Knights Bats Come Up Big in 7-6 Win over Murray Rampage in Calhoun

 

The Marietta Knights had almost as much fun clowning around in the rain as they did in beating the Murray Rampage 7-6.

The Marietta Knights won their second straight 1 run thriller with a 7-6 victory over the Murray Rampage. The win came in the rain shortened Bob Galasso Classic at Sonoraville Recreation Park in Calhoun. Cal Hughes went the distance for the win and 5 different Knights knocked in runs in the see saw battle.

Marietta got on the scoreboard early after Cal singled and came home on Will Nelson's deep double to left field. Garrett Wells made it three straight hits in the 1st with an RBI single to score Will. Garrett later scored on an error and the Knights led 3-0. The Rampage took over the lead later in the game at 5-3 and seemed to be in control. But Will and Garrett had back to back hits again and got the Knights bats rolling. After Garrett brought Will home Presley Field knocked in Garrett on a grounder to tie the game at 5. Gil Hastings walked, stole second and scored on a great hustle play. The Rampage didn't hold Gil on second so he took a huge lead and left on the pitch allowing him to score on George Krivsky's infield single. George came home from 3rd after Cal was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and the Knights held a 7-5 lead going into the bottom of the last inning.

The Knights celebrate the 7-6 win

With a Rampage runner on 1st, Mason Doyle fielded a grounder and tossed to Hunter Williamson at 2nd for the first out. After a walk and a single the Rampage closed the lead to 7-6. An infield fly gave the Knights 2 outs, but the Rampage put the tying run on 3rd with the winning run at second. In the Defensive Play of the Game, Cal delivered a fastball that the final Rampage batter hit high into the air towards short. Although it seemed like it may never come down, Mason camped under it and hauled it in with his trademark grin to closeout the victory.

Mason, Will, Garrett and George each had 2 hits in the game and Hunter had 2 assists and 2 putouts.



Austin Hansell was on the DL after
losing a battle but winning the war
with a 4 lb. bass. But he was there
cheering on his teammates, leading
stretches and barking commands to
his fielders and baserunners.
 

In Game 2 of the tournament the hard hitting Rome Expos bested the Knights 14-9. The Expos were big kids with big bats that sent several line drives into the outfield. At one point Rome led 8-2 but the Knights continued to fight and closed the gap to 10-8 before finally falling 14-9. Gil Hastings continued to impress on the mound in his first extended outing. The Defensive Effort of the game were Gil's 7 strikeouts in 3 1/3 innings. Cal and Hunter each went 2 for 3 with a run scored in the second game. Cal had 3 RBI's and Hunter had a double. Mason and George each scored twice in the game.

After a long rain delay Saturday night, the tournament was officially postponed Sunday morning. Although the boys were disappointed not to play, they made the most of the wait playing in the rain, cracking bad jokes and even making friends with some of their rivals from the Rampage. It was a successful weekend for the Knights with a victory and great hitting up and down the lineup. The Knights hit a whopping .405 as a team with 6 players recording multi-hit games. Knights also only struck out 6 times while their pitchers struck out 10 opponents. Likewise, they drew 11 walks while only walking 9 opposing batters.

The Knights get back to NABL action this week with games at the North Georgia Outlaws on Monday and the Cobb Coyotes on Wednesday.

My Heroes Have Always Been Knights! Knights win 8-7 thriller against Georgia Warriors.



Will Nelson delivered the game winning 2 out hit.

The Marietta Knights were On the Road Again at Joe Cook Field in Johns Creek on Saturday with
Georgia on their Minds. The Georgia Warriors to be specific and the Blonde Headed Stranger Will Nelson supplied the fireworks with a dramatic 2 out, 2 run single that gave the Knights a huge NABL victory. Will finished the game 2 for 3 with 2 RBI's, 2 runs and a stolen base. Although there was no sign of Pancho, Lefty Gil Hastings added 2 RBI's in the win.

Marietta entered the 5th inning trailing 7-3 against tough pitching from the Warriors. Big hits from George Krivsky and Isaac Zefo and RBI's from Mason Doyle and JD Rinehimer got the Knights rolling and got their fans on their feet. Great hustle allowed Mason to take home on a passed ball and Cal Hughes to reach on a dropped third strike. Austin Hansell drew a walk to set the table for Will's heroics. Trailing 7-6 and with teammates on 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs, Will drove the 1-0 pitch deep into the RCF gap to flip the margin to an 8-7 Knights lead.

