bats are there just as often as the players.

Jason and his 'shades.

Okay, so I didn't have pithy commentary for every photo. I just kind of started to repeat myself.

Coming later on to the Russ' Softball blog... more video!!!

2009 Game 5: The Recap

2009-06-03T18:15:00.001-07:00

Thanks to note-taking from Grace, here is a nice little recap of what went down during the June 3, 2009 game:

Practice: Practice went fairly well. We had some problems catching the ball, but overall, everyone was in great spirits. Especially Kyle, until he realized who we were playing tonight. "Is that the team with the guy in the spandex shorts?" he asked. "I HATE this team!"

First Inning: Butler was pitching tonight. No, not pitchy. He wasn't singing. He was throwing the ball. Kyle did a nice slide to catch a ball, but didn't get the out. The other team got off to a very strong start, grabbing five runs immediately. Nate scores Russ' one run to end the inning.

Second Inning: Second verse, worse than the first. The opposing team gets seven runs, totaling 12 total. At this point, the word "mercy" was starting to float around. And no one would let that stand. Mike ran to home, but got caught between third and home, and had to wiggle his way out to score a run. Sarah has an easier time getting to home, same with Jason. The inning ends, 12 to 4.

Third Inning: Julie does some splits to get an out. There was some good tag-teaming to get the third out. No runs were scored by the other team. Russ', on the other hand, got a few. John went home, Nate followed, same with Kelli. (I have a video of that... it'll be up later.) nning ends, 12-7 -- above mercy territory.

Fourth Inning: No one scored. On either team. Dan and Mike both got on base, but, they shut us out as good as we shut them out earlier on in the inning.

Fifth Inning: The tides turn. Jason got to second, same with Mike. That is as far as they got. Earlier on, though, the other team scored three more runs, closing out the inning 15-7.

Sixth Inning: This is kind of the sixth inning and seventh, because we got to go up to bat twice, since it didn't matter if the other team got more points, did it? John scored another run, closing out the game 15-8.

Next week's game is at 6:15 again.

Photos: May 27, 2009

2009-05-30T22:02:00.000-07:00

Whose foot is this?

Last week's answer: Coach Kyle

Thanks to Grace for taking photos from this game!!! :)

VIDEO: What does Russ' Softball mean to you?

2009-05-20T22:19:00.000-07:00

This week, I turned my camera's video function on and asked a few players: what does Russ' Softball mean to you? Here are the answers. PLUS: Some random game footage! PLUS: Its all very raw video, with no titles, transitions or fades. PLUS: The video is right here:

Next game: Wednesday, May 27, 7:10 p.m. eastern time.

The Team Photos

2009-05-20T21:47:00.001-07:00

I figured I'd give you all a chance to see each photo. So, I made this separate post!

Next game: Wednesday, May 27, 7:10 p.m. eastern time.

Question: Does anybody want individual portrait photos while in uniform? I'll only be at about half the games, but if you do, just let me know before and/or after the game and I can snap a few for you.

Photos: The Double-Header

2009-05-20T20:56:00.001-07:00

Time for a super-deluxe photo spectacular! More photos than your computer can load efficiently. Isn't this just cool?

Jason practices pitching until Brian shows up.

Nate goes over the team roster, making sure everything's in order.

Everybody practicing on the field.

Chillin' with the kids.

Julie's looking at something. I don't know the context of photos, I just take them! ;)

Pre-game talk, while waiting for our field to clear out.

The roster!

Brian pitches both games for us.

Becks gets ready to catch some balls!
(Yeah, there's no real way to make that sound exciting, is there?)

Nate. Standing.

Oh look, here's Brian again! Out of the 300+ photos taken, I picked these?
Let's try to change things up now...

The fans watch the game, not the photographer. :)

Julie makes a run for first base.

Look at Brian run! This is what I lacked last year: action shots. Let's see if that improves this year.

Nate adjusting his cap as he responds to a teammate's comment. (Maybe about the hat?)
Oh, also, he's smiling. (Yes, he can!)

LOL, Jason! Legs are for balance, not falling down!

He's a good sport about it. At least he didn't have far to fall down! (Get it? Because he's shorter than the average West Michigan man? Haha?.... I laughed.)

John smiles as he goes up to bat.

Kids are cute. Am I right?

This week's guessing game: Whose shoes are those?
Last week's answer: Becki. Congrats to Vicki for answering right first!

Sarah gets ready to catch.

Ooh! Blurry semi-action! This is new, you have not seem much of this before.

Kyle gets ready for his turn at bat.

Hi, Kelzinga!

Mike focuses on the ball.

Brian takes a swing at bat. (Swing at bat... swing... bat... ? Boy, is this a tough crowd or what?)

A sun-beaten Carleen lets the ball have it.

John gets ready for another turn.

Nate, in action.

The coaches look on at their team.

Butler gets ready... for whatever may happen. What if they throw cans of soup? He'll be ready. Soccer balls? He'll be ready. He's ready for whatever may happen.

Nope, nothing in there, Dan. You have to catch something.

Melissa, catching and doing her best not to get hit by the ball.

Watching from a distance. See that? That is called a "wide shot." This is supposed to give you some sense of perspective, keeps things alive and interesting. Did it do that for you? .... No? Well, its there, at any rate.

Kyle gets ready to...

... run!

Sarah takes another turn at bat.

Hi, Moe!

Hi, Sarah!

Devan, Nate and Dan ponder the game's actions.

Lucky number seven!

Walking through the gate.

Nate smiles, because, it takes more work to not smile, so why not brighten the day?

Devan gets his game face on.

Mike wonders if there are any treats left after the game.

Next game: Wednesday, 7:10 p.m. eastern time.

Recap: A Well-Balanced Double-Header

2009-05-20T19:44:00.000-07:00

Russ' neither came out ahead, nor came out behind, but rather maintained a balance: One win, one loss. The first game was won by a lot, but we worked hard to get there, and we had fun doing so. The second game? It was pretty clear what was going to happen right away. Any attempts to put up a fight were shut out immediately. It... was brutal. (And we play them again in a month!) Grace took notes, so I'm now able to bring you: the game summaries.

(Note: I am not a sports journalist. RBIs? Line drive? Sacrifice fly? No clue what those mean. This is written in a very informal way.)

Practice Highlight
- A little kid got hit in the eye. Kids, am I right?
- Mike was running to get a ball, didn't quite know where on the field he was, and... ran into a trash can.
- The game started a little over ten minutes after the scheduled time.

Game no.1
Inning no.1 - "Wow, we are kind of amazing!"
We had a little bit of trouble with fumbling with the ball when throwing to get the other players out. But when we got up to bat? That's when the confidence took over. Nate, Dan, Kyle, Becki and Mike all ran to home, scoring us five points. (That's right, this blog does math for you.) Three of those points were all scored at once, which was an incredible boost for team spirit right there. Inning score: 5-2, Russ' favor.

Inning no.2 - "Wow, we were amazing last inning!"
There was some more fumbling with the ball. Brian, the evening's pitcher, got a little mad, in his Brian-esque way. All in all, the other team only managed to get one player by us, giving them an extra point. Butler struck out, Melissa walks to first, Devan struck out, Leen got to first, John out. Inning score: 5-3, Russ' favor.

Inning no.3 - "Let's more than double our score, okay?"
There is a good play made by Jason, but I can't remember what it was. Mike makes a catch "high and pretty," as Grace put it, which worked out really well for us: the opposing team scored just one more run. When its our turn up at bat, it is pretty much an explosion of awesomeness, except for Julie. Julie ran to first. Julie thought she was safe. Empire said otherwise. Julie tried so hard to not be so mad! Basically, here's how it went: lots of the team got runs. Dan, Mike, Kelli... lots of runs. Inning score: 12-4, Russ' favor.

Inning no.4 - "Don't slide!"
I try not to bring Grace's note-taking in that much, because she was doing me a favor, and she wrote notes so that I could turn them into these wonderfully unreadable paragraphs. However, I think I'll just write what she wrote for while the opposing team was at bat: "Devan gets high and pretty. B(rian) T(enBrock) walks one. Boring." Short, sweet and to-the-point, no? Other team gets two points.
When its our turn, Becki slides in to third base, in spite of her mom yelling rather loudly, DO NOT SLIDE BECKI! Classic. She winds up scoring for the team. Inning score: 13-6, Russ' favor.

Inning no.5 - "What's a bad habit?"
While catching, Melissa gets hit in the head. And there was a joke made about "bunting," but, you really had to have been there. Or have a better memory when writing up recaps. One of those two. We shut the "others" out from getting a single point. Kyle runs to home, scoring Russ' another point.
Someone mad a mention about having a bad habit, leading me to state: "You know what's a bad habit? When all the nuns steal from the poor." Thank you, I'll be here all week.
EDIT: Apparently, the joke doesn't work, because logically, nuns live in an abbie and wear a habit. Still.

Innings no.6 & 7 - (We can really just combine these two)
Brian does a pretty sweet slide action. Julie does the splits for an out. Dan catches a high ball. And... well, other team scores two more, but that isn't enough to win the game.
Game score: 15-8, Russ' favor.

