Summer Softball

(Pop-ups to the pitcher were common)



(Fastest kid on the team)




As the warm weather approaches and the days grow longer, it's natural to spend more time outside. For those who are restless and competitive, but don't want to try too hard, this means only one thing: summer softball season is officially underway.

Men and women of all ages gather together under the slow-setting July sun to pay homage to America's lazy passtime. After nearly a year of time off, or for some who play fall ball, the time is ripe to get the bats swinging all over again. Comprised of five to six teams, each divison is selected by the league, eighteen games are scheduled and the rivalries begin to take shape. For most teams, eleven players is the prefered capacity, but for those hungry to play, it sometimes takes more.

"It wasn't really my choice or desire to have so many people playing on the team, but it's hard to say no to friends," said Shane Small, right fielder for the Redwolves, "no matter how bad they are."
(Catcher Will Marshall displaying his immaculate catching ability)


With so many people playing on one team, there is difficulty getting every player playing time, or even at-bats for that matter. For a first year team, this decision was made in haste.

"We've actually been playing together for a while now, and we have a solid roster. We've figured out who is good in what position, and it feels more like a team than something just thrown together," said Scott Harris, a five year veteran of Fat Guy Softball.

The main difficulty is getting the attention of the league commissioner and gaining their acceptance for the admittance of a new team. This requires constant correspondence, whether by phone or email. Once accepted into the league, their is the rigorous task of paying dues, gathering a roster and finding a sponsor.

"My uncle agreed to sponsor the team with his business. It was crucial to the development of our team in terms of expenses, seeing as how his contribution paid for our jerseys," said Kyle Gamst, left-center fielder for the Redwolves.

(McCarthy lining one to center)

Not every team is necessarily required to have a sponsor, as some teams choose to make their own jerseys, or choose to represent themselves on their own. In the case of those who decide to go all out and have professional-looking apparel, a sponsor is key.

"I agreed to sponsor my nephews team, which amounted to around $500 to cover hats and jerseys. Needless to say, they picked out the most expensive ones," said Howey Face, uncle and official team sponsor of the Redwolves.

There is no easy way of going about selecting positions once the roster is filled, and it is basically left up to ability. For some, it comes easier than others and the choice is obvious. But with such an extensive roster, positions need to be shared, and at the very least filled when necessary.

"Our downfall was definately our roster size. Sometimes people were just no good at a position, or people wouldn't show up. In a way, it did help solidify something of a roster, but at the same time it's almost as though some were forced into positions that couldn't be filled," said Scott Craven, alternating first basemen for the Redwolves. "At the same time, most of us already had ideas of where we would play, so in the long run, it wasn't that much of an issue."

Once the season begins, it is up to the team to come together as a cohesive unit. For a group made up of mostly new comers, this is a difficult task. It is hard to pick up a game right away where most of the players left off almost six years ago.
(Gargano putting his batting cage experiences to good use)


"I'm finding it hard to just get back into the swing of things, you know? I haven't played baseball since Babe Ruth league, and what's worse is having to deal with a new style of pitching," said Chris Gargano, shortstop for the Redwolves. "I can still play, don't get me wrong, but it's been a long time, and I've never tried to hit a softball before this year, so it's a challenge."

When it's all said and done, it's about the joy of the game. There is competition, and even playoff chances at stake, but in the end it's about going out onto the field two or three times a week and playing the game we all love. It's easy to get frusterated, but it's all in good fun, and when you're playing with all of your friends, emotions are typically positive.

"Yeah, I get mad sometimes, when people mess up, especially when they're stupid mistakes. Then again, nobodies perfect, and even when we lose it's usually been a good game, and we can go out and have a drink and laugh about it later," said Jeff Horn, centerfielder for the Redwolves.

Out With the Old

It was a year for the young stars to finally light up.

From Wade to Paul, Rajon Rondo has been able to play with, and to the caliber of some of the best point guards in the leage, in one years time honing his skills and techniques to ball with the best of them.

At the conclusion of the Playoffs this year, he nearly averaged a tripple- double with 16.9 points, 9.7 rebounds and 9.8 assists. He has played professionally for only 2 years, and was hardly noticed around the leage. After this year, his name will be brought up in all cirlces of talk, amoungst some of the most versatile guards in the league. He truley shined when on the floor with Garnett, adding to his arsenal what was almost the nightly alley-oop, behind the back scoop and shoot, dazling passes and overall professionalism.

