Tag: SJSL

Wow, another dramatic victory for the Honey Badgers. This one was a epic overtime battle with the Lightning Donkeys. A true battle.

It was Valentines’s Day, so I gave all my teammates cool animal card’s with tattoos. I figured that they were the closest to being Honey Badgerish since they were animals too. The gesture was kindly received so that was really nice.

However, all kindness would be thrown out the door once our game began. It was fierce and action packed, with neither team able to distance itself from one another.

Our guys didn’t have our sharpest night, losing the majority of matches to the Donkey’s guys. We just couldn’t really get things going for some reason. The Donkeys did play very well, and do have numerous unorthodox deliveries on their side, which made for some confusion on our end.

Luckily due to a dominate performance by our girls, they were able to keep us in the game. They were dominant last night, especially the Ludgate sisters. Thank god they were assigned to our team last season, I really don’t know where we’d be without Caitlin and Meghan. After a guy loss, they would stop the bleeding with a victory.

Things were so close all night, that eventually we found ourselves going to overtime. Overtime consists of the best of 3 series, with a co-ed roster containing a minimum of 2 girls.

I immediately assigned Meghan and Caitlin for our 2 girls and then tried to pick out 3 guys who were playing well last night. For the first game that was Dustin, Shawn and Kevin.

What an exciting first game of overtime. At one point we were down to just the Ludgate’s and things seemed bleak. However, the Donkey’s guys had the fatal error of being kind and not finishing off our girls. Big mistake, they played against guys all last season and can’t be taken lightly.

A few amazing catches later and we had the numbers for a moment. Then were mowed down to just Kevin remaining. Kevin is an amazing dodger, perhaps the best in the entire league. However, with the numbers he was facing he would really need to come up with a catch at some point and get some help. A worn our Donkey’s side let loose a lighter toss and Kevin took advantage. Bringing Shawn back in. Despite some sheer craziness Shawn was able to secure the victory for us. I’m still scratching my head on how we were able to win that first game of overtime. Amazing.

The second game was almost equal in it’s insanity. A true back and forth game finding us down in numbers very early. Again our girls came up with some amazing plays to bring back our guys who were eliminated early. Upon mere seconds returning Jared made a huge catch which finally swung the game into our favor. By sheer guts Brian, now the last Honey Badger standing, was facing greater numbers. A solid throw took our the last guy Donkey.

It was just Brian and a very brave girl on the Donkeys. She did an admirable job holding her own with Brian. He was just too much, ripping some amazing throws in her direction. Despite her best efforts he was able to eventually get her, and the Honey Badgers had gotten another victory.

The biggest difference this season to last is that we’re winning the close games. We are used to being right there, but until this season wasn’t able to close it out. I was so proud of the team last night, and am not sure if my nerves can handle this much dodgeball anxiety each and every week.

Last night was truly an epic game for the ages, an Instant Classic. Grit was displayed on both sides, with the most unlikely of heroes saving the day!

The game pitted us against the Banzai Executioners. Winning the opening toss I elected to have our girls start things off. Scouting their girls I thought we matched up well with them and thought they could start us off with a win.

The girls took care of business and got us off to an great start. I knew they’d bring a solid effort and would give us a great shot throughout the night. Our guys then went out there and matched the girls performance. I personally felt pretty good (for a change), throwing some decent heat and hitting several targets throughout the night.

Before we knew it, the Honey Badgers were up 5 matches to 1. I made the mistake of thinking that we had this in the bag. Before we knew it, it was 5-3, then somehow 6-6. The Banzai Executioners really started to find a rhythm and had taken momentum.

I really didn’t want us to lose this one, and neither did any one else who calls themselves a Honey Badger on this night.

In must win games, the girls kept us alive with some huge victories. Meghan was simply dominant throughout the night. Throwing, catching, making intelligent plays. A nearly flawless game. Caitlin brought her usually spark of hustle and intelligence to the court as well.