Game 2 - "Hey, weren't we good just two minutes ago?"
The entire game can be summarized as such: It took about forty minutes to get through the game. Immediately we realized that we were like David and we were facing a team with a few metaphorical Goliath's on them. Plus, we were tired, and the other team didn't have a game right before. Nate made a couple good catches, but, it really didn't matter if we caught the ball or not. The other team was good. And we didn't/couldn't/didn't bring it. Everyone is frustrated, because we did so good last game, and this other team makes us look like we've never played softball before in our lives! It took some doing, but we kept spirits up enough so nobody left the field feeling terrible. After all, we had one amazing game right before. Absolutely classic.
Game score: 0-8, Russ' mercied after five innings.

Next week's game: Is at 7:10 p.m. eastern time. I leave you with this sports quote that, according to the Internet, is supposed to inspire you. So, um... feel its spirit?

The pitcher has got only a ball. I've got a bat. So the percentage of weapons is in my favor and I let the fellow with the ball do the fretting.
-- Hank Aaron

See you next week. Pictures + video coming to the blog soon.

2009: Game 1

2009-05-06T18:21:00.000-07:00

Charles had to work. So, no in-depth game recap. A long story short is that there was a shorter game. The team had a rusty first start, but gets a week off to fit in some practice time and become a stronger team. (At the end of the day, though, this is for fun. And if you can't have fun playing softball, then maybe you should work for Charles, because tonight was not fun for him either. However, he digresses.)

Grace was nice enough to take some pictures of the men and women of the Russ' Softball team. These are the pictures.

Guess who? Post your guess in the comments and the answer will be revealed next week!
And don't even ask Charles, because, he'll need Grace to answer this for him! :)

Next week: No game. Enjoy practice and/or the season finale of Lost.

The Schedule Is Here

2009-05-01T17:39:00.000-07:00

he relevant details have been added to the sidebar for your convenience.

If you enjoy seeing the paper schedule, then please, enjoy this recreation of the official document. If you click on the "More" button, you can even print off a copy. How cool is that?

2009 Softball 2 height="500" width="450" > value="http://d.scribd.com/ScribdViewer.swf?document_id=14844746&access_key=key-23wxbkd7yvo4f8jctgv2&page=1&version=1&viewMode=list">

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Other How-to-Guides & Manu tips sports

Its coming soon!

2009-04-29T18:31:00.000-07:00

Watch this blog for the 2009 softball schedule.

2009 Season: Practice no.1

2009-04-25T11:24:00.000-07:00

The first practice of the 2009 Softball season was held on April 25, 2009, at Grandville Little League ballfields. Training was cut short due to inclement weather. Photos were cut short due to the photographer arriving as the team was packing up to go home.

View of the field from my bedroom. Yes, I can watch everyone practice.

Yes, that might be creepy, I suppose.

Picking up the softballs.

Figuring out when to play next.

And... farewell!

Next practice: Monday, April 27, 7 p.m. at the Grandville Little League ballfields.

It's that time of year again!!

2009-03-11T22:05:00.000-07:00

Well I figured I'd start posting on here again since its that time of year again for softball. Currently we have a fair amount of interest in playing this year with some new and old faces from last year. If you could please let me know sometime soon of your commitment to playing wed's this year that would be great. Hopefully we can keep it in the Grandville Russ' family, counting myself in, this year again although I might be able to get some people from Wyoming. Also, I fully expect to go undefeated this year in the regular season and the playoffs, anything less is a disappointment right? So start practicing, and as Cal says, keep swinging the bat at least 2 times a day.

By the way, Chuck are you going to be able to come to our games again this year? That would be awesome since I thoroughly enjoyed the pictures from last year.

I bowled a 316!

2008-10-23T22:01:00.000-07:00

316, that is, if you combine the scores.

G1: 104

G2: 103

G3: 109

Not that great

2008-10-16T16:38:00.000-07:00

This week's scores:

G1: 109 (good!)

G3: 98 (good!)

But... game 2? 69. Oh vey.

A very random set of scores

2008-10-09T15:31:00.000-07:00

I did less than half as good in one game of bowling as I did in another. How does this happen? This week I played four games, which is more than I normally play. However, considering my score in the last frame, I'm not too sad that I paid that extra buck. Here's how I bowled this week:

Game 1) 64
Game 2) 120
Game 3) 91
Game 4) 132 - This was a repeat of last week. I was at 81 points at the end stretch of the game, when I got three strikes (Turkey), followed by one, single pin. Note that 132 is more than double 64, which is what I got my first game.

And please note that usually, 64 is a good game for me.

This week's bowling

2008-10-04T09:26:00.000-07:00

I go bowling every week.

Since there's really not much better to put on this blog until spring training, I will occasionally post my bowling scores. If they are good.

Game 1: 109*

Game 2: 92

Game 3: 97

* Was 58 in the 8th frame. I got three strikes (turkey), followed by one single pin, to bring me over one hundred.

What to do?

2008-09-28T20:01:00.000-07:00

(A "missing" team photo!)

I was reminded by Cal recently that we haven't done much with this blog since softball ended. Since this is a softball blog, I can't say that I necessarily blame that for happening. But if anybody has any ideas for what we could use this blog for during the off-season, post in the comments! I go bowling every week, so I might just do a weekly public humiliation and post my numbers week-by-week, just so there's something amusing to look at.

The surprise: a slideshow!

2008-08-06T13:53:00.000-07:00

And you thought the surprise would be something cool.

I put together a slideshow (about five and a half minutes long), with photos from this year's games. There are some never-before-seen photos, I'm sure. I went through my photos on my computer - which contain hundreds more photos than I put on the blog - and selected what I wanted. So if they are all repeat pictures from ones I put on this blog, I have no clue.

Enjoy!

Thanks Chuck

2008-08-01T20:30:00.001-07:00

I know you didnt get a lot of feedback as far as comments on the blog. But, thank you very much for taking the pictures and for providing the game recaps. You put in a lot of work for something you didn't have to do. I just wanted to thank you. Here is to next year or hopefully a fall league.

Pool Party

2008-07-31T09:29:00.000-07:00

The Johnson's are graciously having everybody over for some hot dogs and to spend time in their sweet pool next week Wednesday. If you don't know where they live, well, I guess ask one of them, or Chuck. (It's super easy to get to, about ten minutes from Russ', five if you like to speed.)

There is a sign-up sheet at work to help out and bring some additional food.

So mark your calenders for the end-of-season party on Wednesday, Aug. 6, at 5 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.

Game report: July 30, 2008

2008-07-30T18:31:00.000-07:00

"Be more concerned with your character than with your reputation. Your character is what you really are while your reputation is merely what others think you are." - John Wooden

And so we end our season this week. Perhaps not quite on the note we wanted, but it's the ending that was given to us. We went through many changes this year. Cal had to bow out due to a surgery. Amy had to bow out because she got a job out of state. There were a few weeks where we did not know if we would have enough people to play. (Likewise, if there would be enough people left behind to work at Russ' proper.) But we made it. And we did it in style.

I'll interrupt the inspirational speech to bring you a rundown of what happened in our last game:

First inning: It all started off so well. We shut the other team out well in the top of the first. When it was our turn up to bat, Nate and Kyle each got runs, ending the inning 0-2.
Second inning: Dan and Carleen both made some very impressive catches, shutting the other team out. In return, the other team shut us out very quickly.
Third inning: Mike got another great catch. However, we dropped a lot of balls. (Perhaps I should put that in bold: we dropped a lot of balls that inning.) The other team scored three runs. Dan caught a ball, then Mike, ending our very ugly inning. We strike out at bat, leaving inning behind, 3-2.
Fourth inning: This is exactly what I wrote in my little black book: "They get one run. :( Then 2 more. Dan tagged an out. Then 1 more [run]. THEY: Jump from 3 to 7." When it was our turn at bat, Kyle scored us another run. We were able to get the bases loaded, but were shut out from making a glorious comeback that round. We left the inning, 4-7.
Fifth inning: They got two runs. We did not get any points, but John got a great hit, bringing him to second and Mike to third. It didn't pay off, but it looked great and got everyone really excited. What didn't look great is everybody diving to catch balls they couldn't have caught anyways, as if they were in an action movie! The theatrics, they were high tonight.
Sixth inning: Butler manages to tag one of the other players right before he hit home plate. It was an amazing play to watch. But, then, of course, they get more runs. It doesn't matter how many more they get at this point. It's hot, everyone's tired, some are sick, everyone knows that the chances of coming back from 3-12 is very rare. The Bad News Bears would have to pull off the greatest upset in this inning in order for us to win.

