Knights Close Out 2014 by Advancing to the Semifinals of Boys of Summer Open Classic in South Carolina

Will the Thrill Nelson struck out 6 in 5 1/3 innings for the win against Charleston's St. Andrews Rocks

The Palmetto State made a great backdrop for the Marietta Knights final tournament of 2014. The boys got up bright and early on Sunday and left the historic architecture of downtown Charleston for the tree lined ball fields at Gahagan Sports Complex in Summerville. It would be a rematch with the St. Andrews Rocks in the Boys of Summer Classic, an Open Tournament in South Carolina.

Austin Schubert was awesome behind the plate.
 He caught all 6 innings, turned a beautiful
 1-2-3 Double Play and had an RBI Single.

On Sunday it was the Knights that manufactured a run to take an early lead. Austin Schubert reached on a fielder's choice in the first, stole 2nd and 3rd and scored on a ground out to 2nd to give Marietta an early 1-0 lead. The Knights added to their lead in the 2nd. Will Nelson walked and Mason Doyle singled and stole 2nd to put 2 runners in scoring position. On a ground out to the right side of the mound Will scored easily. Mason flew around 3rd and saw that the Catcher was several feet up the line towards first and never slowed down. The 1B threw home but Mason slid in ahead of the lunging Catcher for a rare 2 run, 1-3 putout. Garrett Wells singled and scored when Jackson Tysinger reached on an error. Jackson stole second and scored on a Schubie single to RF to push the Knights lead to 5-0 after 2.

Will Nelson started on the mound for the Knights and was on from the start. He was consistently hitting his spots with his fastball and curve and the Rocks had no answer. He set down 9 of the first 11 batters he faced. Schubie started behind the plate and ended up catching all 6 innings. Coach intended to rotate catchers every 2 innings due to the heat, but Schubie begged to continue catching because he and Will were working so well together as battery mates. The Knights and their fans went crazy when Will struck out a Rocks batter with a dominating curveball, fastball, curveball combination.



Will slides safely into 3rd

The Knights extended their lead to 7-0 in the bottom of the 3rd when Garrett Wells hit a 2 run single to RCF. St. Andrews finally got things going in the 4th when they strung together several seeing eye singles. It started with a ball that travelled about 40' but in the P-1-2 Bermuda Triangle for an IF hit. Next was a perfectly executed bunt. 2 walks, an error and another infield hit and the Rocks had closed the gap to 7-3 and had the bases loaded. With the tying run at the plate, the Knights pulled off a HUGE Defensive Play of the Game. The Rocks lead off hitter hit a curve off the end of his bat right back to Will at the mound. Will fired home to Schubie to get the lead runner. Schubie stepped forward and calmly threw a strike to Presley at 1st to complete the 1-2-3 double play and end the inning. It was the Knights 6th ground ball double play in the last 6 games and it couldn't have come at a better time.



Jackson Tysinger went 2 for 3 with a Double and
closed out the game on the mound.

Jackson blasted a double to lead off the 4th and came home on a ground out to give the Knights an 8-3 lead. St. Andrews continued to fight and loaded the bases again in the 4th with one out, but Will struck out the next 2 batters on 8 pitches and the lead remained intact. With 2 outs in the 5th, Mason laid down one of his famous perfect bunts for a single. He stole 2nd and had 3rd stolen but a foul ball forced him back. The Rocks called a pitch out on the next pitch, but Mason wasn't going. The pitch glanced off the catcher's glove and Mason took off for 3rd. The catcher grabbed the ball and fired it into LF and Mason took home easily. Mason has done a great job of putting pressure on the defense and creating runs every time he is one base.

After a fielding a sac bunt and getting the first out of the 6th, Will's day on the mound was done. Will had a big grin on his face and got a huge ovation from the Knights' faithful when he handed over the ball to Coach Rob and headed for the dugout. It was a great outing for Will. In 5 1/3 innings, he struck out 6, only allowed 3 earned runs and threw 51 strikes to only 28 balls. The Rocks scratched out 2 more runs but Jackson closed out the game with a strikeout. The Final Score: Marietta Knights 9 & the St. Andrews Rocks 5.



Garrett Wells was 2 for 2 with 2 RBI's, Mason was 2 for 3 with 4 stolen bases and 3 runs scored and Jackson was 2 for 3 with a double and 2 runs scored. The win advanced the Knights to the Silver Bracket Semifinals to take on the oddly named South Carolina Assailants.

Garrett Wells was 2 for 2 with 2 RBI's in the
win over St. Andrews.

The Knights had a several hour gap between games which got longer when the Charleston area heat gave way to long lightning storm. After an hour long delay to the preceding game, the Knights finally got to take the field. As expected in this open tournament, the Knights semifinal opponent was a very tough team. The South Carolina Assailants starting pitcher was fantastic from the beginning with a tough mix of fastballs, changes and curves. The Knights managed 2 baserunners in the first but a strikeout ended their threat with no runs. And just as the top of the first ended, more lightning came and the boys were stuck in the dugout for another delay.

The dark clouds finally moved out and the game got going again. Unfortunately, the Knights offense never could get started. Schubie and Hunter pitched well and the defense was solid. But the Assailants cobbled together several infield hits and took advantage of a couple of walks and errors to pull away for an 8-0 win.




The Knights did turn in 2 very strong Defensive Plays of the Game. Wild hops in the infield were 
common throughout the weekend and the Knights were well prepared thanks to their work at Larry Bell Park back home. In the first, an Assailant hit a hard shot towards Hunter at second. H moved into a good position but the ball jumped into his chest and fell into the dirt at his right. He hit a knee, grabbed the ball and fired from one knee just beating the runner to end the inning with help from a big stretch by Presley at 1B.