Another big contributer, probably the most important and surprizing of all, was Glen Davis. I never expected him to play half as good as he did, playing in the wake of the loss of 3 starters ahead of him, taking what he had dealt and playing his role. If ever there was someone more deserving of praise, it is Davis. He jumpred from a 7-point average during the regular season to a 15.8 Playoff average, not to mention his rebounding average went up as well. You can say it's all the playing time due to lack of anybody else, but I call it significant progress. For all the jokes that can be made about him crying after Garnett yelled at him (and who honestly wouldn't have?) and his personality off court, he truley stepped up to his calling this year, and we're going to have to come up with a better name for him than "Big Baby."

Season Ends Too Early

There is little that needs to be said.

With a sputter and a fart, the Celtics managed to flame out in Game 7, at home no less, losing 101-82 to the Magic for their last game this season. There are few things worse than losing such a crucial game, by such a large deficit.

It's not hard to see how the Celtics could have choked so badly: they lost KG and Powe for the entire Playoffs, their bench was lacking in suitable talent and chemistry, and, let's face it, nobody thought they would beat Cleveland anyway.

In the 4th quarter the C's were outscored 35 to 21, and that says it all right there. After such a long, strenuous series with Chicago, after playing every other night for nearly 2 months, there was only so much left in the tank. There was nothing more they could do, and all we can do is look back on this year as an excellent achievement in what can be accomplished when your key player is out for nearly the entire season, and when your bench falls apart to next to nothing.

For what it's worth, the Celtics showed that their team is still ripe with talent and ability, but also when you cut the legs out from under something, it fails to stand. This season and post-season can be viewed as a portrait for what could have been. They fell short, but it's obvious why they did. They were tired and overworked, and fought as hard as they could, but it never should have gotten to this point. It never should have come down to a blowout at home.

But, Kevin Garnett will be back next year, so will Ray and Paul, and the bench will remained intact for the most part, not to say the new pick-ups well aquire. It won't be another 20 years before a banner is yet again raised.

Final Straw

Load up on coffee, drink a Red Bull and take an aderal; the rest of the week is occupied by the one thing students spend all year forgetting about.

For some it breezes by with little to no stress, for others hours are spent cramming and studying, staying up all night to try and prepare for finals week. It is around this time of year the panicing begins, and conversations are haulted by "I have to study, I'll call you later," days move into nights seemlessly. The easiest way to prepare is to balance your workload, and to make sure there is enough time to do a thorough, disciplined job.

"When it comes down to this time of year, I drink a lot of Red Bull, usually stay up most of the night. It's really a matter of giving yourself enough time that you're not cramming things all together at the last minute," said Pete Sheehy of UMass Lowell. "I'll study for a long time, but on the night's before I make sure to get a good nights sleep."

This seems crucial when preparing for an exam. A student can only handle so much when challanged with a final exam on 2 or 3 hours of sleep. Unlike during the school year, it is hard to fake one's way through a final.

"I need sleep. If I don't sleep I'm finished for a test," said Gregg Harris of Northshore Community College. "I'll be dragging if I don't get at least 4 or 5 hours; I make sure I cram during the day and let it all settle overnight," Harris said.

One thing that haunts students is the pre-exam brain-freeze. It happens right as the test is handed out; all night was filled with studying, even a little before the exam, and right as it is placed on the desk, the brain panics and shuts down, leaving the student crippled of all knowledge previous attained.

"Don't even get me started, that's happened a few times and it's the worst, it always happens when I study for a while, too," said Doug Wilder of Bentley. "I have sat there too many times and said to myself, 'Shit, I forget everything,' when I'll have studied all night and looked things over before class, it's rediculous. Usually I'll just sit and think a minute, though, and it'll all come back," Wilder said.

Sometimes it's not even a question of how long students study, and the lengths they go to prepare. In most cases, it is just out of their hands in the case of the start time of their finals. The alarm rings at 7 am, giving you enough time to shower and get ready before a final at 8 am, on a Saturday no less. The scheduling for finals seems to be the most irritating and nerve-racking factor in taking the actual test.

