I'd like to welcome all visitors to my humble softball page. This page will be updated weekly throughout the summer to keep all those who care updated about the exciting season for John Knox Softball, Team B. Last year was the first year we had a winning record, and it also happened to be the first year I kept a web page on the season. Coincidence? I don't think so. We all know how superstitious baseball players can be.

So good luck to all players and we look forward to a great season.

2001 Results

Date	Opponent	Result	Score
May 16	Church of Serv. B	W	20-9
May 23	Friendship C	L	13-28
May 30	Roosevelt Park A	W	11-6
June 6	Third Reformed	L	6-12
June 13	Calvary Church A	W	15-9
June 20	Church of Servant A	W	6-4
June 27	Faith Community	T	16-16
July 18	Sunshine D	L	3-9
July 25	Seventh Reformed A	W	15-13
August 1	Cascade Fellowship B	W	7-6

Wednesday, August 1, 2001
John Knox ended the season on a tremendous note, defeating previously undefeated Cascade Fellowship B by a score of 7-6.

Solid defensive play (especially in the outfield) to go along with enough bunched-together hits were the keys to victory. A rumor was going around that they were missing some key players, which may or may not have made a difference. In addition, they did seem to hit a lot of balls right at someone, although it is my belief that our defensive play contributed greatly to their low run total.

All in all, I don't think I've ever seen such low-scoring games in slowpitch softball. This season, we've scored 7, 6, and 11 runs in various games, and won all three of those games. Although this can be attributed to solid defense in the entire field, it also seemed that we were marred in an offensive slump for most if not all of the season. In the same way that everyone contributed on defense, it seemed that nearly all hitters were in a slump at one point or another during the season.

Maybe this is just me being picky after last year's first place finish. Overall, we played solid ball, although our record might reflect us as a better team than we actually were. We seemed to win all of the close games, and when the game was a blowout, chances are we lost. The run differential in our three losses was 27 runs, while the run differential in our six victories was also 27 runs. This is indicative of a .500 team. As a result, one of two conclusions could be reached. One possibility, to use an overused cliche, is that we found a way to win. As a side note, I hate when athletes say this, almost as much as whey they say they gave "110% percent". "Finding a way to win" means nothing more than being lucky enough at the end to come out victorious. I'm sure the other team was looking for a way to win just as much as we were.

The other possibility is that we simply caught more breaks than our opponents throughout the year. If we were to play a slightly longer season, the law of averages would kick in and even out our record. But since that won't be happening, we should be thankful our season ended the way it did.

All in all, a tremendous season for John Knox, given the circumstances. Although we will not be playing in the league tournament this year, we strongly encourage everyone to come out again next year. Our "parent club", John Knox A, managed by Bill Nottelmann, has not exactly had their best season. Pending the outcome of their last two games, our two teams could be playing in the same league next year. That could lead to some interesting inter-church rivalries. We'd love to have everyone out again to see how we match up against them, and to make another run at advancing to the highest division.

Thanks to everyone for playing, and we'll see you next summer.

Wednesday, July 25, 2001
John Knox assured itself of finishing the season with a winning record following a 15-13 victory Wednesday night.

A below-average effort was still good enough to defeat last-place Seventh Reformed A, although not by much as a bewildering baserunning decision and a stellar defensive play by Dave Lubbers at catcher was necessary to wrap up the victory in the bottom of the seventh.

The bats were just hot enough (especially Jim's) and found enough holes in the outfield to put across one of our higher run totals for the season. We were led by Jim's 2 home runs and double.

Following the game, the team elected not to participate in the post-season tournament as we did last year, meaning that next Wednesday's game will be our final game of the season. Although we fared fairly well in last year's tournament, I have a feeling that this year we would not have done as well. Regardless of that decision, hopefully we'll be able to close out the season on a high note next week.

Wednesday, July 18, 2001
A lackluster offensive effort dropped John Knox's record to 4-3-1 on the season, casting a serious cloud over any first or second-place aspirations that existed a few weeks ago.

Solid defense was exhibited throughout the game by John Knox, however the bats could not get going in any of the seven innings. A fair number of hard-hit balls directly at a fielder in addition to the possibly of being rusty following a three-week layoff resulted in a 9-3 loss. Three runs will simply not get the job done.

The 4-spot the opponent put up in the first inning did us in. It especially hurt that the rally started with two outs and no one on base. It is safe to say that the vast majority of their offense throughout the game came with two outs. We just could not get that last out, though it was no fault of our own. They simply put on a clinic of clutch hitting.

A winning season is still a definite possibitlity, as is finishing in the top half of the standings. A strong finish will solidify our place in our division for next year.

Wednesday, June 27, 2001
On a night in which an historic NBA Draft produced three high school players in the top four picks, John Knox turned to its senior veterans to lead the team to a come-from-behind, unsatisfying 16-16 tie.