Also of worthy note were the performances by Lauren as well. She has improved so much from last season and narrowly missed by the smallest margins on some of the best throws I’ve seen from her. Katie showed last night that you don’t have to necessarily throw people out to help the team. Her hustle and determination in making sure that players had ammo at all times as well as making sure that nothing could be caught by the enemy doesn’t show up in stats, but surely does in wins. Wow, Steph was on a mission herself last night too, every improving.

I would sum up our guys by pointing out that they were a true team last night. I had to practically force guys in to play at times, because everyone wanted to make sure that their teammates had gotten a chance to play. It was great to see such camaraderie and it ultimately led to us playing better as a team.

Back to the action, the matches were tied 7-7. After being up 5-1 at one point, we really needed the girls to win the next match. I let them know of it’s importance and sat back and watched them do their thing. They were amazing and made relatively short work of the match.

Up 8-7 now and it was getting rather late we needed to send 5 guys up there for what would hopefully be our last game. With the momentum shift, I really didn’t want this one to go to overtime.

Again our guys were selfless, and just wanted to do what was best for the team. I decided to sit out and our five went at it against their five. Early on we got their hardest thrower out and I knew then that we had hope. It was a true pleasure to watch both teams, as both rosters were being dwindled down.

Then somehow there were only 2 remaining, one on each team. Not only were both teams down to 1 player, but for each side it was an unlikely player. For us, it was Jared (aka The Shepherd, The Ninja). Wow, you could really feel the tension in the gym. I honestly just stared and nervously had my hands to my face at this point.

The lone Executioner had all 4 balls and was mounting an offensive. The first a strong throw which Jared had gotten out of it’s trajectory. The next a strike to Jared belly. However, on this fateful night that strike to Jared’s bellow was caught by the noble Jared himself!

The gymnasium erupted as we all celebrated with Jared on this most amazing catch to win the game! I was so excited for him and and the team!

As captain my dream is that every player has one shot at being a hero for just a moment. We’re adults now and frankly, their aren’t too enough “heroic” moment in my opinion. However, sometimes a silly game like dodgeball played amongst a great bunch of people, mixed with some high stakes drama can produce a heroic  moment for a very deserving guy.

Great game, lot’s of fun. I’d also like to note that Steve did an amazing job running the game. As a ref he had control all night long and kept things going smoothly.

Last night’s game was against the career undefeated and defending champion Ghostbusters. They’re a very strong team obviously and I knew we’d need to really bring out A game tonight and have a couple of breaks fall our way too if we hoped to win.

Sadly things didn’t fall our way last night, and we were defeated. However, we did show some really positive play last night.

Several of our girls are playing much better than this point last year. Lauren and Stephanie and playing with a lot more confidence and aggressiveness. Coupling that with the rest of our girls they give us a good shot to win most matches. Unfortunately the Ghostbusters girls are just plain solid top to bottom. No weaknesses there. But with out improving squad, I think we might just have a shot when we meet again.

Our guys are vastly improved as well too. Jonathan, Brian, Shawn and John are giving us a much needed jolt of youth and athleticism to our guys squad. They’re exactly what we were hoping to add during the offseason. Seeing improvement each and every week, it’s been a blast to watch them play.

We are vastly improved with our additions, and as a team improving each and every week as we adjust to one another.

Steph had another excellent night. She pretty much single handedly took a match. It was amazing to watch. I’d of never of guessed that she’d of been able to do that when we first started last season. It’s really amazing to see just how much she’s improved.

Lauren had our biggest catch of the night. Last girl left and what seemed to be a game ender, she somehow managed to catch a rebound off of her. The team instantly cheered as she somehow made that catch. Even though we didn’t go on to win that match, it was a very exciting moment for us all.

As far as myself, I need to play better. Just haven’t played well at all yet. Though I did throw out a few guys last night (though one should’ve really been caught), my stupid shoulder isn’t giving me any pop or break on my throws. Hopefully if I continue to nurse it, I’ll be back to my old form. But I’m also getting worried I just might be old at this point and there’s no getting back to my hard throwing days. Hopefully that’s not the case just yet.

