Cotuit Kettleers post their 2012 roster

They’ve had this up for a bit, so if you’ve missed it…well, here it is again anyways. The Kettleers posted their roster for the upcoming season as well.

I am SO excited to see their roster every year. Blame it on growing up down the road from Lowell Park, on my first “beat” interview involving a long discussion with GM Bruce Murphy over the 2008 roster…yes, it’s been nearly five years. Or, perhaps, you can blame it on the fact that four of the guys on the roster are current players at Vanderbilt, where I’m doing an internship.

Zo (Kevin Ziomek) will be a returning pitcher for the Kettleers. I didn’t get to see him all that much last season on the Cape because of conflicting scoring schedules, but I’ve seen him pitch a few times here. Watching him pitch is like watching him say to himself, “Oh, I think I’ll throw a 100mph fastball here. Sounds like a good time. Yeah, I think I’ll do it.” And then he does it.

Tony Kemp is FAST. Ronnie Richardson (Harwich 10-11), Patrick Biondi (Cotuit 11), sorts of fast. And an absolute character, capable of eliciting laughter from anyone. Last year, Coach Roberts said he needed a player who could galvanize his teammates and light a fire in them. Kemp might be just that guy.

And let’s not forget Beede. The first round draft pick straight out of high school who turned down a contract to play for Vanderbilt. A little rough around the edges so far, but the kid has all the makings of an All-Star, and a spring season playing under Tim Corbin and working with pitching coach Derek Johnson will do wonders.

And Connor. Good corner guy. I foresee him playing third or short for Mike this summer. (Highly doubtful he’ll unseat Anthony Gomez here at Vandy for the 6 spot).

Besides Zo, the only other player set to return is pitcher Bobby Wahl, whom, if you couldn’t figure out from my posts last year, seriously impressed me. I’m looking forward to watching him pitch this spring against Vandy (and not looking forward to it at the same time). With Zo and Wahl, Roberts will have a good 1-2 punch in his pitching, and Beede has the potential to bring something to the table there too.

I’ll have to look into the roster a bit more, but I’m excited anyways. Seven more months…

Wareham posts 2012 roster

Doesn’t take much to make me happy! Wareham posted their (current) roster for the coming season on their website today. You can check it out, in full, here. A couple of the names stand out–looks like Coopah was looking to stick with a veteran team. They certainly had the talent last year, despite getting the boot by a hot Falmouth team in playoffs, so I think it’ll be a great base for them in 2012.

Barrett Astin (Arkansas), Matt Grimes (Georgia Tech), Konner Wade (Arizona…and a 2011 All Star), Dillon Newman (Baylor…wonder how many times he’s heard Seinfeld references at games? I know we played a few clips in his taunting honor all summer), Daniel Palka (Georgia Tech and full on beast), Mott Hyde (Georgia Tech…think we’ll see enough Yellow Jackets this year?), Tyler Ross (LSU), and Johnny Field (Arizona) are all set to return.

That’s 8…approximately what they expected to return from the 2010 season at the start of this past summer. They got most of them. I’d be surprised if Cooper’s team does not put up a solid fight this coming summer (June isn’t that far away folks…just a bit longer, I promise).

The heart of a team, with sugar on top

Last night was the Vandy Cross Country team’s “cupcake shin dig” (asst. coach Rhonda’s words). I didn’t know what to expect, aside from a lot of hugging, potentially a few tears, and a lot of sugar.

It was one of the most loving, occasionally awkward (like when your crazy uncle shows up wearing a red clown nose and starts making those awful jokes at holiday parties sort of way–no really, Coach Keith did that), and genuine gatherings of people. And it completely endeared me even more to a team I’ve worked with all fall long.

These are the girls who broke every record they could find, and broke through the glass ceiling in one of the most amazing–and magical–seasons a writer could ever hope to cover. They went from a small blip on the national radar to the sixth overall in the country, and the new SEC champions (which, by the way, was never done before).

To say that this group of girls–and guys, for, despite an unremarkable record, they are maybe the most remarkable group of young men in every manner that I’ve encountered–inspired me this year is the most drastic understatement I can make.

Think about the word inspire. It means to fill with an animating, quickening, or exalting influence; to fill or affect with a specified feeling, thought, etc.; and to influence or impel. It also means to inhale. 

Considering how important breathing is to running, I find it the most accurate word imaginable for this team. They live, run, compete, and breathe for each other. I have never, in four months of working with them, heard them say “I.” Unless, of course, it was to say, “I am so inspired by my team and I couldn’t do this without them. I am running for them.” And they mean it.

“We want to win an SEC Championship, and we want to go to Nationals.” That’s what they told me from day one.

Talk about the power of the mind, and of the team. They achieved both. In fact, all season long, they kept me busy updating new personal and school records. Seemed like every week they ran better than the week before. Coach said they almost made it look easy, the way they set their mind to their goals with singular dedication and went about it.

Did I mention that this one of the most genuine and loving teams I’ve ever seen? I’ve been fortunate/lucky/blessed enough to have worked with seven championship teams in my short tenure in sports (9 years). I have never seen a team like this.

It’s almost maddening, actually, that I can’t find the words to describe them. Alexa, the most gentle soul I’ve ever met, and a quiet leader on the courses who was one of the most pivotal axes of the team. Jordan, the strong and quiet leader. Louise, the very eloquent, almost motherly one. Liz, with her spunky and upbeat demeanor. Grace, a freshman, with her awesome attitude (ever since I posted the clip where she said that, Coach has quoted her in every interview and meeting).

Collectively, it was a mass of happy, loving, smiling, laughing young ladies. I can’t imagine them as anything less than a collective. They even RAN together all season (look at their scoring spread some time, the margin from their first to their fifth, sixth, even seventh runners are remarkably close…all five scoring runners placed in the top NINE at the SECs).

Alexa, perhaps, said it best at the cupcake gathering. ‎”I read this quote at the beginning of the season, about how when you fall in love, you have boundless energy. You’ll do anything to see this person, to make them happy, because they make you whole. And I thought about our team, and wondered, what if we ran like we were falling in love, every day? For each other. For this team.”

Wise young woman. That’s, perhaps, best how to describe the team.