Coach Rob gets a special guest during the storm delay.

Presley was also a part of the 2nd Defensive Play of the Game. A South Carolina runner was on 2B and was telling all of the Knights, Willie Mays Hayes style, that he would be scoring soon. On a grounder to SS, Mason fielded and made a great throw to Presley for the second out of the inning. The runner advanced to 3rd on the throw and took a wide turn around the bag. After fielding the throw at 1B, Presley never hesitated and fired a laser across the diamond to Austin at 3B. Austin applied the tag amidst a storm of elbows, knees and spikes for out number 3. Despite the loss, the Knights played some big league defense.


The tournament was a great way to close out the 2014 season. It was an awesome trip for the players and families and the Knights picked up 2 huge wins and advanced in bracket play. The Knights, their parents and their siblings definitely earned the good time in Charleston and watching them have fun was a true blessing. Way to Knights!    

Big Game Hunter grabs a bad hop and throws out the Assailants batter from one knee.

Marietta Knights Invade Charleston

Knights Enjoy the Pier at Waterfront Park in Charleston

The Boys of Summer Classic in Summerville, South Carolina was a lot like a bowl game for the Marietta Knights. A fun trip to end the season and a reward for a year of great baseball. The players and their families stayed in downtown Charleston. As luck would have it, or actually due to careful planning by Kelly Hastings, the team hotel was next door to Joseph P. Riley Stadium. "The Joe" is the beautiful home of the Charleston Riverdogs on the banks of the Ashley River. Friday night several of the guys took in the Riverdogs game against the Kannapolis Intimidators and the impressive post game fireworks show over the river beyond the RF wall.
 
Saturday morning the boys hooked up with Will who had been at the beach just up the road at Isle of Palms. After back to back games Saturday the guys were back to Charleston to explore the historic City. The Knights cooled off in the hotel pool while unwittingly terrorizing the other guests that were trying to catch some sun. Meredith Doyle took several guys to a local batting cage for some extra BP and most of the crowd ended up in shifts at Fleet Landing, a great seafood spot on the water looking out at Patriots Point, the USS Yorktown and Fort Sumter. Ashley, Lily, Bridget and Ella went


Mason Claims the US Customs House in the
name of the Marietta Knights.

through several Shirley Temples. Players enjoyed exploring King and Meeting Streets, Waterfront Park and the rest of downtown Charleston as well as the Citadel and College of Charleston.

After a nice dinner, several of the guys were in a downtown ice cream shop when they got word that they had drawn the 8am game Sunday morning. The party was over and it was time to cab it back to the hotel to get a good night sleep and get ready to play.




Several Knights and their families took in the Charleston Riverdogs game against the Kannapolis Intimidators



Hunter's Sister Ella Made a Heck of Play in Center for the Riverdogs

Knights roll past St. Andrews on Opening Day of Boys Of Summer Classic in Summerville, SC

Austin Hansell had a huge game going 4 for 4 with 2 RBI's and 2 Runs
scored in the win over St. Andrews.

The Marietta Knights used a huge offensive explosion to cruise past Charleston's St. Andrews Rocks 17-7 in the opening round of the Boys of Summer Classic at the Gahagan Sports Complex in Summerville, South Carolina. The Knights made the trip to the tournament outside of Charleston to close out their 2014 season. They got off to a great start with the big win.

The visiting Knights were tense as they trailed 1-0 going into the 3rd inning. They left the bases loaded in the 1st and left a runner on 2nd in the 2nd. But concerns of a shutout were extinguished after Jackson Tysinger and Austin Schubert led off the 3rd with back to back doubles to tie the game. George Krivsky followed up with a triple to score Schubie and came home on a single by Austin Hansell. Hunter Williamson brought Austin home with a single and the Knights led 4-1. Gil Hastings singled and Will Nelson took a curve ball off the arm to load the bases. Hunter came home on a bases loaded walk to Presley Field and Garrett Wells singled in Gil to push the lead to 6-1. Jackson singled to pick up his second hit of the inning and an RBI. Schubie grounded out to 3rd to score another and it was 8-1. George followed with a 2 out, 2 run single and scored on Austin's second RBI single of the inning to give the Knights an 11-1 lead. Coach Rob believes the 11 runs scored is the most runs in an inning in franchise history.



George Krivsky led the offensive onslaught
going 3 for 4 with a triple and 3 RBI's.

Give the Rocks credit because they didn't let the big inning or the brutal heat get them down. They came right back in the bottom of the inning with 4 runs to cut the Knights lead to 11-5. Gil walked and stole 2nd and 3rd in the top of the 4th and scored on a single by Presley to push the lead to 12-5. The Rocks cut it to 12-6 in the bottom of the 4th with back to back singles and an OF error. Jackson delivered the Defensive Play of the game to stop the threat. With a runner on 1st, he fielded a hot grounder at the mound and gunned to Mason Doyle covering 2nd to get the lead runner. He then got 2 more ground ball outs to Hunter and Presley to preserve the 6 run lead going to the 5th.

The Knights put things out of reach in the 5th with 5 more runs thanks to hits by Schubie, Austin, Mason and Will (2 RBI's). The Rocks added one more run and Presley came in to close out the win with 2 ground ball outs. For the second time this season, every Knights player scored in the game. Austin Hansell was 4 for 4 with 3 RBI's and 2 runs scored. George was 3 for 4 with a triple and 3 RBI's and Schubie was 3 for 4 with a double and 2 RBI's.