The Knights were fired up and sent Austin Hansell back to the mound in the 6th. The Warriors lead off hitter ripped a single into LF. He advanced to 2nd on a sacrifice bunt that Austin handled perfectly for the first out of the 6th. After a wild pitch the tying run stood just 70' from home with only 1 out and the crowd got tense. Now just about any ball put into play would tie the game. But in the Defensive Play of the Game, Austin threw 3 straight strikes for a HUGE strikeout  and the second out of the 6th. Austin got the next batter to ground to short where Mason made the play and the throw to a stretching Presley Field for the final out of the great team victory.

Austin Hansell shut down the Warriors
over the final 2 innings for the win.

Austin got the win on the mound striking out 2 while pitching the 5th and 6th innings. JD started the game and achieved the rare feat of striking out 4 in a single inning after 1 of the batters reached on a dropped third strike. Will Nelson and Gil Hastings each also pitched a solid inning to keep the game close. In other offensive news, Mason was 2 for 3 with a double in the game, George Krivsky was 2 for 2 and Hunter Williamson added an RBI single.

The Knights dropped the first game of the double header 7-3. In that game JD Rinehimer was 2 for 3, scored twice and stole 4 bases. Cal Hughes struck out 3 in 3 innings on the mound. The Defensive Play of the first game was another great pickoff move and run down in which Will threw to JD at 3rd who threw back to Hunter at 2nd. Hunter applied the tag and held on to the ball even as the runner rolled over his arm in an attempt to dislodge the ball.

Marietta will take their positive momentum back into tournament play next week at the Bob Galasso Classic in Sonoraville.

FCA Patriots Pull Away from Knights at Larry Bell Park

The Marietta Knights kept things close early against the Cobb County power house FCA Mt. Paran Patriots before succumbing to the big hitters in a 9-1 loss at Larry Bell Park. The Patriots were impressive throughout the night blasting hard hit balls at the Knights' defense. The Knights played well defensively for much of the night but ultimately the line drives were too much as the Knights own bats were unproductive.

Playing in front of his former All Star coaches inspired Hunter Williamson to have a strong defensive night. With the outfield playing deep, Hunter twice had to go a long way from his 2B position to track down high fly balls in the outfield. Once in CF and once in RF. Big Game Hunter played for Patriots' Coaches Tony, Jerry and Doug with the Mt. Paran Titans a few years back.

Gil Hastings threw a shutout inning with 1 K against the hot hitting Patriots

Gil Hastings was terrific on the mound in just his second appearance. Gil pitched great in practice during Spring Break and was rewarded with having to face one of the best hitting teams the Knights will meet all season. Gil responded by throwing a shutout inning with 1 strikeout and a 59% strike ratio.

The Defensive Play of the Game came from Presley Field who has been solid at 1B all season. After a deep grounder to 3B, the throw looked to be just ahead of the runner but high and headed towards the fence. Presley straightened, went up high on one foot, stretched and snatched the ball out of the sky while maintaining contact with the bag to get the Knights out of the inning.

JD Rinehimer and Mason Doyle provided the Knights offense. Each had a single with JD adding 2 stolen bases and Mason 1 stolen base and a run scored.

The Knights look to rebound on Saturday with a doubleheader against the Georgia Warriors in John's Creek.

No Joy in Douglasville - Knights gain valuable experience but no wins at USSSA NIT

Cal Hughes was strong on the mound, in the field and had 2
doubles at the plate.

The Knights continued their pattern of saving their best performance for Sunday but they were not able to generate enough offense to overcome the Buckhead Bucks in an 8-2 loss that knocked Marietta out of the Global Sports Qualifier NIT at Hunter Park in Douglasville. The Knights offense struggled throughout the tournament and Saturday's games were marked with maddening defensive lapses that the prevented the boys from settling down and playing good baseball in losses to the Armuchee Tomahawks and Georgia Marlins. On the bright side, the Knights got very good pitching in all 3 games and Coach Rob feels like he learned alot about handling his staff in future tournaments. Cal Hughes, Austin Hansell, JD Rinehimer and Will Nelson were all strong on the mound and proved they can give their team a chance to win.

Cal Hughes had a huge tournament for the Knights. Cal struck out 4 in 3 innings against Armuchee on Saturday and came back to throw 2 scoreless innings against the Bucks on Sunday. He threw a whopping 67% strikes for the weekend. Cal also made several great catches in CF and doubled twice.

Will Nelson once again provided the Defensive Play of the Game 1 against the Tomahawks. Armuchee had a runner on second and the batter drove a single into RF. Will charged the line drive, scooped and fired a throw that took one hop into Austin's mitt at home allowing Austin to lay down the tag just as the runner from second slid in for the exciting out. In addition to Cal's two doubles, JD Rinehimer added a 2B and a run scored in the game.