"No matter how long I study and no matter how long I sleep, I'm never going be used to having to wake up so damn early. I seriously doubt all these professors have things to do during the day, and for whoever is setting these times, I just don't get it," said Grant Wilson of the University of New Hampshire. "I'm sure it's inconveniencing the professors too, it just doesn't make sense. I can't wake up that early for anything, let alone to take a 2 hour test," he said.

Rondo quiets down, Celts in upset

The Celtics young point guard has been one of the best stories on the NBA you may never hear of. Rajon Rondo is quickly making a name for himself among some of the elite point guards in the league, and, like Glen Davis, is carrying himself strongly though the playoffs.

Throughout the '08-'09 season, Rondo has racked up an average of 11.9 points per game in 33 minutes, not to mention 5 rebounds and 8 assists. His numbers are glacial, but put into the context of a diminished Celtics team, they are more important and crucial than they appear.

Rondo has had a number of double-doubles, in either point and rebounds or points and assists, during the regular season, and a few in the post-season. In game 4 he scored 21 points with 14 rebounds, and still the C's barely scraped by with Davis' game winning jump shot.

In Game 5, Rondo seemed to run out of gas, and went flat only scoring 6 points in 29 minutes, and going 3-12 from the field. In any other game, this would have spelled disaster for the Celtics, but fortunately the Magic managed to choke, blowing an 11 point lead, allowing the Celtics to come within 6 at the start of the 4th. Rondo, who's only baskets came in the 1st and early 3rd quarter, remained invisible for the remainder of the game.

To be discouraged by his flop in Game 5 would due a great injustice to his accomplishments throughout the entire season and post-season. Game 6 is set for Thursday in Orlando, where the Magic will be looking to take the game at home and send it to seven. Rondo will undoubtably be looking to make a big comeback, and the C's will be looking to close the series out, so rest assured Game 6 will be a great one.

Big Baby continues to step up in the playoffs

With the clock running down, the threat of being down 3-1 in the series hanging in the balance, who would you give the last shot to?

For those of you who said "Pierce, Allen, House" and maybe even "Rondo", think again. Remember also, folks, I said last SHOT.

There is 11 seconds left on the clock, the ball goes in to Pierce, who well all expect to shoot. Per usual, he stands facing the dead center of the hoop. He holds, as the rest of the team stands around. With time running out, he makes a move, cuts into the lane and is denied the easy shot. With about 2 seconds on the clock, he passes the ball up to Glen Davis, who drains a 18 ft shot as time expires. Basket counts, Celtics win.

On top of his game winning basket, in 33 minutes he scored 21 points and 6 rebounds. This young man from LSU is displaying the maturity of a great future player, and a developing talent, honing his skills on the grandest stage of them all. He is averaging 15 points a game in this round, on top of 18 in the first round. His shooting percentage is a solid 0.569, and he has played an average of 32 minutes these conference semi-finals.

On top of his production, his intensity is growing and emerging through his playing. For the last few minutes of the game he was all business; going 5 for 6, sinking a free throw, despite 2 turn overs and a missed free throw.

His emotions took over after the shot, in a hilarious scene where he barreled over a young Magics fan standing on the court. Davis paid it no mind. He was met by a flooding Celtic bench, and the series dead-locked at 2-2.

First Round Series

Well, the first round is over and, after a grueling 7 games, the Celtics move on to face the Orlando Magic. But any other series will pale in comparison after Chicago.

Out of the 7 games, only Game 3 and Game 7 didn't go into overtime, with the Game 3 blowout and a solid Game 7 closeout. There was a total of 7 individual overtimes throughout the series, several games going into multiple overtimes. Heart-stopping doesn't begin to explain it.

Rondo led the charge throughout the series, playing impeccable basketball all around and proving his abilities as one of the NBAs top young point guards. Glen Davis has taken over the starting spot in the absence of Garnett and Powe, and has held his own respectively.

We saw no Gabe Pruitt, no Bill Walker, no Giddens, but let's not kid ourselves. The bench was atrocious, often causing the C's to fall to sizable deficits. Tony Allen saw some playing time, but really disappointed and upset fans with his lousy ball-work and inability to score.

The series was by no way easy, but was very entertaining, needless to say. Unfortunately, with the lack of successful bench-play, the starters are worn down, tired, and it showed towards the end of the series.

With only a few days between Game 7 and Game 1 vs Orlando, it is going to be interesting to see how successful, and how rested, the Celtics will be.