Tournament Weekend Four, CFL Championship

What a weekend!  Team TP played in their fourth tournament of the summer.  In my last post, I told you about their first game of the tourney and how well they played.  I could keep you in suspense until the end of this post to tell you whether or not they won, but I'm too excited.  TP won their first tournament of the summer!  Way to go guys! 

Friday night's fire was still burning Saturday morning, and TP once again owned the field.  They won that game 7-3.  J played on first base the entire game and made a couple of outstanding plays.  Once again, their bats were on fire and their defense was rock solid.  Late Saturday night we found out they were the 1 seed going into Sunday.  We arrived for what we thought was a semi final to determine who advanced to the championship.  However, due to a couple games being rained out the day before, two teams had withdrawn from the tournament, leaving only four 16U teams.  So this game was it.  TP was playing the same team they had played on Saturday morning.  From the start the game was a nail biter.  Both teams had solid defense and the game was scoreless for three innings.  The opposing pitcher was excellent and TP was having a hard time getting their bats going.  Then in the top of the fourth, they allowed a run to score.  Not good!  By the bottom of the fifth, things were getting tense in TP's dug out.  They were down by a run and were in danger of giving up their championship.  finally, in the bottom of the sixth, we got a hit and put a runner on base.  A pop fly followed, giving TP their first out.  Coach C had the third batter sacrifice bunt and advanced the runner waiting on first.  And after that, TP lit up like the fourth of July.  With two outs, their bats came alive and they scored four runs.  In the top of the seventh, it took four batters to get three outs and end the game.  They were the champs! 

TP went undefeated the entire weekend, with a total of 26 runs scored.  This brings their record for tournament play to 11-6-1.  I've included the team picture I took following the game.  J is on the far right, with Coach C to his left.  Note how the little siblings managed to get in the picture, too.  That's A in front of J in the pink shirt.  You can click on the picture to make it larger.

Bonus Tournament

Team TP was originally scheduled to play a double header at home this weekend.  However, last weekend, the other team backed out and Coach C found them a tournament to play in instead.  This one is the Torneo DE Estrellas & CFL Championship in Apopka, Florida.  Apopka is only an hour and a half from home and ordinarily we'd have just driven back and forth.  But TP played an evening game tonight and has an early morning game tomorrow.  So we booked into a nearby hotel for the night.  Hubby and I, along with my parents, N, A , and J, cousins M and B, and neighbor R are all here. 

TP completely owned the field in their first game.  We had one three run homer hit and two grand slams.  Their bats were on fire and their defense was solid.  They won the game 15-6.  They are scheduled to play in the morning at 9:00.  Sunday will bring the semi finals, followed hopefully by the championship.  I don't want to jinx them, but if they keep playing like they played tonight, this could be their weekend. 

J played first base tonight and did really well.  I think having his cousins here cheering him on is really energizing his game.  B and M are enjoying the games more than they thought they would I think.  They are not usually baseball fans, but I think they may just be converts after this weekend.

27

Since I seem to have a baseball theme going, at least for the summer, I figured it was a good time to share this little tidbit.  Baseball players are of course identified by their numbers.  A number becomes a very personal thing, and J is somewhat superstitious about his.  He is number 27, at least as often as possible.  There have been a few times, like during his school season, that 27 was not available.  If that is the case, he'll try and pick the number of a Yankee player, past or present.  So how did J end up choosing the number 27?  It's a neat story actually.  At least I think so.  When my dad was growing up, his favorite player was Mickey Mantle, number 7 for the Yankees.  So when J started playing, my dad usually requested 7 for his Little League number.  Derek Jeter is J's favorite player, and he of course, is number 2.  In Little League, number 2 was usually in hot demand, so J stuck with 7.  Then he ended up on a team where neither number was available.  His solution was to combine the numbers of he and his grandpa's favorite players, and from then on, he's been number 27.    