Presley Field was solid in 2 appearances on the mound.

After the Rocks win, the Knights faced off against the talented Beaufort Beast. The Beast were big and intense and jumped on the Knights early. The Knights didn't play poorly, but when their pitchers couldn't find the strike zone, the disciplined Beast took the walks and pounced on the pitches that did find the plate. Meanwhile, the bats that were so hot in the early game went cold and the Beast cruised to a shutout win. Nonetheless, the Knights made two great Defensive Plays of the Game against the big hitting Beast. The outfield was playing deep when a Beaufort player hit a flare into shallow CF. Jackson took off on a sprint, dove and caught the ball just before it hit the ground for a big out. The second came when Hunter ranged to his left from his 2B position and made a diving catch of a line drive that Beaufort's #5 hitter scorched towards RF.

It was a good day for the Knights in the Open tournament. They picked up a solid victory out of state and played good baseball.

Austin Hansell slides in just ahead of the tag in a bang bang play at the plate to extend the Knights
lead over St. Andrews lead as Coach Steven looks on.

Stuff Knights Say



Sniper! - When a player falls down in the field
for no apparent reason as if taken down by a sharp shooter.

One of the best things about being on the field with the Marietta Knights is the baseball talk. As these guys grow, being on the field with them becomes more and more like being with a college or pro team. This is often most evident in their language. Some of it is borrowed from the team's favorite web videos, "(Stuff) Baseball Players Say I & II," and some of it comes from being around the game for so many years. Some is self explanatory and some needs defining. The point of this post is to preserve all of this great vernacular to enjoy many years from now.

Buckets!
Making Buckets! 
Coach is watching.
Coach, can I bunt today?
Coach, can I switch hit today?
I'm totally feeling this start.
Swag!
Dude!


Do you guys even know the signs? - When a player has just
been thrown out trying to steal or swings through a take sign.

Dude, this is so swag.
Schube's running.
Sniper!
Coach, I can totally steal on this guy.
Sick!
Can I use your bat?
Filthy!
Let's go KIIIID!
We got ice.
We got soap.
Did you hear what Landon said?
Coach, can I throw a knuckleball in the game today?
Check out this pitch I made up. 
My soft toss is on point today.
7 innings.
Way to wear it.
Get dirty.
Attaboy, Seven.
Roll it.



Nobody, Nobody, Nobody, Shooorrrrt - When neither middle
infielder is holding a teammate on 2nd base...there is still no
infielder covering 2nd...Still all clear...the Short Stop is
now moving over to cover 2nd base.   

You're up.
Get down!
I'm going bomb squad today.
On the fence.
Please don't pinch run for me, Coach.
Got heeem!
Pick 'em up.
Nobody, Nobody, Nobody, Shooorrrrt.
Ballin'.
Brah.
Brah!
Brah?
Coach, I can totally play first.
I love baseball.
I hate baseball.
This guy's throwing ched.
Do you even know the signs?
The baseball gods know.
It's in the group text.
I think I'm going to get my glove relaced.
I can't hit without my Evoshield.
I was hitting bombs in the cage.
I think I need Tommy John.
Cut 2!
Cheddar.



Got Heeem! - Used in a high pitch tone when a Knight
makes a play resulting in an opposing player being called
out. May also be used after successfully
pranking a teammate. 

I hate hitting doubles.
Did coach see that?
First swing of the day.
Can we do onfield?
Got to end on a good one.
My two seam is really moving today.
Did somebody mess with my bill?
Who got my seeds?
That's a base knock.
Who's starting today?
He's hitting his spots.
Have you seen Schube's Eefus pitch?
Pitcher gets bucket.
Turnt Up.


Filthy! - When Schubie has just thrown a particularly well executed curve ball. "Sick!" "Dude!" "Buckets!" and
(if the pitch is strike 3) "Got heeem!"may also be used in this case. 



Special thanks to Marietta High School for Giving the Knights Field Time at Smallwood Field

The Knights got in some great work at Marietta HS's Smallwood Field, Home of the Blue Devils

George Krivsky digs in the plate.

While trying to prepare for their final tournament of the season, the Marietta Knights were bumped from practicing on their home field by a 12 year old All Star tournament. Luckily, the Marietta High Blue Devils, fresh off of another appearance in the AAAAAA State Playoffs stepped in and generously loaned the Knights their awesome facility at Smallwood Field.

It was clear from the beginning of practice that the boys were fired up to be on the HS field. Warm up
throws were flat and exploded in gloves. The guys looked like they belonged on the big field and they filled it up. The Knights blasted a lot of balls deep into the big outfield and they took quite a bit of Smallwood Field infield dirt home with them on the front of their uniforms. It was a fun evening and the Knights got in some great work in preparation for their Charleston trip.  

The Knights would like to thank Blue Devils' Coach Chris Stafford and Kelly Hastings with the Marietta High School Athletic Department for the great opportunity.

The Knights hustle in to take infield at MHS.

Knights Get Great Big League Instruction from College Flamethrower Landon Hughes and MLB First Round Pick Michael Chavis

The Knights with special instructors, former Sprayberry stars and Big League prospects Landon Hughes & Michael Chavis

The Marietta Knights received a special treat along with some great baseball insight when Austin Hansell's family friend Landon Hughes came out to work with the team. Landon just finished his freshman season as the Closer at Wallace State C.C. in Alabama (a position formerly held by current Brave Craig Kimbrel). He is currently being recruited by several D1 schools including Mississippi State University. Landon worked extremely hard all year and had a great season for Wallace State so the Knights felt remarkably lucky that he's chosen to spend hours and hours of his down time helping to make these 13 year olds better at the game.