And... we start to! With the bases loaded, Dan gets a great hit, bringing Nate, Carleen and Becki all home. Dan then manages to get himself home, too. We get four runs, bringing us to to a more respectable 7-12.
Seventh inning: Having escaped mercy rules, we play the seventh inning. They get four more runs. The exact word I used to describe the feeling in my notebook was "UGH." Indeed, Charlie Brown, "UGH" is the best sentiment to describe that inning. We did not score anything in our round, but did manage to agitate the other team when Mike was between bases, ran back to second, was maybe tagged on time and was declared safe, and the other team was visibly upset at it.
THEN...: The team retreated to the grass, expecting that we'd have to play another game at 9. But then we noticed that two umps, a player with the next team to play on the field, Jason and John were all huddled together. What are Jason and John doing there? some of us wondered, more than one aloud. We soon learned that there was much confusion over the post-storm bracket that had been worked up. Was it broken? Did they mess it up? Was it double elimination or single? Do we play next week? Tonight? Everyone was confused, and we were asked to hang back and sit tight while the officials figured everything out.

Later, the umpires emerged with Kyle, Dan and Jason, who had been talking everything out. It turns out that the way the bracket now worked, the people who were in the winner's bracket (Who would be us, Russ') could not lose a game at all if we wanted to stay in the tournament. If you were in the loser's bracket, you could lose a game. But not the winner's. Not at all. And since we had, that was it for us in the tournament. And for the season.

So we said our bittersweet farewells, Kyle previewed the fall league, and we were reminded of the pool party at the Johnson's house next week Wednesday. (Time to be announced.)

THE BLOG IS NOT YET DONE FOR THE YEAR!!! Chuck has a surprise in the works for you all, which will be posted on the blog hopefully in the next week or two. I'm sure the coaches have some parting words, and if this fall league works out, this blog will be alive and kicking for that as well, I'm sure.

Next time you see Coach Kyle or Coach Nate, give them a great big hug and a firm handshake. Managing a softball team is not a easy job. It takes time, hard work and dedication. In spite of tonight, overall, we had an absolutely amazing year. Look at our record:

May 7: vs. Siemens (W, 17-10)
May 14, vs. Aqua-Tec (W, 8-5)
May 21, vs. Sharkee's Bar & Grill (W, 20-16)
May 28, vs. Brenner Oil (L, 8-3)
June 4, vs. Huntington Bank (W, 12-8)
June 11, vs. Westenbroek (W, 8-2)
June 18, vs. Borculo Blast (W, 11-1)
June 25, vs. Dykhuis Farms (W, 15-4)
July 9, vs Animals (W, 15-7)
July 23, vs. Dykhuis Farms (W, 7-5) T
July 30, vs. Sharkees (L, 7-16) T

THAT IS PRETTY GOOD, if I can say so myself. Those are a lot of wins. And by some pretty large margins, too. Everyone, especially the coaches, have had a good year that they can be very proud of.

See you next week at the pool party!
Sincerely,
Chuck.

Photo Spread: July 30, 2008 game

2008-07-30T17:43:00.000-07:00

Here is the final photo spread from this summer's league games:

I'm not that superstitious, but Jason was wearing new shorts this week.
Did that make a difference? MAYBE!!!

Courtney and Jessica, in case all else fails, they have each other to depend on.

Dan watches the action from the dugout.

Aaw! The friendly giant is talking to the short guy!

Dan takes a swing at bat.
(Remember, Russ' lost, so, true to my word, there will be a few bad pictures!!)

Kyle looks concerned, while Jason looks... passive?

Mike takes a closer look at the action.

Jason, who just had a birthday!, laughs it all off.

Mike gets ready to bat.

Courtney!!!

Nate and Becki looked thrilled. Absolutely hilariously happy.

Jason and his game-killing shorts.

John gives us a tip of the hat before playing.

Jessica gets ready for her turn at bat.

Nate, having done something else very crazy, I'm sure.

He manages to get it right this time, though.

Jason gives the best face/hand signal ever.

Kyle, who felt sick before the game anyways,
watches the team in the field.

Notice the sun on Jason's face. Everybody had that tonight.
It certainly did not make things any easier.

Carleen, the mad marathon runner, gets ready to bat.

Julie gets ready to run to first.

Carleen and Dan watch with eager anticipation.

Jason. Again. For no reason, really.

Kelli "I hate volleyball conditioning!" Elzinga.

Go Courtney, go!

John laughs it off.

Even Kyle manages to crack a slight smile during the game.

But no smile from this very determined young athlete!

Becki's hitting that ball like it did something to her!

So you know how I'm supposed to put up some bad pictures?
Double-click that photo of Jason to enlarge it. Look at his face.
There was no need to put up many other bad pictures.
Being able to put this picture on alone made the night worthwhile.
(Love you, Jay!)

Mike looks a little worried, though.

Becki's face sums up every one's sad emotion's perfectly.

Except for Courtney, of course.

"Good game, good game."

Kelli, in the middle of conditioning, 'collapses' from exhaustion.

Mike and Kyle try to figure the broken bracket out.

Grace and Jessica talk while the officials figure everything out.

They come back with their final decision.

REMINDER: Next week is the pool party at the Johnson's house!!! The time will be announced.

Optional Batting Practice

2008-07-23T19:07:00.000-07:00

It has come to my attention that we did not come completely prepared offensively for our game, and I as a coach am taking full responsibility. Our run production would also support that (only scoring 7 runs, whereas the first two times we played Dykhuis Farms we put up substantially better numbers). Check with coach Nate for the exact numbers.

The coaching staff has come to a mutual agreement and thought it would be beneficial to offer a optional batting practice/fielding practice before our game next week Wednesday starting at 5:15. This will only be taking place if enough people respond back to let me know they are interested, otherwise try to be at the ball field at 6:00.
Let me know if this is something you would like to do asap.

On a last note, continue to strive for those season goals that I encouraged you to set for yourselves, there is still plenty of time to accomplish them yet.
If anyone has accomplished one of their goals for the season feel free to share with everyone!

Regards
Coach K

Photos/Report for July 23, 2008

2008-07-23T17:55:00.000-07:00

With last week's game - which was cut very short due to weather - struck from record, we played a whole new game tonight against the same team. We got the same number of runs (7), they just got a few more (5). The weather was beautiful, perhaps too beautiful, slowing us down for the first part of the game. But once we got some energy going, we were unstoppable! Here is your very brief inning-by-inning report:

First inning: Nate scored a run. Score is something to something. (I arrived a little late.)
Second inning: The other team gets one run, but Julie got us a run, giving us the edge with a score of 1-2.
Third inning: Nothing eventful happened.
Fourth inning: The other team scores one, tying up the game at 2-2.
Fifth inning: This is where the tides turned. We scored five runs this inning. Mike and Amy got the first two scores for us. John was going to go for home, when the catcher got the ball at home, and was ready to throw it back to third. John's face was amazing as he realized he was trapped. He ran for third, and good for us, they dropped the ball, allowing John to stay safe. After a bit, Kyle went up to bat, getting an amazing play for us, bringing John and Carleen home, and bringing himself to third, all in that one play. Kyle them managed to score a run for home, but at the price of stepping on a bat and falling gracefully to the ground.
Sixth inning: The other team scores one run. Julie struck out, prompting here to say "I can't be patient!" which made me laugh. That actually may not be eventful at all, come to think of it.
Seventh inning: We played to 7 innings. I know! That has not happened in a while. Basically, "they" scored two runs, ending the game at 5-7, our favor.

Julie goes up to bat.

Look at that! The ball in motion.
In other news, Jason Butler is finally back.

Carleen strikes a pose.

Dan gets ready to swing.

Have you ever seen anyone so happy to run?
Actually, he looks like he is skipping, but I think he ran.

In other news, Kelli Elzinga is back this week.

Caden takes a look around.

James and Caden make contact through the fence.

The team... in the dugout... doing stuff.

Amy, I'm pretty sure, ready to swing her winning hit.

John looks on before taking a swing.

Mike gives Jessica some words of encouragement. (I hope!!!)

Whatever he said, it made her laugh!

Nate, not laughing, because he is in the zone!

Number 3 gets up to bat.

3 +25 = 28... Is anybody number 28? Because then I'd have a point.

Becks takes a shot at it.

Jason, straining to see 20 feet away, prepares to throw.

GUESSING GAME: After a few weeks break, I'm bringing this game back!
Who is that behind the fence?
The answer will come next week.

Mike takes one last stab at it.

Next week: We play at the same time, 6:15 p.m. EDT. But folks, WE HAVE A DOUBLE-HEADER. If we win, we get to play immediately after our game. If we lose, we have to wait it out until 9:00 p.m. EDT. There is no avoiding playing two games. It is a reality. Meaning I get to take lots of pictures! And it means we get to prove just how brilliant and excellent players we are two times in a row. That is how good we are. Amazing.

New game time announced

2008-07-18T21:11:00.000-07:00

This upcoming Wednesday, July 23rd, we will be playing at 6:15 p.m. EDT. We will once again be playing the team that we were, before the storms rolled in. Whether or not we start from where we were, or we play a whole new game, we don't know. We'll find out on Wednesday.

I kind of hate adding this information, since it is somewhat useless, but in case we lose, that very same day we will have to play another game at 7:50 p.m. EDT. If we get a victory, we go home. Lose, and we play a double-header. Again, I kind of feel like I don't need to tell you, since we won't need to play that other game. But there you go.