Time With Family

The summer is speeding along and tomorrow is a day we've all been looking forward to.  Aunt S arrives, along with cousins B and M, for a week and a half visit.  We haven't seen them since our trip to Hawaii last summer.  The kids love spending time with their cousins, and we have some fun things planned.  Aunt K has been busily making plans for a dolphin watch eco cruise, a dinner show at Medieval Times, and a visit to Disney Quest.  In between, we'll spend a lot of time hanging out around the pool, and probably hit the beach at least once.  And of course, since we can't go for more than a two day stretch without baseball around here, we'll go to a few games.  Team TP plays locally Thursday night and J is stoked because Aunt S, Cousin B, and Cousin M have never gotten to see him play.  The whole family is planning on attending.  We should fill the bleachers and give TP a good cheering section.  There's also the tournament on the weekend, though I'm not sure who all will go to that. 

We get together every year for an extended family vacation.  This is one of the "off" years, when we stick closer to home and do more low key things.  No matter where we are or what we do though, we always manage to have a great time.

Tournament Weekend Three, FAU Showdown

Okay, here's the rundown on Team TP's third tournament.  On Saturday they played two games.  The first ended in a 2-2 tie and the second they won, 7-4.  They were scheduled to play at 3:00 Sunday afternoon.  Around 1:45, Coach C received word that we were on a lightening delay until 4:30.  Then about an hour later, he received word that the team we were supposed to play had decided to forfeit.  He called a team meeting in the hotel lobby.  At that time, he explained that the other team forfeited because they were already in the semi finals.  TP was the 1 seed and we were scheduled to play at 8:00 this morning.  The team was left with unexpected downtime, so Coach C organized a game of wiffle ball out behind the hotel.  He also imposed a 10:00 curfew on the team and asked that they all be asleep no later than 11:00.  Players had to report to the field at 7:00, which meant leaving the hotel around 6:45.  Coach C was in need of a ride to the field, so I offered to take him and J while my dad stayed at the hotel to allow N and A to sleep a bit longer.  After dropping them off, I went back for the rest of the family and we arrived just as the game began.  TP started out rough, making some costly errors.  They managed to tie the game up, 3-3 in the third inning, and it appeared for a while that they were going to pull it off.   But they started making errors again and by the time they started to rally in the bottom of the sixth, it was too late.  They lost 12-7 and took third overall in the tournament. 

They have a game Thursday night against a local high school summer team.  J is excited about that one because his aunt and cousins will be here visiting.  They have never gotten to see him play and Coach C has told him he 'll play first base the entire game.  They were going to have a double header on Sunday, but the opposing team backed out.  Not wanting them to go two weeks without playing, Coach C has found a tournament in Orlando for them to play in Saturday and Sunday.  We're at the halfway point in our summer season and so far, J is loving every minute.  They'll take Fourth of July weekend off, then we head to Auburn University for a week long tournament.  So far their record in tournament play is 8 wins - 6 losses - 1 tie.

Mid Tourney Update

We made it to Boca safely and are all settled in at the hotel.  Team TP tied their first game 2-2 and won their second,7-4.  Coach C says they are looking good.  Today they only play one game, at 3:00.  If they lose, they will play one game tomorrow.  If they win, they are automatically in the semi finals.  So tomorrow could turn into a very long day of games!  I hope it does.  It would be fantastic for them to go all way this time.  We have a while til game time, so we're heading to the hotel pool.  I'll update after this afternoon's game.  Go TP!

Boca Bound

Hard to believe Team TP is headed for their third tournament of the summer already, but here we are.  Tomorrow we travel south to Boca Raton for the FAU Showdown.  Due to the fact that Boca is about a three hour drive, we'll be staying over for a few nights for this one.  TP has their first game at 10:20, and the second at 3:00.  Due to a family event, we will actually miss the games tomorrow and head down tomorrow evening.  They'll have two games Sunday, with the possibility of playing in the playoffs Monday. J is super excited about this one.  I think the idea of traveling a bit further and having to stay over makes it seem exciting to him.  My dad and I, along with N and A will be going with him.  Hubby and my mom have to work.  J has Coach C's cell number, so I'm sure he'll be texting for game updates throughout the day.  I'll try to pop on and update on their progress over the weekend.  And look for a full recap by Tuesday.  Go TP!