Michael Chavis, the Boston Red Sox 1st round pick, works with Hunter in
the cage. Michael analyzed each player's swing and offered great advice.
 

Landon works with the boys on every aspect of the game including pre-workout stretching routines, IF/OF drills, pre-pitch approach by infielders and of course pitching. He also shares his immense knowledge of mechanics and mental approach to the game. Landon is able to tell the boys things they've never heard before but even when he tells them things they have heard from the coaches the boys seem to hear it much more clearly when it comes from a star college pitcher. The boys also work incredibly hard for Landon and he pushes them to the limit. One highlight was the Superman drill when Landon had our infielders diving back and forth to field balls thrown rapid fire to their right and left. Mason, Austin and Hunter were covered in dirt and Presley was covered in dirt and blood. They looked like champions.

As an extra treat, Landon brought his former Sprayberry H.S. teammate Michael Chavis to work with the boys on hitting and infield. Michael, a Clemson University signee, just finished his senior season at Sprayberry as the USA Today Player of the Year in Georgia. Michael worked with each Knights hitter in the cage and joined them on the field for infield drills and work with the catchers. Michael was very candid when talking about his preparation for the MLB draft and was grinning from ear to ear during the entire practice. At one point Michael told Coach Rob without an ounce of irony that he worked out for the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday and the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday and since he didn't work out for anyone on Thursday he came out to work with the Marietta Knights. Once again, the boys loved working with Michael and soaked up every bit of advice he gave them. The boys understood how fortunate they were that a great player that was just days away from being taken in the first round of the draft spent 2 hours working with them at Larry Bell Park. On Thursday, Michael became the 26th player selected in the Major League Baseball Draft as the First Round Pick of the Boston Red Sox (Mason is thrilled). He will begin playing professionally in just a week.

Austin Hansell works on throwing out base runners around
guest instructor, the Red Sox' Michael Chavis.

Working with these great players has been a real blessing for the Knights. The boys have worked hard, learned a ton and had a great time. Many thanks and continued good luck to Landon and Michael!

2 Comebacks in a Row! Knights Blast Past South Paulding Spartans 10-5

With Runners on, George, Will and Gil are on the fence encouraging the offense.

Big hitting and great defense including 2 double plays helped the Knights overcome a 3 run deficit to defeat the South Paulding Spartans 10-5. The Spartans came out strong getting the Knights out 3 up/3 down in the top of the first. In the bottom of the first the Spartans used 2 doubles, 2 singles and a squeeze bunt to jump out to a 3-0 lead. With runners on the corners and 1 out, Hunter Williamson stopped the bleeding with the first of two defensive plays of the game. Hunter ranged to his right and fielded a ground ball up the middle right behind 2B, touched the bag for one out and threw to Presley at 1B to complete the double play and get out of the inning.



Hunter turned 2 double plays and went 2 for
3 with a double in win over the Spartans.

The Knights manufactured a run in the 2nd. Mason Doyle reached on a fielder's choice, stole 2nd and 3rd and came home when Hunter hit a hard groundout to SS. Austin Hansell shut the Spartans out in the bottom of the 2nd 3 up and 3 down to keep it 3-1. After 3 walks and a Will Nelson single the Knights pulled into a 3-3 tie in the top of the 3rd. After Austin Schubert tossed a shutout 3rd, the Knights took control in the 4th inning. Hunter led off with a deep double to LCF and came home on a long single by George Krivsky that gave Marietta the lead. With 2 outs, the Knights got 3 straight singles from Will, Jackson Tysinger and Luke Martin that scored 2 more runs and the Knights led 6-3.

The Spartans cut it to 6-4 in the 4th on a triple and single and were threatening to take back over until the 2nd Defensive Play of the Game shut them down. The Spartans hit a hard grounder to SS where Jackson got into perfect position to make the play. The ball jumped off the hard packed infield right into Jackson's chest, but he somehow managed to field it cleanly and tossed to Hunter at 2nd. Hunter touched the bag and turned and fired to Presley who made a nice stretch to finish off a text book 6-4-3 double play to end the threat. As the players celebrated the great play, the coaches noted that they finally gained an advantage from practicing on the concrete like infield of Larry Bell Park.

George had 2 RBI's against South Paulding

As usual, the Knights followed up a great defensive play with a big offensive inning. Mason led off the 5th with a 2B followed by singles from Hunter and Austin. A walk to Presley, RBI ground outs from George and Will and an RBI single from Jackson and the Knights were comfortably ahead 10-4.

The Spartans added one in the 5th, but Schubie closed it out with a great pick off move to third to catch a Spartan runner and end the game. The 2nd straight comeback victory gave the Knights the #1 seed and a bye into the Semi Finals.

Several of the players and families stayed at the Hampton Inn in Carrollton and spent a nice evening by the pool. While the players and siblings splashed in the pool and terrorized the hotel hallways, the parents relived the big hits and double plays.

The Knights were in a position to make a run, but came out flat Sunday afternoon against Team Full Armor of Lagrange. The great defense was a distant memory as the Knights committed 4 first inning errors that led to 4 runs. After a shutout 2nd, another 4 errors in the 3rd and 4th gave Team Armor another 4 runs.



The resort in Carrollton had an outstanding
grocery delivery service.