Coach Kyle will be getting a new bracket on Wednesday, to show how everything has been re-worked due to the storms. July 30th should still be our last game, I assume. (REMINDER: The Johnson's are having us over the Wednesday following our final game for a pool party!)

Photo Spread: July 16, game interrupted

2008-07-16T20:18:00.000-07:00

This was the first week of tournaments. Did we win? Did we lose? When do we play next? The simple answer to all those questions is: we don't know yet. Chances are, we'll resume playing the game sometime next week. As in, pick up where we left off. But there were other games, other teams that did not get to play tonight, so the schedule has to be re-worked to accommodate them, and, well, I do not envy being in charge of the games over there right now. It is no doubt a mini-nightmare and I wish them the best.

As soon as there is information, I'm sure Kyle, Nate or myself will update this site with the relevant information.

Here are the people who scored runs, in the two-and-a-half innings we played:
First inning - Nate, Kyle, Becki, Dan
Second inning - John, Carleen, Kyle

The top of the third was interrupted by the winds pushing ahead of a storm system, causing sand to go flying everywhere. Then more lightning came, and the rain. The umpires told everyone to seek shelter for 15 minutes, to see if the system would blow over by then. After a while, it became clear that it would not. Everybody was released to go home. And if anybody has been out there, and knows the parking lot, you can imagine how much fun it was to try to get out when everyone is trying to flee.

There was very vivid lightning, very close-to-where-you-where lightning. The kind that kind of made you want to swear. It was slightly spooky, but a lot of fun. ANNNNDDD we still played for two innings, so you still get a photospread! And yes, I took all this in just two innings. I know. I know.

Dan gets ready to serve another pitch.

Nate contemplates where he should send the ball. (I ASSUME.)

Carleen gets ready for her moment of glory.

Number 25 gets ready to give us another run.

Julie, who was able to make it to the game after scaring us,
by warning us that she may not be able to.

Mike, looking amused and slightly confused by the pitcher's comedy.

Courtney reacts to the pitcher's comedy show.

Even John gets in on it!

Look at this happy team!

John keeps an eye on the action.

Becks gets ready to get a run.

Dan, ready to score us a point.

The gust front causes a neat cloud formation.

This was taken as the winds were dying down,
but you can still kind of see sand flying around.

The star of the night, the storm!

Grace and John wait for word on if the game is still on or not.

Grace took this while I was driving home.
It has nothing to do with softball, but, it's cool!

NEXT WEEK'S GAME: TBA.

Last But Not Least

2008-07-14T18:33:00.000-07:00

Our tournament this year looks good for our team. One of the other teams from the other league RTC Machining we played last year twice and lost both 11-12 and 14-21, but both in the bottom of the last inning. Those games were winnable, and that was last year for which our team is vastly improved, I doubt their team improved as much as our team did so if we play them we should have a great chance. Most of the other teams we've beaten fairly handily this season also. So I'd like to congragulate our team on a great regular season and also on winning the 'ship this year in about 3 weeks, not to count our chickens but..... Also thanks to Chuck for his pictures and summaries this year since we basically had no pictures last years to pictures pretty much every week this year. Good luck this Wed and remember losers aren't winners.

Team Stats/Season Totals

2008-07-14T18:17:00.000-07:00

Here are some season totals and a comparison with our season last year and its easy to see why we've gone 8-1 this year over 2-9 last year.

Game one 27-39 .641
Game two 28-40 .671
Game three 29-46 .630
Game four 12-30 .400
Game five 23-35 .657
Game six 22-38 .579
Game seven 22-33 .667
Game eight 23-34 .676
Game nine 24-40 .600
Totals
Season two (9 games) 210-335 .627
compare with
Season one (11 games) 177-370 .478

Run totals
Season one (11 games) 78-138
Season one (thru 9 games) 73-109
Season two (9 games) 106-61

As you can see we have scored 33 more runs thru nine games and given up 48 less runs for a difference of 81 runs from last year, that stat is kinda crazy for a one year turnaround and I chalk it up to Kyle and my superb coaching skills.

End of Regular Season Stats

2008-07-14T18:01:00.000-07:00

Well after many hours of stat crunching I believe I have hold more or less on what happened this season. The Hits/At Bats are again this year more of an on base percentage since I counted walks as hits again.

.....................................Hits/At Bats ...Average.... Runs
Butler, Jason...... .............21-27 ............... .778 ........... 6
Racey, Cal.........................7-10............... .700 ............6
Dykstra, Carleen............ 20-27 ............... .741 .......... 9
Vander Vliet, Nate......... 27-34 ............... .794............ 14
VanVoorst, Julie .............. 16-26 ............... .615........... 9
VanderKooy, Kyle.......... 25-29 ............... .862..........17
Johnson, Courtney.............. 6-20................ .300.......... 3
Johnson, Mike ............... 21-29................ .724........... 12
Squires, Jessica................... 7-19 ............... .368 .......... 3
Pastoor, Dan................... 12-14 ............... .857.......... 8
Amy...................... ............12-24................ .500 ........ 4
Jurries, John .................. 8-28................ .286 ........ 1
Elzinga, Kelli....................10-22.................... .455....... 6
Looyenga, Becky.............18-28................... .643........ 9

Kyle has 7 doubles
Dan has 4 doubles
Nate and Mike has 3 doubles
Carleen, Becki, Cal, and Butler have 2 doubles

Kyle has 3 triples
Dan has 2 triples
Cal, Mike, and Butler have 1 triple

Kyle has 4 Home Runs
Mike has 1 Home Run

Photo Spread: July 9, 2008 game

2008-07-09T20:15:00.000-07:00

Chuck missed the first couple innings. He picked up a shift at work (I know, right?) and he managed to wrangle himself an early out. By the time he went home, changed out of the smelly cook clothes and rushed out to the game, he had missed a little bit. Grace took some pictures for him in his absence. (Thanks, Ace!) And since he was already a little behind on the game, Chuck decided not to do the inning-by-inning report. It may return next week, though.

Grace captures Kelly posing while practicing.

Grace gets the ball as it nears Kyle.

Grace gets Julie as she's up to bat.

John, shortly after being injured in the ankle by a ball.

GUESSING GAME: Whose shadow is that?
Previous week's answer: John Jurries

Becki gets ready to make another play.

Dan does a great job as our substitute pitcher.

Kyle gets ready to dominate that oncoming softball.

Amt takes a swing at bat.

Courtney gets ready to swing!

Kelli serves as catcher for an inning.

Jessica and her amazing number 4(s) are up to bat.

Dan and Nate take in the action from the dugout.

Carleen, "afraid" her family will mock her, does her best to play excellent.

Nate reacts after getting a strike.
(And yet, he looks really happy in this picture!)

Becki gets up to bat.

Kyle keeps his eye on the ball.

A member from the other team reacts.
She just about had a softball hit her in the head. I think it went over her one shoulder.
I'm pretty sure she saw her life flash before her eyes!

Lucky number 13 Mike Johnson gets up to bat.

Amy puts the bat down as she hoofs it to first.

John, still nursing his injury, goes up to bat.

This is kind of an inside joke for us in the dugout...
(No harm meant!!!)

Good game, good game.

And so we end our regular season, 8-1.

The record for the night.

One or two people left right away, but, here's a team picture of

mostly everyone who was playing that night.

PREDICTIONS vs. REALITY

Tuesday night, a few of us made predictions about what the score would be. Chuck said it would be 7-6, Becki 8-2, Emily 14-0, and Carleen 12-7. I think out of all of those, Carleen was the closest to 15-7. So congrats, Carleen, on your prediction vs. reality victory!

INJURY REPORT
Too many to name, really. Dan knocked Jessica over. (No, seriously!) John got hammered in the foot with a incoming softball. There were numerous body slams. A catcher got hit on the head by a ball. And there was that person from the other team who almost got hit in the head. Both sides were in good spirits about it all, but there was no doubt that Softball Injuries are having their best week ever!

NEXT WEEK: We start tournaments! The first game is at 7:10 p.m. EDT. Assuming I do not have to work again, this would mean even more pictures in sunlight. Do you know how amazing that is? (Chuck stretches his arms out as wide as he can) THIS amazing!

TOURNY UPDATE

2008-06-29T13:38:00.000-07:00

I realize that playoffs are still a couple of weeks away (July 16th), but it is time for a tournament update.
Copies of our tournament schedule will be made available in the kitchen on the milk machine in the upcoming week.

There is a different tournament format from last year. It is double elimination, which means that when we make it to the championship game through the winners bracket we would essentially have to be beaten twice.

As you can see from the bracket our first round game is against Dykhuis Farms, which is the team that we beat up on last week. I'm not trying to give the indication that we should be able to run all over this team, I'm simply saying that they were not the strongest team we played all year.

And if you have noticed, Brenner Oil (our lone loss of the year) is not a part of our tournament bracket. There are also a few teams that we did not receive the opportunity to beat up on this season in our bracket, but the teams that were in our league and are also in our tournament bracket, we beat pretty easily.