All in all a fine display despite coming up short against a really dominant team.

Last night the Honey Badgers got a much needed win over the Lightning Donkeys. The great overall team effort was what the team really needed after numerous close defeats. A mixture of old vetereans and new faces blended together for a strong night.

Last night was we got our new shirts and also had a team photo taken (haven’t seen it yet). The shirts are nearly identical to last season’s, being a slightly different shade of red.

We also welcomed aboard two new members of the Honey Badgers, Brian and Jonathan. Wow, what an addition these two seem to be. Excellent players and also great teammates. They found ways to contribute to the team all night, even when they weren’t playing. Can’t ask for more than that!

We found ourselves in an early hole losing the first two matches. I honestly wasn’t sure how things would turn out for us at that point. However the troops kept plugging away and settling in and before we knew it the teams were exchanging match for match.

Our girls played great and really kept us in the game. With the exception of one girl on the Donkeys who literally caught everything and anything thrown near her, our girls were pretty dominant. It’s great to watch how well they’ve come together as a team. A major turning point in the night for us was when Steph was our last girl remaining, and made back to back catches to win us a very important match. Great job!

As the night moved on our guys really began to settle in, it was great to watch. While some of our usual stars had off nights by their standards, new guys stepped it up and really carried us. Jared had a very solid night, with some key catches and good low throws all night. I really like the aggressiveness I saw in his play.

New guys Brian and Jonathan were amazing! Their infusion of athleticism and strong throws was exactly what we needed for the Honey Badgers. Actually one of my best memories of the game was when it as down to Brian, Jared and myself in one of the later games. The teamwork that we had with one another was great. We all seemed to know what each other intended to do, throwing at the same time/targets and making sure everyone had a ball in hand to throw. That was a solid match and playing together really got us through that match.

Shawn and John really showed a better understanding of the rules this week and greatly contributed to the team as well.

Overall I was very impressed with the Honey Badgers last night. I feel like we’re a greatly improved team with our new additions this season and our continued team play.

Last night was both a very exciting and sad time. It was the dodgeball playoffs, and also the last night of the season.

Our opponent was the Lightning Donkeys and the first round game was an eleven match game. We started with our guy squad first and someone grasped onto a win thanks to Kevin. The man always finds a way to stay alive.

Matches were exchanged early on, until we ran into a bit of a hole. I gotta put a lot of blame on myself for this one. I just played horribly, not sure why I didn’t feel too bad physically going in. I had a couple of drops of what should’ve been automatic catches.

Kevin and Dustin gave us hope early on, but ultimately it wasn’t enough.

We wound up losing 6-3, which really bummed us. We can and have played better than that.

I did make and present awards to the team afterwards. I tried to sum up each teammate with an adjective that I thought best described their contributions and play this season. Everyone seemed to enjoy that, which felt good. They are a really good bunch of teammates and I really enjoyed playing with each and everyone of them.

Afterwards most of us headed over the the Windjammer in Somers Point. The SJSL was offering free beer, and that really got a lot of the league to show up. Handing out afterwards was a lot of fun too. We’ve got some characters in this league and I had a good time telling ridiculous stories and hearing some as well.

Our final regular season game of the season was against the Banzai Executioners. We’ve had a couple of bad weeks, taking some tough losses. I really wanted to see us finish the regular season strong even though we’ve been getting some breaks.

I couldn’t of been more proud of how we played as a team last night! The energy, effort and just overall dodgeball smarts were great to see. I felt like we finally played great as a team last night.

Everyone was moving around well and throwing great. I think the week off really helped us all recover and come in fresh. We all talked to one another, and just had a good time. It was great.

Despite our stellar play, we did lose the game 9-7. But just to finish that strong and bring that momentum into the playoffs next week will be great.

The only drawback on the night for me was that I hurt my right elbow pretty badly early in an early match. It’s swollen up pretty good, and really giving me some limited movement today. I’m in full recovery mode and will play in the playoffs next week even if I have to use duct tape.