The Knights finally got fired up after the most bizarre situation the Knights have ever faced. After warming up before the game, Hunter tossed his glove on his bat bag and went into the cage to hit. After BP, Hunter couldn't find his glove and he, Coach Rob and several parents searched the park for it before giving up. Hunter played the first 2 innings with Coach Rob's glove. In the 3rd, from his 3B position, Austin heard several Team Armor players laughing in their dugout about having the glove. Coach Rob asked the Team Armor coach after the inning and they determined that the Team Armor right fielder not only had the glove, but was using it in the field. Team Armor did not apologize but suggested to Coach Rob that his players should be more careful with their equipment in the future.

This got the guys going and they closed the gap to 1 run, but they left the bases loaded in the 6th and could not overcome their defensive lapses and fell 8-7. Jackson, Luke, Schubie, George and Will each had 2 hits. Jackson added 2 RBI's and Luke and Schubie had an RBI each.

In spite of the rough final game, it was a solid weekend for the Knights. They averaged over 8 runs a game and turned 3 double plays in picking up 2 comeback wins. Marietta continues to win games and get better.



The Knights Fan Club lounges poolside at the Hampton Inn Carrollton Resort.

Comeback Win Over West Georgia Rebels highlights Knights Memorial Day Weekend in Carrollton

The Knights replaced their usual jerseys with PT shirts representing the Armed Forces to honor all Veterans this Memorial Day
Weekend. The boys were extremely fired up with the jerseys and the meaning behind them. THANK YOU VETERANS!

The Marietta Knights picked up a pair of thrilling comeback wins in the Memorial Day Weekend tournament at the Carroll County Sports Complex in Carrollton, Georgia. The Knights opened with the same West Georgia Rebels that knocked them out of a tournament a few miles away 2 weeks ago. After shutting out the Rebels in the top of the 1st, the Knights took an early 3-0 lead thanks to a single by Luke Martin and doubles by Gil Hastings and Mason Doyle.

The lead was short-lived as the Rebels blew up for 7 runs in the 2nd. They then retired the next 6 Knights batters and seemed to be in control of the game. Luckily, Jackson Tysinger kept the Rebels within reach with 2 and a third great innings on the mound. Jackson only gave up 1 hit and didn't allow any runs. He also started the Defensive Play of the Game. With the bases loaded, Jackson fielded a hard comebacker at the mound. He threw to Austin Hansell at the plate for 1 out and Austin fired to Presley Field at first to complete the exciting 1-2-3 double play.

Will Nelson did everything but sell programs and popcorn. Will caught 2
innings, pitched 2 shutout innings for the win and hit the walk-off RBI single.

Still, the Rebels led 7-3 going into the bottom of the 4th. The Knights chipped away with 1 run in the 4th when Mason singled and came home on Austin's groundout to cut the lead to 7-4. Will "The Thrill" Nelson took the mound in the 5th and threw another shutout inning to keep it close so the Knights could come roaring back in the bottom of the inning. After Jackson and Will walked, Luke ripped a 2 run single into RF. Luke later came home on a bases loaded walk and the game was tied 7-7. Will tossed another shutout inning that gave the Knights a chance to win it in the bottom of the 6th.

George Krivsky led off the 6th nursing a very sore hamstring. Coach Rob took George aside in the on deck circle and told him to take it easy, not try to be a hero and not to try to leg out a double. George nodded his understanding, stepped into the batter's box and blasted a double to deep LF. Thankfully, George hit the ball so hard he had plenty of time to cruise into 2B. Presley singled to push George over to 3B and Will drove a 3-2 fastball into RF for the game winner. The Thrill was grinning ear to ear as his teammates mobbed him at first after the huge walk off hit.

Knights Advance Again! Beat East Paulding Raiders 12-5

Schubie had a huge tournament including 2 Doubles and
3 RBI's in the Win over the East Paulding Raiders.

This weekend was a bit of a grind for the Marietta Knights at the East Carrollton Sports Complex. They went 0-2 in pool play. It wasn't bad baseball, but it wasn't great and they didn't seem to get a single break. They played a very good Carrollton Storm team tough and trailed 5-3 after 5. The Storm got their bats going and blew it open with 6 runs in the 6th to make it an ugly 11-3 final. The lone highlight for the Knights was Luke Martin's continued dominance on the mound. Luke threw 2 shutout innings with a strikeout.


The second game wasn't much better as the Knights fell to the Georgia Octane 8-1. The Knights hit
the ball hard throughout the game, but it was always right at the defense and the Octane's defense didn't make any mistakes. This led to a humorous and dubious Knights' first. The Cherokee Black was signed up for the tournament but didn't show up. Instead of calling it a 4 team pool, USSSA ruled that it remained a 5 team pool and that the Black forfeited their 2 games. By rule, that meant the black lost each game 7-0 (1 run per inning of a regulation game). Now the Knights and the Black were both 0-2 in the pool with the tie breaker going to fewest runs allowed. The Knights gave up 8.5 runs per game, while the Black only "gave up" 7. Yes, the Knights finished 5th in the pool behind the 4th place team that never even showed up at the park. This got a lot of laughs around the cages Sunday morning, but the Knights committed to just playing hard against whomever the USSSA told them to play.

George Finishes Last in the Knights Rain Delay Dance Off

That turned out to be the East Paulding Raiders. Marietta made it clear they wouldn't be the butt of the joke for long. Jackson Tysinger opened the game with a single. He stole second and then advanced to 3rd and scored on ground balls from Luke and Gil Hastings to give the Knights a 1-0 lead. Trailing 3-1 in the 2nd, Mason Doyle walked and stole 2B. Hunter Williamson brought Mason home on a single to CF and scored on a huge double from Austin Hansell that tied the game. Garrett Wells singled to push Austin to 3B and a balk brought Austin home and gave the Knights a 4-3 lead. Tied 4-4 with 2 outs in the 3rd, Mason got things started again when he reached on an error and stole 2B and 3B. Hunter hit a hot shot that the Raiders' SS couldn't handle and Mason scored to retake the lead 5-4. East Paulding answered again and tied it at 5 in the bottom of the 3rd.