The coaching staff will be arriving early and staying late the night of the first round to do some scouting of the teams that we are unfamiliar with. This is also a great opportunity for players to stay and pick up on what kind of pitching you may be facing in upcoming games.

Have a great week off and enjoy your 4th of July!!!

Regards,

Coach K

Pool Party

2008-06-27T18:46:00.000-07:00

Take note: On August 6th, there will be a pool party, sponsored by the Johnsons. Please mark your calenders and cell phones accordingly.

Game Report: June 25, 2008

2008-06-25T21:04:00.000-07:00

Another week, another team left mercy'd by the amazing Russ' softball team. The game started much later, probably around 9:50, 10:00 instead of 9:30. But that extra time was spent practicing, and very wisely so. Here is the inning-by-inning report:

First inning
Russ' is up to bat first. We score four runs, thanks to Nate, Kyle, Rebecki and Dan. We keep the other team from scoring in the bottom of the first, leaving the inning with a score at 4-0.

Second inning
Russ' tries, but is unsuccessful in scoring any more runs. We lose the game and go home. Not! But we honestly did not score any more runs. The other team gets in one run. Kyle and Kelli both make amazing catches to end the inning at 4-1.

Third inning
Russ' makes a comeback, even though they were already winning and not necessarily in need of a comeback, hence maybe making "comeback" the wrong word, but I already typed all that and don't feel like starting over. Yes, I just wasted your time like that. Kyle, Becki and Dan all make normal runs, while Julie practically slams into another player at home plate. The run still counts, giving us a total of four runs for the inning. The other team fails to capture more runs this inning, closing out the third with a score of 8-1.

Fourth inning
Another incredible inning for team Russ', as we score an additional six runs, courtesy of Mike, Amy, Nate, Becki, Julie and Kyle. While the other team is at bat, one of their players hit a foul ball, which hit near their spectator's stand. Kyle runs for it, to throw back. I mean, he just ran. It was very entertaining. Then after that ball, they hit another foul to their fans, but alas, Kyle did not sprint for it again. (It was terribly funny, though.) That gave the other team enough energy to score another three runs, closing out the inning at 14-4.

Fifth inning
Butler scored another run. I think. My chicken scratch note says "Butler - stcrek out :(", which I think means that Butler got a run and then we struck out. But I could be totally wrong. Anyways, we get one more run. The other team goes up to bat, and gets one out thanks to an amazing catch on Kelli's part, which had her falling onto the ground to keep the ball in her mitt. (And no, I did not get a picture.) Mercy rules applied after this point, giving Russ' another notch in our victory belt. We closed the game with a score of 15-4.

NEXT GAME is in two weeks, at 7:50 p.m. EDT. No lie, I like 7:50 a lot better than 9:30.

BONUS
Here's a video. I cannot provide context, nor do I want to even try to explain what is happening.

Photo Spread: June 25, 2008 game

2008-06-25T20:26:00.001-07:00

Mike takes a swing during practice
Note that you can see the background... this is before the fog kicked in!

Jason pauses as he wonders how he can break his glove again.

John keeps his eye on the ball.

There was a (competition?) to see who can touch their toes.
For the record, Chuck can, Melissa cannot.

Carleen helps Kelli stretch before the game.

Nate looks very thoughtful before going up to bat.

Kyle, showing off some GRCC Raiders pride, goes up to bat.

Guess who showed up to play? Well, if you can see that picture, it's not so much a guess.
But I'll tell you just the same... DAN did!

Becki makes it to home, barely on time.

Mike takes a second to think about what he's going to do.

John focuses on what he needs to do.

Did anybody ask Carleen if she has a permit for those guns?

I'm sorry fans, but I got to watch the game through my camera's filter,
which made all the lights look like this, which is far more dramatic than real life!

Jason "I'm leaving for California" Butler.

Kelli watches as Julie makes it to home.
We can't see it, but trust me, Kelli was watching.

Amy waits for her next move.

GUESSING GAME: Who is up to bat?
Previous week's answer: Someone from the other team!
No, really! While Julie and Leigh wore jeans, neither of them wore those shoes.
And yes, there were pictures of both their shoes!
Hence the hint, "if you have trouble figuring it out, you're closer to the answer."

Mike hustles to first base.

John's up to bat again.

Rebecki pauses as she strategizes how to... hit a ball.

Dan, who can stand upright when playing softball! (Not bowling, though. Hehe.)

Kyle makes it to home plate.

Kyle, Alyssa and Susie watch from the dugout.

The fans came out, even though the game was past their bedtime. Thank you, guys!!!

Mike can't even look at what Jason is about to do. He can't.

Amy is in good spirits when she's up to bat.

John and Mike talk, as Mike poses for the camera.

Julie watches the action on the field with heightened interest.

Good game, good game!

Photo Spread: June 18, 2008 game

2008-06-18T16:37:00.001-07:00

With plenty of sun and a temperature of about 70 degrees, it was perfect weather to play softball this night. And perfect for taking pictures. So of course Chuck forgets to switch out his old batteries for new ones. So they run out of juice after about halfway through the game. It figures.

INNING-BY-INNING REPORT:
First inning: Opposite team scored no runs. Nate and Julie bring us two runs, leaving the first inning with the score 0-2.
Second inning: With Nate making two great catches, we get the other team out quickly, leaving them without any runs once again. Russ' then scores five more runs, thanks to Mike, Courtney, Jessica, Kyle and Rebecki. We exit the second inning with a score of 0-7.
Third inning: Once again we shut the other team out from scoring, only to have Julie and Mike further our lead, upping the score, 0-9.
Fourth inning: The other team scored one point with this runner who was so incredibly fast. We restored balance by hitting one point of our own, thanks to Jason. The score was 1-10.
Fifth inning: The home team didn't get any runs, thanks in part to an incredible catch on Mike's part, where he actually somersaulted over himself. Russ' was barely up to bat when Julie hit a run, making the score 1-11. According to mercy rules, Russ' had won. So with an incomplete fifth inning, and with only 45 minutes of game time, Russ' exits the stage with another win under it's belt.

Jessica gets ready to catch.

Mike Johnson gets ready before the game in his own special way.

Look! SUNLIGHT! We are playing IN THE SUN!
It is amazing.

GUESSING GAME: Who is running in the blue jeans?
HINT: If you have trouble figuring it out, you are closer to the answer.
Previous week's answer: Jessica Squires

Rebecki takes her turn at bat. Incidentially, she is a psychic.
The night before, at Tuesday night bowling, she told me, "we're going to make our record 6-1." And we did!

Number twenty-five gets ready to score us another run.

...And some people just don't take the game that seriously.

John reacts to commentary from the peanut gallery.

Kelli, with Kelli's car in the background!

Carleen took the week off, so Leigh filled in for this week.

Mike takes a breather after deciding whether to stay at second,
or keep on running to third.

Nate looks on with a steely determination.

Amy was among the smart players who wore sunglasses that night.

Jessica gets ready to score us a run.

John looks around in-between pitches.

Leigh gets ready to make another hit.

Mike runs back to position, following something.

Hit 'em high, hit 'em long.

Go, Julie, go!
This is actually the "beginning of the end," as she makes our final run.

I'm not as stealthy as I thought. Alyssa and Emily are posing!
And here I thought this would be a candid photo... :)

Good game! They were a fun team to play.
(Or, at least, a fun team to listen to from the dugout.)

Next weeks game is at 9:30 p.m. EDT! So drink plenty of coffee or iced tea and get ready to play until 10:30. That, with a 25+minute drive home for most, means it won't be until at least 11 until we're home. YIKES.

Photo Spread: June 11, 2008 game

2008-06-13T19:32:00.000-07:00

It took a while, but, here are the pictures from the last game:

Butler stares on intently.

Nate takes a swing at bat.

Rebecki gives it her all.

"Nice crack, But!" - uttered by [name redacted]

Mike runs to catch a ball in the outfield.

Nate catches a rolling ball. (A fast ball, too!)

Run, Julie, RRUUUUUNNNN!!!!

Lucky Number 13 gets ready at bat.

Kelli starts to sprint to first.

John "the marathon man" Jurries dashes for first.

GUESSING GAME: Which girl is outside the camera's range of focus?
Previous week's answer: Nate VanderVliet

Jason and Courtney are ready to take the other team on.

Nate gets ready for action.

Carleen takes some frustration out on the softball.

Pssst! Becki, your tag is showing!
Fix that before anyone photographs you, okay?

Kelli's up to bat...

....And she gets a run!

Kyle gets ready to score another run.

Jessica gets ready to "color inside the lines."

John takes another turn at home.

Julie and Carleen watch from the bullpen.

Amy takes another swing at bat.

Jason grimaces to see what he needs to see.

Jessica plays catcher, underneath those magnificent lights.

Good game, guys! Good. game.

Next game: Wednesday, June 18, at 6:00 p.m. EDT. SIX o'clock! The game will be done by 7! We get to play softball and still have time afterwards to do stuff. It is going to be amazing. And, in theory, there will be plenty of sunlight, so Chuck can hopefully get some good shots. (Plus, most of these have been in the dark, or low light. Having a bit more sun will help them stand out!)