Hunter Williamson singled, stole 2 bases and
scored against the Buckhead Bucks

The Defensive Play of Game 2 was also an exciting play at the plate against the Georgia Marlins. With runners on the corners, Will stepped off the rubber to catch the runner on 1B breaking early. As he started to throw over, the runner on 3B broke for home so Will threw to Cal at the plate. Cal ran the runner back to 3B but threw high. Hunter Williamson went up the ladder to snag the ball that looked to be headed to LF and gave chase throwing back to Cal who put the tag on the runner sliding into home. Austin Hansell had 2 RBI's for the Knights against the Marlins.

On Sunday, the Knights regained their composure and defensive highlights became the norm instead of the exception against the Buckhead Bucks. Third baseman Austin Hansell made a great backhanded catch against the fence on a looping foul ball. Catcher Will Nelson picked up a wild pitch at the fence and made a diving tag at the plate to exchange several cleats to the forearm for an important out. Cal caught back to back flyouts in CF including a low, sinking line drive that he caught on a sprint. With all that competition The Defensive Play of the Game goes to JD Rinehimer because his play was a great heads up play as well as an athletic play and because you just don't see FC 8u in the scorebook very often. With a runner on first, the Bucks batter hit a high, shallow flyball into no man's land. Mason (SS), Isaac(2B) and JD(CF) all converged on the ball but it dropped in between them. JD scooped the ball on a sprint and recognized that the runner on 1st had been forced to hold and that there was no one left to cover 2B. JD kept running with his trademark grin and tagged 2B just ahead of the runner for the unconventional out.



George Krivsky caught 2 flyballs in LF
and singled for the Knights

JD also scored the Knights first run against the Bucks. After
legging out an 18" infield single JD stole 2nd and 3rd and scored on a deep sacrifice fly to CF from Mason Doyle. Hunter Williamson singled to CF and also stole 2nd and 3rd allowing him to score on a fielder's choice by JD in the 3rd. Gil Hastings, George Krivsky and Isaac Zefo each added hits for the Knights.
Although it was a frustrating weekend for Marietta, Coach Rob told the boys that the season is a process and this weekend was a step along the way. The team learned alot about its pitchers and especially after Garrett's return from Spring Break should be well stocked for tournament runs to come. Also on Sunday, the Knights got back to the great defense they'd shown against the Cobb Coyotes Wednesday night. Finally, as the heart of the order struggled offensively, the bottom of the order came up with several big hits. Soon all these guys will be hitting at the same time and the Knights will have a formidable offense. Next up for Marietta is a NABL-West matchup across the county against the Shaw Park Thunder.



JD Rinehimer pitched well and had a
2B, 2 stolen bases, 3 runs scored
and an RBI on the weekend.

Will Nelson had another strong outing
on the mound and provided great defense
from several positions through the weekend



Knights Battle Cobb Coyotes to the Wire in NABL West Action

Austin Hansell celebrated his birthday with
Johnny's Pizza, 2 big hits and a postgame cake

The Marietta Knights took on their good friends the Cobb Coyotes in a NABL - Western Division matchup at Walton High School Wednesday night. The Knights looked the heavily favored Coyotes right in the eyes and fought hard for six strong innings before coming up just short in a 7-6 loss. Several Knights players got together at Johnny's Pizza before the game to celebrate Austin Hansell's birthday and then made the short trek over to Walton HS ready to play.

Cal Hughes was great in his first start on the mound. He struck out 2 in 2 innings of work and did not give up any earned runs. Cal also helped himself with a big double to the CF wall and 2 runs scored.

Cal Hughes struck out 2 in 2 innings

The defensive play of the game came in the 2nd after a Coyotes batter blasted a deep shot to the LF wall. Isaac Zefo threw a strike from the fence to SS Jack Rinehimer who made a perfect relay to Garrett Wells who spun around and applied the tag to cut down the runner at 2B. It was a great athletic and fundamental play by all 3 players and put a charge in the Knights' dugout and crowd.

Garrett Wells was nearly perfect after taking the mound in the 4th and gave up no runs in 2 innings of
work. Birthday boy Austin Hansell had a big night going 2 for 3 with an RBI, a run scored and a stolen base. JD Rinehimer, Will Nelson and Hunter Williamson each added RBI singles. Isaac Zefo finished the night with 3 assists.

JD Rinehimer delivered an RBI single

Big Game Hunter drove in a run with
 a single to RF and came around to score

Coach Rob was extremely proud of the boys tonight and saw a changed team in action. Facing a strong, AAA team stocked with talented players, the Knights took the field confidentally and showed they can play with anybody. They were aggressive at the plate and their defense was excellent. Marietta only committed 1 error and it occurred on the first batter of the game. The road doesn't get any easier as the Knights travel to Douglasville this weekend for the USSSA Global Sports Qualifier NIT at Hunter Park. But the boys are playing great baseball and they look to keep it going in tournament action this weekend.