The Knights gave the ball to Austin Hansell and he was awesome. Austin closed out the game with 4 shutout innings and 4 strikeouts. At one point Austin retired 8 straight Raiders and he twice stranded runners at 2B and 3B. While Austin was shutting down East Paulding, the fired up Knights offense was putting the game on ice with 5 runs over the final 2 innings to secure the 11-5 bracket victory. Austin Schubert was the offensive hero with 2 doubles and 3 RBI's. Gil Hastings, Hunter and Austin also had 2 hits and Gil scored twice, Hunter had 2 RBI's and Austin had a double. Jackson closed out the game defensively by making 2 straight great catches in CF for the final 2 outs of the game. It was huge bracket win for the Knights to advance them into the Semi finals of the Silver Bracket.

Presley Field holds a Raider close to 1B.

The win matched the Knights up with the West Georgia Rebels who had just knocked off the East Marietta Spikes. The semi final was an epic battle the saw several lead changes and was locked in a 7-7 tie with 2 outs in the bottom of the 6th. A 2 out, 3 run double gave the Rebels a 10-7 lead that the Knights couldn't match. It was a thrilling game and the boys were down after the final out. But they recognized that they'd played in a thriller and played some very good baseball to finish a strong day. It was a good day and the Knights once again improved and grew as a baseball team. Luke threw another 1 2/3 scoreless innings to finish the weekend unscored upon. Luke also went 2 for 4 with a double, 2 RBI's and 2 runs. Gil, Schubie, Hunter and Presley also each had 2 hits and an RBI.

Knights Closeout Season Series with the Spikes with 11-7 win

The Marietta Knights relax in the Larry Bell grandstand after a big 11-7 victory

The Marietta Knights closed out their season series with the East Marietta Spikes with one of their most complete games of the year in an 11-7 victory on Monday at Larry Bell Park.

The teams were tied 0-0 after 1. Mason Doyle led off the 2nd with a single and then stole 2nd and 3rd and took home on a passed ball to give the Knights a 1-0 lead. Hunter Williamson started on the mound for the Knights and threw 2 solid innings only allowing 1 unearned run. The Knights preserved a 1-1 tie in the 2nd with the first of 2 Defensive Plays of the Game. With 1 out, 2 Spikes reached on errors and were on 2nd and 3rd when one of their teammates hit a flyball to LF. Austin Schubert made the catch in LF for the 2nd out and fired towards the plate. The runner on 2nd tagged and headed for 3rd on the throw, but Hunter cut the throw and fired to Austin Hansell at 3B who tagged out the runner to end the inning.

As so often happens, the big defensive play carried over and got the Knights' bats going. George Krivsky continued his power hitting tear with a 2 run double. Mason singled again and came home on an RBI single by Schubie to give the Knights a 4-1 lead. In the bottom of the 3rd the Spikes cut the lead to 4-2 and had the bases loaded with 1 out when the Knights delivered the 2nd Defensive Play of the Game. Luke Martin took the mound with the bases load and got a hot comebacker that he grabbed and quickly threw to Will Nelson at the plate for one and Will turned and fired to Presley Field at 1B  to complete the 1-2-3 double play and end the inning.

Again the excitement carried to the Knights' at bat. Austin Hansell led off with a single and scored on Will's single. Jackson Tysinger walked and Luke reached on an error to load the bases. George grounded to 2nd and the Spikes got the out at 2nd, but George beat the double play attempt allowing Will and Jackson to score and push the Knights lead to 7-2.

Luke shutdown the Spikes 3 up/3 down in the 5th and the Knights put it out of reach in the 6th. Hunter, Schubie, Garrett Wells and Will each got hits as the Knights put up 4 more and led 11-2. The Spikes fought back hard and started scoring in the 6th but the Knights stayed calm and concentrated on getting outs. With the score 11-7, Hunter fielded a grounder at 2nd and threw on to Presley for the final out. It was the 7th time this season Hunter closed out a win with a putout or assist and he closed one out offensively with a run rule walk off homer.

There's nothing more fun than watching this team play to their potential and they did it Monday night in beating a very good East Marietta Spikes team. The Knights return to USSSA action this weekend in Carrollton, Georgia.

Errors Doom Knights in 10-9 loss to East Marietta Spikes

The Marietta Knights defense that has been so strong for weeks finally had an off night. Somehow they kept the game close but their 7 errors as well as a few base running blunders prevented a win and the Spikes held on 10-9.

The Knights out hit the Spikes 12 to 9. Mason Doyle hit a triple and laid down a gorgeous bunt down the 3B line for a hit. Gil Hastings hit a 2 run triple and walked 3 times. Garrett Wells and Will Nelson each had 2 hits and scored twice. Austin Schubert struck out 3 in 2 innings of work.

Knights Edge Past Scrappy East Marietta Rattlers 11-5 to Complete Season Series Sweep

Luke Martin pitched 2 3 up/3 down innings
with 2 K's and hit a triple and scored twice.

The Marietta Knights pulled away late for an 11-5 win and season series sweep over the much improved East Marietta Rattlers Tuesday night at Larry Bell Park. Marietta had to overcome a great game by the Rattlers #7 who made several big league plays in the field including twice throwing out Knights batters from deep behind 3B. #7 also went 2 for 3 with a double and 2 RBI's. Luckily the Knights found enough offense in the 1st and 5th to take the win.