Troubles

2008-06-11T20:44:00.000-07:00

Blogger is giving me some troubles tonight. I will post pictures later, when the service is cooperative. Anyways, for those who missed the game, here's Chuck's quite rundown of what happened:

We went the first inning without anyone scoring. Both sides spent a very short amount of time in play, too. Top of the second, the other team scored one run. Then comes the bottom of the third. Faced with a score of 0-1, team Russ' is longing for a run. (1 run, 5 runs, whatever we can get.)

In the same inning, Russ' pulls a great comeback by scoring four runs. Butler, Rebecki, Kyle and Courtney all make it all the way back to home. The game is now 4-1. Top of the fourth inning, we manage the shut the other team out again. When it's Russ' turn again, Kelli and Kyle both get runs, bringing the score to 6-1.

Bottom of the fifth, Mike hoofs it to home to secure us our 7th point of the night. Top of the sixth, the other team gets another run, bringing the score to 7-2. The other team now has hope: they've scored! That's when Kyle dashes their hopes by scoring another run in the bottom of the sixth inning. After an unsuccessful last try at bat, the other team loses to Russ', 8-2.

Injury report: None that I noticed this week. Maybe there were some twisted ankles or broken bones or dismembered heads, but as far as I know, everyone came out relatively unscathed.

Didja notice? There was no rain at all on Wednesday. But we still won!

Thank You Chuck!

2008-06-05T10:03:00.000-07:00

I know that most of Chuck's photography skills go unnoticed, so I would just like to thank him for coming out every Wednesday night to the ball fields and taking great pictures. I sometimes feel like we just expect Chuck to come out every week, and don't really show that we appreciate his hard work and dedication. So the next time you see Chuck taking an action picture of you, feel free to run over and give him a hug (guys included) to let him know that you appreciate his hard work. Thanks again Chuck!

As far as the game went, I was very pleased with the outcome. Every single individual on the team contributed in their own way. I felt like last week we took a step in the wrong direction, and I must say that I was concerned about how we were going to bounce back and play this week. Every single one of you showed great character, and I could not have asked for anything more. Lets continue to get better, and come out ready to play next Wednesday! Have a great rest of the week.

I would also like to challenge you to set goals for yourself. They don't have to be ridiculous goals, just a milestone that you would like to accomplish before the end of the season.

Regards,
Coach K.

Photo Spread: June 4, 2008 game

2008-06-04T18:51:00.000-07:00

Summary: By the bottom of the first inning, we were down, 5-0. Second inning, we were still behind. But then we pulled off an amazing comeback. In no time we had scored enough runs to tie the other team, 8-8. With the playing field once again even, Russ' took the opportunity and scored four runs, thanks in no small part to Home Run Kyle. To close the game, Russ' won, 8-12.

Injury Report: Nate falling down while catching a ball. Amy hit in the nose while catching. (After recovering for a few minutes she was good enough to come back to play.)

Why we won: The field was, once again, a little wet. Let's hope it is a very rainy summer; we win whenever our field is damp!

Jason and John take a break between practicing.

Kelli and Becki hug it out.

See? Jason can throw a ball with half a head.

GUESSING GAME: Which guy is up to bat?
Previous week's answer: Courtney Johnson.

Kyle takes a swing.

Rebecki takes a swing and... a hit? I assume?

Mike Johnson swings fast and furiously.

Julie gets ready to hit one to first.

Nate runs to home.

Kelli swings so fast, you can barely see the bat!

The "benchers" take a look at what is happening in the field.

Carleen smiles before she goes up to bat.

The latest in the sports players from behind series: Close-ups!

John takes a turn at bat.

Butler plans his next move.

We had an amazing turnout in the fans section this week! 20 people, I think!

Jessica gets ready to score another run.

Carleen gets ready to make a run to second.

Chuck's brother James visits with him through the fence.

Jason gets ready to catch a fly ball.

Kyle's turn to be at bat now.
I think this is right before he gets the home run.

Mike, Nate and Carleen walk away after gathering together to catch a ball.

Our final score. As Lorelei said, it was "84 to 8." :)

"Good game, good game, good game, good game, good game, good game, good..."
(CLICK TO ENLARGE to see Kelli's face!)

Next week's game: Game 6 (!!) will be at 8:45 p.m. EDT. Can you believe it? We've already played five games! Time flies when you are having fun. Here's hoping for some rain!

Photo Spread: May 28, 2008

2008-05-28T22:51:00.000-07:00

This week, there were no birthdays. No cupcakes. No rain. No win. But that doesn't mean the Russ' team didn't play hard. Or, at least, they look like major league stars in these photos below.

By the way, Chuck takes over 100 photos at each game. So these photo spreads? Those are just the ones he thinks turned out the best from each individual game. He could put a lot more up. And, despite what you may think looking at photos of yourselves, softball players, Chuck usually does not put up the most embarrassing photos. And he tries to take pictures of everyone, too. But if they are really bad of one person, then he won't put them up, generally. (I'm revealing my artistic process! I should charge for this kind of wisdom, I think.)

Courtney soaks up the practice.

Cal shows us how to move our hips...? (You had to have been there.)

Nate is pretty amused by what's going on.

Becki side-steps over to catch a ball.

Carleen hits, scores and makes a run for first!

Nate takes a swing, and I don't know if it counted or not,
but I really like this photo. A lot.
And if I like this one photo, then, well, the game was worth it. ;)

Becki! Such force!

Kyle takes a swing to first.

John readies himself for the swing.

Amy swings for the hit!

Kelli: Catcher, or begging for money?

Jessica runs for first.

Julie takes over as catcher.

Mr. "I left for two months" Butler takes a very quick swing. Very quick.

Kyle gets ready.

Cal and Julie look on at the team.

John gets up to hit again.

GUESSING GAME, WEEK THREE: Which player wears those socks?
Previous week's answer: Jason Butler.

Cal takes another swing.

Jason was a butthead (ha!) while I was trying to take some photos,
so I turned the tables on him and snapped a shot of him instead.
(Yes, this picture exist only for revenge. You're welcome, Butler!)

Jason, Kyle, Nate and Carleen laugh in their happiness.

Chatting it up after the game.

Q) Hey Chuck, we lost! Where are all the bad pictures like you promised us?
A) If I may be so bold, I think I had a couple good photos this week. So I didn't want to not share those. But also, guess what guys? It was just one loss. This may sound like a terrible cliche, but there is next week to start up our winning streak again. If we get a loosing streak, yeah, maybe I'll put up more bad pictures. But I don't think I'll have to, because with the right will, practice and focus, we can snap back from a one game loss (guys, we won three already!!). Here's to a "W" next week!

Next week's game is at 7:50 p.m., on Wednesday June 4. It's an earlier game, which hopefully means we'll have some sunlight, so bring sunglasses. (Sunlight = better pictures, so the Media Manager is stoked about this possibility.)

Photo Spread: May 21, 2008

2008-05-21T21:40:00.000-07:00

Three weeks winning, three weeks cold, three weeks wet.

We have not had a single dry game. The outfield has never been great for catching balls, the fans have never been extremely comfortable, and the weather has just not plain cooperated. But yet, through it all, the team perseveres and we win another game. While having win after win piling up, it may begin to seem routine and ordinary, but the fact that we have a three-game winning streak is simply incredible. And it would never happen without this year's current lineup. Go team! And keep going forward, to the next game.

The rain clouds move in as the sun moves out.

The Russ' team waits around for the other teams to finish playing in the field.

Coach Kyle watches the progress.

Kelli hits the ball to third base.

Amy hits a ball and takes off running.

Mike evaluates the field.

Cal gets ready to pitch.

Becki shows off a little 'tude there!

Carleen is a very focused player.

Kyle watches from the dugout.

Jessica keeps her hands warm.
Why? Because it was cold.

Melissa is all bundled up, trying to keep at a good temperature.

Cal gets ready to go up to bat.
John, trying to stay awake, looks on.

GUESSING GAME, WEEK THREE: Which player is behind the fence?
Previous week's answer: Mike Johnson.

Julie tries for a little patience. ;)

The birthday boy runs for first.

Amy and Kelly chat it up.

Alyssa is probably numbed by now from the cold weather.

Even Carleen had to break out the hat!

Jason steps in as the relief pitcher.

Chuck takes a look at what's happening in the infield...

Happy birthday, John! Have some cupcakes. :D

Next week's game is at 8:45 pm.m

May 14, 2008: Photo Spread

2008-05-14T18:05:00.000-07:00

Russ' Softball won their second game this season. A great victory to be sure, but hardly surprising. This season's all-star team continues to push themselves harder and further with each game. Your friendly media manager was on field to take pictures. And, as promised, here are some good pictures. (The deal is: win a game, get good pictures. Lose a game, get bad pictures.)

Courtney Johnson makes her big debut this week.

John takes a stab at pitching during practice.

The Johnson siblings!

Carleen follows the ball.

Jason evaluates the situation before he takes his next pitch.

The spectators keep warm during another cold night.

GUESSING GAME, WEEK TWO: Who is that behind the fence?
Previous week's answer: Carleen.

These two players recover after pretty much running into each other and falling down(?).
I wish I had gotten that on video... it was terrificly funny to watch!

Amy gets ready to make another catch.

GO, JESSICA!

Rebecki waits patiently on the sidelines.
(Are there sidelines in baseball?)

The team watches the batter-up from the bullpen.

Nate takes a swing at bat.

Team pictures, week two!
(This is so we had one where we didn't need to Photoshop Courtney in. ^_^)

Update from Coach K

2008-05-08T12:11:00.000-07:00

Great job last night everyone! I felt that everyone contributed and pulled their weight in a much needed victory to start off the season. After the game Coach Vander Vliet and myself had a meeting while watching the Tigers come through with a "W", and decided to give everyone a few days off of practice to recuperate and rest your arms a bit. However, this does not mean that you should skip out on the weight lifting and running, this simply means a break from throwing the ball around.
Also do not take this first game for granted. There is still room for improvements in every ones game. Lets keep on getting better every game and not come to a plateau in our performances.

Tentative Practice Time:
Saturday the 10th of May at 11:00 AM.
Wedgewood Elementary
Be there or consider yourself ineligible to play next Wednesday!

"A man can be as great as he wants to be. If you believe in yourself and have to courage, the determination, the dedication, the competitive drive and if you are willing to sacrifice the little things in life and pay the price for the things that are worthwhile, it can be done."
-Vince Lombardi

May 7, 2008: Photo Spread

2008-05-07T20:27:00.001-07:00

Here are some of the photo highlights from the May 7, 2008 game held at 8:45 p.m.

Cal gets ready to bat.

Bonus points if you can guess who the player in the background is!
("Bonus points" being satisfaction, and... nothing else.)

Jason "I'm blocking Chuck's field of vision" Butler looks on.

Julie "I have a last name!" Van Voorst makes a run for home.

Amy gets ready to hit the ball.
(Are all softball photos going to be captioned like that? "Hit the ball"?)

Cal was the team's pitcher that night, making for some very short innings.

Scorekeeper Alyssa looks on.

Carleen makes it to home plate!

Meeting in the bullpen in-between innings.
I think Jason is doing... a dance, maybe?

Haha, Jason's short.

Dan makes it to home!

Amy takes a swing.

Kelli and Carleen high-five each other through the safety fence.

Rebecki looks on.

John takes a swing at the ball.

WHOA! There's more color in this photo!

"Yes, Chuck. That's pretty exciting. Now shut that off."

Carleen takes a look at the action out in the field.

Nate and Carleen react to the game.

Jessica takes a swing at the ball. Yay!

Jason stares intently at the oncoming ball. (Ball not pictured)

Mr. Pastoor is illuminated finely by the light - and my camera's star filter.

Coach Nate is pretty happy with the game so far.

Jessica watches the game with intense fascination and pride.

Good game, guys! Good game.

Team photo!

Team photo, plus fans! Aw...

Next game is Wednesday, May 14, at 6:00 p.m.

Schedule

2008-05-04T22:11:00.001-07:00

If you haven't noticed already, the new schedule has been added by one of the coaches. It's over to the right of your screen. Our first game this Wednesday, May 7, at 8:45 p.m.

Practice Meet, April 26

2008-04-26T10:33:00.000-07:00

For those of you unable to attend softball practice on Saturday, April 26 at Grandville Little League ballfields, here is what you missed:

COLD. Cold, cold, cold weather. It eventually warmed up to 48 degrees, but until then, it was extremely cold and not that much fun to do warm-ups in. Despite the cold weather, we had fun. To prove that we had fun, and that we were there and you were not, here are some pictures.

Coach Kyle gets ready to pitch.

ReBecks hits the softball. Or, at least, tries.

Julie gets her game face on for practice.

Nate is kind of amused by the whole morning.

Carleen tries to keep warm during the winter-like weather.

Jessica hits a ball clear out of the park.

Look at that ball go, Dan!

Carleen and Jessica don't exactly like having their pictures taken today...

Get it, Nate!

Kyle's amazing batting pose.

Dan gets ready to serve up a fastball.

Is she... laughing? Softball is a serious sports, Becks!

Kyle catches a ground ball to the infield.

Jessica and Kyle get ready for the next round.

Dan strikes a pose.

Congratulations to our athletes who practiced today. The schedule for the 2008 season is NOT out yet. We will post the new schedule as soon as we have it.

Rehab Reminder

2008-03-25T11:01:00.000-07:00

As we all know with spring training underway the cramps and muscle pulls will start to set in.
-A strict HGH healing program featuring twice daily injections.
-Rub vaseline on the inner thighs, this applies to all injuries(Although no medical benefit is achieved from this it is still required).
-Continue to overwork tired muscles: No Pain Gain
-A surprise punch to the face from a midget who will pop out at an unspecified time and place.(This will take your focus off of the area that is injured because you are extremely pissed at the midget.)
-Lastly for those of you suffering from a crippling emotional pain the only prescribed medication is binge drinking and sad slow songs.No questions asked.

Anyone choosing not to abide by the rehab program may be in breach of contract, and will have the status of said contract reviewed by the Russ' legal department.

A Few Things

2008-02-27T23:11:00.001-08:00

At the coaches meeting tonight Coach Kyle and I talked about the upcoming season and also talked to Carleen about how the cuts are going on the girls side. We basically have most of the decisions made for who will make the team and will announce them hopefully soon, which means that the roster and depth chart below will change.

Also on a lighter note, mostly for the girls, what number would you like to be in the upcoming season and would you be willing to pay for a team shirt to match the rest of ours from last season. One last thing, we are thinking about team Russ' hats this year too, I believe they would be pretty cheap so are people interested in this also? Coach Kyle and I have been in talks with Nike, New Era, Under Armour etc. about team sponsorships but they keep offering bad deals so for now you'll have to pay for the apparel.
Coach Nate

"There are three things in my life which I really love: God, my family, and baseball. The only problem - once baseball season starts, I change the order around a bit." ~Al Gallagher, 1971

"People ask me what I do in winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring." ~Rogers Hornsby

Prospective Depth Chart

2008-02-27T22:36:00.001-08:00

I also have made a tentative sheet of where I think people should play each inning. If any of you have any problems or questions about the positions I have assigned just let me know. This will also change in the upcoming weeks especially since some people may drop out or join.
Coach Nate

1st Inning

Pitcher - Brian TenBrock/Cal Racey
Catcher - Jessica Squires
1st Base - Julie
2nd Base - Becki Looyenga
Shortstop - Nate Vander Vliet
3rd Base - Kyle Vander Kooy

Left Field - Carleen Dykstra
Left Center Field - Dan Pastoor
Right Center Field - Kelli Elzinga
Right Field - John Jurries

Bench:
Courtney Johnson
Jenn Spencer
Stacy Klawiter
Kim Most

2nd Inning

Pitcher - Brian TenBrock/Cal Racey
Catcher - Jenn Spencer
1st Base - Stacy Klawiter
2nd Base - Courtney Johnson
Shortstop - Nate Vander Vliet
3rd Base - Kyle Vander Kooy

Left Field - Carleen Dykstra
Left Center Field - Dan Pastoor
Right Center Field - Kim Most
Right Field - John Jurries

Bench:
Kelli Elzinga
Becki Looyenga
Julie
Jessica Squires

3rd Inning

Pitcher - Brian TenBrock/Cal Racey
Catcher - Jenn Spencer
1st Base - Julie
2nd Base - Becki Looyenga
Shortstop - Nate Vander Vliet
3rd Base - Kyle Vander Kooy

Left Field - Kelli Elzinga
Left Center Field - Dan Pastoor
Right Center Field - Jessica Squires
Right Field - John Jurries

Bench:
Kim Most
Courtney Johnson
Stacy Klawiter
Carleen Dykstra

4th Inning

Pitcher - Brian TenBrock/Cal Racey
Catcher - Courtney Johnson
1st Base - Stacy Klawiter
2nd Base - Becki Looyenga
Shortstop - Nate Vander Vliet
3rd Base - Kyle Vander Kooy

Left Field - Carleen Dykstra
Left Center Field - Dan Pastoor
Right Center Field - Kim Most
Right Field - John Jurries

Bench:
Jessica Squires
Julie
Jenn Spencer
Kelli Elzinga

5th Inning

Pitcher - Brian TenBrock/Cal Racey
Catcher - Jessica Squires
1st Base - Julie
2nd Base - Courtney Johnson
Shortstop - Nate Vander Vliet
3rd Base - Kyle Vander Kooy

Left Field - Kelli Elzinga
Left Center Field - Dan Pastoor
Right Center Field - Jenn Spencer
Right Field - John Jurries

Bench:
Becki Looyenga
Carleen Dykstra
Stacy Klawiter
Kim Most

6th Inning

Pitcher - Brian TenBrock/Cal Racey
Catcher - Kim Most
1st Base - Stacy Klawiter
2nd Base - Becki Looyenga
Shortstop - Nate Vander Vliet
3rd Base - Kyle Vander Kooy