Luke Martin started on the mound and threw 2 perfect innings with 2 strikeouts. The Knights took a 1-0 lead after 1 without a hit thanks to the wheels of Mason Doyle. Mason walked, went to 3rd on a ground out to 2nd and scored on a ground out to 1B. Marietta's big bats got going in the second. Luke bombed a triple to LCF. Hunter singled him in and scored on a double by Austin Schubert. Presley Field singled next and then Garrett Wells singled in Schubie. Presley scored on an error and George Krivsky smashed a double to CF that scored Garrett and gave the Knights a 6-0 lead. The Knights added 1 in the 3rd for a 7-0 lead but were shut out in the 4th.

Meanwhile the Rattlers manufactured a run in the 4th and took advantage of several walks and the big 2 run double by #7 to claw back into the game. At 7-5 it was suddenly a dog fight. Mason led off the 5th with a single and promptly stole 2nd and 3rd and came home when Luke reached on an error. George and Gil walked and all 3 guys took home on wild pitches to close out the win at 11-5. It was a great test for the Knights and they answered by taking care of business. The Knights players and staff were impressed with the great improvement made by the Rattlers over the course of the season.

Knights Split with Newnan Taters, Advance to Semifinals for 2nd Week in a Row.

Austin Hansell had 5 RBI's in the Knights 3 games

The Marietta Knights turned a close game against the Newnan Taters into a blowout for their 3rd straight win and a spot in the USSSA NIT Semifinals at Mt. Tabor Park in Dallas, Georgia. Newnan took an early 2-0 lead after the first. But in the 2nd, Mason Doyle singled to start a rally. After walks to Luke Martin and Presley Field loaded the bases, Mason and Luke both scored on wild pitches to tie the game. Will Nelson grounded out behind the runners to score Presley and give Marietta a 3-2 lead.

After a 2 base error, Newnan tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the 2nd and shut the Knights out in the 3rd. Hunter Williamson came on to pitch in the bottom of the 3rd and threw a much needed shutout inning with a strikeout and pop outs to C Austin Schubert and SS Mason Doyle. The game went to the 4th knotted at 3-3.

In the top of the 4th, the Knights offense absolutely exploded. Luke Martin started the onslaught with a single. Schubie, Presley, Hunter and Will made it 5 straight singles and the Knights held a 6-3 lead. With 1 out, George Krivsky singled and Gil Hastings walked. Austin Hansell hit a 2 RBI single and Mason reached on a error by the RF that scored 2 more runs and the Knights held a commanding 10-3 lead. Luke came up again and hit his second single of the inning, this time bringing home a run. Schubie walked this time around, but Presley and Hunter each added RBI hits. 2 more runs scored on a fielder's choice and an error and the stunned crowd looked up to find Marietta leading 15-3.



Hunter threw 6 2/3 innings without an earned run in 2
appearances and had 4 hits and 3 RBI's in the tourney 

Presley came on to pitch in the 4th and got a groundout to Hunter at 2nd base. The next out came on the Defensive Play of the Game with a looping line drive down the 3B line. 3rd baseman Luke Martin laid out and made a beautiful diving catch with the ball just an inch from the ground. With a runner on 3rd, Presley got another slow grounder to Hunter at 2nd that he threw on to Gil at first to seal the run rule victory.

The win put the Knights into the Semifinals for the 2nd week in a row. The 12 runs scored in the 4th set a franchise record for most runs scored in an inning. Austin, Hunter and Will each had 2 RBI's for the Knights and George, Luke, Presley and Hunter each had 2 hits in the game.

After a win over 5 Tool Baseball, the Taters earned a rematch with the Knights in the semifinal. The Knights led most of the game and Hunter threw a great game on the mound going 5 2/3 innings without giving up an earned run. But errors proved to be the Knights undoing and Newnan took the lead with 3 runs in the 6th and held the Knights scoreless in the bottom of the inning to advance to the Finals with a 7-6 win. George was 3 for 3 with a double, an RBI and a run scored, Will was 2 for 3, Austin had 2 RBI's and Mason added a triple.

Presley Field is having a monster season at 1B and threw
a shutout inning to close out the win against Newnan

Hastings Pitches Knights past South Paulding Spartans

Gil struck out 4 in 5 2/3 for the win and singled and scored a run.

Gil Hastings pitched a gem on Saturday in his longest outing of the season as the Knights opened the
USSSA NIT in Dallas with 7-4 win over the South Paulding Spartans. Gil went 5 2/3 innings with 4 strikeouts and only allowed 1 earned run. Jackson Tysinger led the offense going 2 for 4 with a double, 2 RBI's and a run scored.

The Knights took the lead in the 2nd after Austin Hansell led off with a single. George Krivsky ripped a triple to the fence in RCF that scored Austin all the way from first. Luke Martin followed up with a line drive single to left that brought home George and gave the Knights a 2-0 lead. Jackson led off the 3rd with a single and stole 2nd and 3rd allowing him to score on a 2 out single by Austin to push the lead to 3-0.




George Krivsky blasted an RBI Triple.

Luke led off the 4th with a double and went to 3rd on a single by Austin Schubert and Presley Field walked to load the bases. On an 0-2 count, Hunter Williamson choked up and put the ball in play that scored Luke and pushed Presley and Schubie to 2nd and 3rd as Hunter was thrown out at 1st. After a pop out, Jackson smashed a 2 out, 2 run double to left field. The Knights lead was now 6-0. Gil singled in the 5th, stole 2nd and scored on an error to score the final Knights run and give the Knights a 7-0 lead.