Left Field - Carleen Dykstra
Left Center Field - Dan Pastoor
Right Center Field - Kelli Elzinga
Right Field - John Jurries

Bench:
Jessica Squires
Jenn Spencer
Julie
Courtney Johnson

Prospective Roster

2008-02-27T22:05:00.001-08:00

This is the prospective roster for the upcoming softball season and will probably change. Also, this is a tentative batting order for guys and girls. It is obviously a rough draft but I figured I would give you look into what I'm thinking for the upcoming season, feel free to make changes and post them in the comments if you want I'll take them into consideration. If you have any problems just let me know.
Coach Nate

Girls

1.) Carleen "Do-Rag" Dykstra
2.) Becki "Bonds" Looyenga
3.) Kelli "K-Rod" Elzinga
4.) Julie "When are you leaving?" Van Voorst
5.) Stacy "Don't know how to spell my own last name" Klawiter
6.) Courtney "Look at me!" Johnson
7.) Kim "Pregnant?" Most
8.) Jessica "Hello Kitty" Squires
9.) Jenn "#1 fan" Spencer

Guys

1.) Nate "Ground baller" VanderVliet (Coach)
2.) Dan "The Dandelion Picker" Pastoor
3.) Kyle "Seed Thrower" Vander Kooy (Coach)
4.) Brian "The Donkey" TenBrock
5.) John "Jacob Jingle Heimer Schmidt" Jurries
6.) Jason "I have a hot sister" Butler------Cut--------

Possible Players (If healthy)
1.) Cal "I'm the worlds greatest" Racey
2.) Dave "Wyoming"

Message from Coach K

2008-02-24T20:54:00.000-08:00

As I have recently noticed from the sign-up sheet located on the Russ' milk machine, there are quite a few potential players. Coach Vander Vliet, pitching coach Pastoor and myself have been having many coaches meetings and have come to the conclusion that we are trilled to have so many interested players. This however is not a good thing for you as a possible player seeing that roster spots are scarce. My coaching staff and I have come up with a weekly workout that every player should start following immediately.

MONDAY- FRIDAY
4:00am: 10 min. stretch
4:10am: 15 mile jog (sprinting is suggested for the last five miles)
5:30am: 1000 ground balls/1000 fly balls
6:00am: 1000 swings in the batting cage (if blisters start to form on hands seek athletic tape)

This is strictly a workout to get back into the swing of things. Expect a new, more advanced, workout schedule at a later date.

P.S: If you are experiencing any shoulder soreness please get in contact with Coach Pastoor. He has a tremendous rehab program that will take care of any degree of injury.

Winter Training part deux

2008-02-24T00:18:00.000-08:00

First off thank you Chuck for your post although I don't think anyone really checks this anymore. I hope that all of you are practicing at least 18 times a day because anything else means that your not dedicated enough. I have been participating in 80 mile runs at 4 AM every morning so none of you have any excuses. Coach Kyle and I are expecting this season to go the the championship anything less will be a disappointment. Btw, the use of HGH is not a choice, it is a necessity since the softball commissioner pretty much looks past it just like Bud Selig. I have been coming up with some depth charts and batting orders based on the people signed up, maybe if I'm bored like I am now I'll post the first drafts.

Winter Training

2008-01-26T17:51:00.000-08:00

The roster for the 2008 Russ' Softball season is already becoming highly competitive. You need to show strong commitment to the team, be available every week and be willing to practice 4-5 times a week. This is not a team for wimps. If you cannot meet the above criteria, Coach Nate and Coach Kyle may be open to cash bribes, assuming you are willing to give a lot of money.

Even though it is winter outside, you can still practice. Try sliding - the ice will help you out! Fall down a lot outside on the packed-on ice and snow? It will just toughen you up when you lunge for the ball in the outfield!

While Chuck wants everyone to be able to play ball, just know that if it looks like his kitchen crew will not be all that strong, he will beg and plead for someone to stay off the team, because he needs a good team, too. (And he is a whiner and complainer, times two.)

(Thanks to Stacy K. for the photo.)

Advance Notice

2007-07-22T20:04:00.000-07:00

You are some of the first to know... On Thursday, August 23 (about a week after the last tournament game, in which you guys WIN!), the Jurries will be hosting a burger cookout extravaganza. This party, complete with tiki torches!, will begin around 6 and go until everybody has left.

Also, has anybody taken a team picture? And, did anybody want one? Chuck works Wednesday nights, but if a date and time works out for everybody, he can try to make it work out.

Tournament Dates

2007-07-18T21:46:00.000-07:00

The tournaments start in two weeks so get ready for the 5 a days, as in 5 practices a day, which will begin concurently with the end of our last game. Here is our schedule
We play at 6:15 on Wed August 8 and when we win at 7:10 on the same night. When we win that game our next one is at 6:15 on August 15 and again at 8:05 when we win which is the championship game. Our first games are also not on Bil-Mar field but on Kraai field. I'll post the schedule at Russ' but not all of you work there so.........start practicing!

what you've come to expect after every game

2007-07-18T21:37:00.000-07:00

.....................................Hits/At Bats ...Average.... Runs
TenBrock, Brian .............6-10 ............... .600 ........... 1
Racey, Cal.........................10-14............... .714 ............3
Dykstra, Carleen............ 15-30 ............... .500 .......... 9
Vander Vliet, Nate......... 18-27 ............... .667............ 9
Klawiter, Stacy .............. 14-28 ............... .500........... 5
VanderKooy, Kyle.......... 20-24 ............... .833..........17
Elzinga, Melissa.............. 7-19................ .368.......... 1
Johnson, Mike ............... 10-19................ .526........... 5
Buist, Alyssa................... 5-23 ............... .217 .......... 1
Pastoor, Dan................... 14-23 ............... .609.......... 7
Dykstra, Lynnae ............2-19................ .105 ........ 3
VanRoekel, Derek.......... 8-13................ .615......... 3
DenHollander, Cherie.... 2-4 ............... .500......... 0
Jurries, John .................. 8-20................ .400 ........ 1
Bomers, Luke.................. 6-10................ .600....... 2
Elzinga, Kelli....................8-12.................... .667....... 3
Looyenga, Becky.............6-12................... .500........ 1

Brian, Derek, Carleen, and Lynnae all have one double
Mike, Dan, and Nate have three doubles
Cal has four doubles
Kyle has six doubles
Dan, and Luke have one triple
Kyle has two triples
Dan has one Home Runs (one inside the park)
Kyle has three Home Runs (two inside the park)

Our batting average's for our nine games
Game one 11-28 .392
Game two 24-39 .615
Game three 7-21 .333
Game four 21-43 .488
Game five 17-35 .486
Game six 16-33 .484
Game seven 21-38 .553
Game eight 22-40 .550
Game nine 20-40 .500

Stats......again

2007-07-11T21:37:00.000-07:00

Of course here is yet another update of the stats, if I don't do it after every game I'll prob not do it ever so here goes.

.....................................Hits/At Bats ...Average.... Runs
TenBrock, Brian .............6-10 ............... .600 ........... 1
Racey, Cal.........................10-14............... .714 ............3
Dykstra, Carleen............ 13-26 ............... .500 .......... 5
Vander Vliet, Nate......... 15-23 ............... .652............ 8
Klawiter, Stacy .............. 11-24 ............... .458........... 2
VanderKooy, Kyle.......... 16-20 ............... .800..........13
Elzinga, Melissa.............. 7-19................ .368.......... 1
Johnson, Mike ............... 9-15................ .600........... 4
Buist, Alyssa................... 5-19 ............... .263 .......... 1
Pastoor, Dan................... 12-19 ............... .632.......... 5
Dykstra, Lynnae ............2-19................ .105 ........ 3
VanRoekel, Derek.......... 8-13................ .615......... 3
DenHollander, Cherie.... 2-4 ............... .500......... 0
Jurries, John .................. 7-16................ .438 ........ 1
Bomers, Luke.................. 6-10................ .600....... 2
Elzinga, Kelli....................5-8.................... .625....... 3
Looyenga, Becky.............5-8................... .625........ 1

Brian, Derek, Carleen, and Lynnae all have one double
Dan, and Nate have two doubles
Mike has three doubles
Cal has four doubles
Kyle has five doubles
Dan, Kyle, and Luke have one triple
Kyle has two Home Runs (one inside the park)

Our batting average's for our eight games
Game one 11-28 .392
Game two 24-39 .615
Game three 7-21 .333
Game four 21-43 .488
Game five 17-35 .486
Game six 16-33 .484
Game seven 21-38 .553
Game eight 22-40 .550

Pool Party, Part Deux

2007-07-06T12:16:00.000-07:00

On July 11, the Johnsons will be throwing another pool party after the softball game. (That's this upcoming Wednesday). Please, spread the word like wildfire!

Presenting Cheerleader Mara

2007-06-30T17:29:00.000-07:00

While Jenn and Jessica may have the hold on "#1 fan," Mara certainly holds claim to the title of "The Loudest Cheerleader." :)