At that point, the boys started taking the win for granted and a triple and 3 straight errors suddenly closed the gap to 7-4. With time expired in the 6th, a walk, a single and another error loaded the bases for the Spartans with one out. Schubie came on to try to save it for the Knights. On his fourth pitch, the Spartans cleanup hitter hit a sky high flyball between 2nd and SS. The ump immediately called the Infield Fly rule and the batter was out. The ball dropped causing the runner on first to break for second even though he didn't have to. Hunter picked up the ball and threw to Presley at first who made the tag as the runner bowled over Presley at 1B for a wild double play to end the game.

It was a beautiful weekend at Mt. Tabor Park in Dallas and, as always, the Marietta Knights brought the prettiest fan club

Knights Cruise Past Rattlers 15-2

Mason got things started with an RBI triple to straight away CF

Coach Steven Hansell guided the Knights to a 15-2 victory over the East Marietta Rattlers at Larry Bell Park. Mason Doyle got things started with a big RBI triple and George Krivsky, Presley Field and Gil Hastings were practically unhittable as the Knights cruised to the win.

Gil doubled and scored 3 times and Austin Hansell singled and scored 3 times. Austin Schubert knocked in 3 RBI's and Presley Field and Hunter Williamson added 2 RBI's each. Presley was 3 for 3 on the night with a triple and George and Hunter had 2 hits apiece.


George struck out the side in his inning on the mound, Presley struck out 3 in 2 innings and Gil struck out 2 in the final inning to close out the win. In the Defensive Play of the Game, Hunter caught a foul flyball against the Rattlers dugout from his 1B position for the final out of the game.

Gil had a big game with 3 runs scored and he struck out 2.

It was a great game for the Knights as they went out and simply took care of business offensively,
defensively and on the mound. Special thanks to Coach Steven for a great job at the helm and to Coach Robert for allowing Coach Rob to enjoy the game via the magic of Iscorecast.  

Knights Advance to Semifinals of Hickory Flats Wood Bat Bash with 3-2 Win over the Georgia Octane.

Jackson Tysinger was the winning pitcher and knocked in the winning run

It was a perfect day for baseball at Thomas Field, one of the best and certainly most unique parks in all of travel baseball. Knights fans were set up along the hill on the 1B side under large shade trees while horses roamed up to within just a few feet of the 3B fence from the vast rolling pasture next door. Coach Rob felt like he was at a college game as the Knights warmed up with music playing over the PA system and Austin jogged out to the outfield in his shin guards to warm up a pitcher. A perfect day.

The Knights were the home team thanks to their #2 seed and for the third straight game they got outstanding pitching and great defense. Jackson Tysinger got the start and only allowed 2 hits in 5 innings and struck out 4. The Knights defense played error free baseball behind him. Garrett Wells showed tremendous range in CF grabbing 2 deep flyballs and Presley Field was perfect at 1B scooping throws. Both of the Octane's runs came from walked batters. One came home on a sac fly and one scored when the Knights' catcher threw down to first on a dropped third strike.

Meanwhile, the Knights' bats that were so loud on Saturday had gone quiet again Sunday and the Octane led 2-0 going into the bottom of the 4th. In the 4th Austin Hansell, George Krivsky and Luke Martin loaded the bases with 3 straight singles. Austin Schubert made it 4 and got the Knights on the board with an RBI single to left. After a strikeout, Hunter Williamson walked to bring the tying run in and keep the bases loaded. With 2 outs, Jackson helped himself with a single just past a diving second baseman into RF that gave the Knights the lead at 3-2. The Knights don't play in very many pitcher's duels and this one run affair was tense.

Hunter came on in the 6th and got 2 quick outs on grounders to Austin at 3B and Mason at SS. But the next Octane batter blasted a double. Hunter hit the next batter and both runners advanced a base on a passed ball on suddenly the tying run was on the third and the go ahead runner was on second. The next batter hit a high pop in the infield that Hunter camped under between home on the mound to pick up the save. Jackson was the winning pitcher and knocked in the winning run and the Knights advanced to the semi finals.



The Knights pile into Coach Steven's truck between games

The Knights had about 4 hours to kill before their semifinal matchup. Several of the guys ended up at the outlet mall in Woodstock where they helped the Nike Store to a strong sales quarter. When they arrived back at the park they found out their opponent would be the Sequoyah Jr. Chiefs, a very strong AAA team. The Chiefs' big pitcher threw harder than any pitcher the Knights have faced and held the Knights to just 3 hits. He threw nothing but very fast fastballs for a couple of innings and then dropped a perfect curve for a strikeout. It was a very impressive performance. Schubie also had a great outing on the mound for the Knights. He opened with a 3 up/3 down 1st with 2 strikeouts. He added another strikeout in the 2nd before rain and lightning moved in and delayed the game for about 45 minutes. After the delay, the Chiefs pulled away and advanced to the championship game with a 6-0 win. The Knights once again committed no errors in a very solid defensive performance. The Chiefs would go on to win the tournament against the FCA Patriots.

Presley Field hit well all weekend and was perfect at 1B
routinely making great scoops and hauling in flyballs.

It was a great weekend for baseball and a great weekend to be a Knight. The boys got consistently strong pitching and had the best defensive tournament in franchise history. Although their bats struggled at times, they faced some very strong pitching, they got timely hits when they needed them to top the Octane and they had an offensive explosion in the win over the Coal Mountain Raiders. The team is making great strides and looks forward to more big wins to come.