Dave Lubbers made a spectacular catch in right field in addition to reaching base four times, while Norm Van Sickle made an emergency start at pitcher, getting the job done in place of Henry.

Not to be overlooked is the 7th inning comeback keyed by home runs from Steve Keller and Dana Baumgardner. Solid defense in the bottom of the 7th inning secured John Knox's first tie of the season.

Thanks go out to Dave Gilbert for joining us again this year; Dave will be unable to make any more games this season, instead opting for a vacation out West. Thanks Dave!

Entering the game in a tie for third place, John Knox now stands at 4-2-1 on the season. Hopefully after a three week break, we'll be able to make a late-season pennant run and advance to the top division next season.

Wednesday, June 20, 2001
For the second consecutive week, John Knox pulled out a victory with some ballplaying that normally will not win too many games. A couple of bombs and some timely double plays made up for poor hitting and less-than-stellar defense. Final score, 6-4.

In my four years of playing ball for John Knox, I don't think I've ever seen a game in which the winning team scores six runs. Nevertheless, we now stand at 4-2 on the year, with a reasonable shot at finishing in the top two places in the division. note: The top two teams in each division move up to the next division from year to year, while the bottom two teams move down a division.

A big congratulations goes out to Jim for his two shots over the left field fence, which were the obvious keys to our victory. We overcame a minimum of 6 errors that immediately come to mind with two key double plays and two outstanding catches by Scott in left-center.

Hopefully we'll be able to finish out the first half of the season strong next week before our mid-summer break in early July.

Wednesday, June 13, 2001
John Knox escaped, and I mean escaped with a come-from-behind victory last night, scoring 8 runs in the seventh inning to pull out a 15-9 victory.

After John Knox failed on numerous opportunities to deliver a clutch hit with the bases loaded in the early and middle innings (4 immediately come to mind), we were able to break through in the final inning, aided by multiple errors and finally a hit with the bases juiced.

Maybe we were intimidated by Steinbrenner checking out part of the game, standing there with his arms crossed like he was checking out his Triple-A Columbus squad, but we were unable to break through until the final inning. Although the opponent didn't take the lead until the sixth inning, they were hitting the ball hard enough that eventually they were going to score a few runs, which they did with 4 in the sixth inning. We decided to finally pick it up not a moment too soon.

For the season we are now 3-2, and although I haven't seen the standings, we can't be more than a game or two out of first place. Hopefully we can fight back into the championship hunt and make it two years in a row!

Wednesday, June 6, 2001
One got the feeling while watching last night's game that John Knox just wasn't going to escape with a victory.

Even though the opponent is not going to win any championships this year, John Knox was unable to pull ahead all game and ended up losing 12-6.

Although solid defense was played by John Knox (sans the seventh inning), not enough clutch hits were provided, which was the difference in the game. The senior members of the team provided the defensive gems, with Henry again displaying his amazing reflexes at pitcher and Dave Lubbers, the late-inning replacement at catcher, showing similar cat-like quickness behind the plate on a foul ball.

Another highlight (we're really stretching here) was Dave Lubbers' hustle play to almost score in the fourth inning, in addition to the fact that he has no broken bones today, unlike after last year's "slide" into second base.

Let's get them back next week! And remember, we're going to be low on bodies next week so please let us know if you will not be able to make it.

Wednesday, May 30, 2001
A first-inning grand slam set the tone for John Knox as they cruised to a 11-6 victory over Roosevelt Park A to push their record to 2-1.

Dana's slam is the only one in recent memory for John Knox. Dana later added a solo shot to almost the same spot twenty feet beyond the centerfield fence.

The margin of victory may have been much greater had it not been for some dazzling outfield catches by Roosevelt, including one in the bottom of the second inning with two outs and the bases loaded. If it would have dropped, it would have broken the game wide open.

Other highlights included Allen continuing to dazzle the team with his double plays at second base in addition to just missing a home run for the second week in a row. You'll get one soon enough, Allen, don't worry. In addition to yet another stellar pitching performance we always seem to take for granted, Henry added two clutch two-out hits with runners in scoring position both times. The Detroit Tigers should maybe take a few pointers.

Wednesday, May 23, 2001
The lesson learned this week was how important it is to have four outfielders every game. With only nine players, John Knox's three outfielders (Steve, Scott, and Kyle) were forced to repeatedly chase after balls hit in to the gap that likely would have been hit directly at an outfielder, if we would have had four outfielders in their normal positions. Final score: 28-13, not in our favor.

Although Allen was singled out last week, and we like to spread the wealth around every week, it wouldn't be right to ignore Allen's huge contributions in the field and at the plate. In an emergency start at second base, in the first inning alone he made an outstanding over-the-shoulder catch AND turned a double play, holding the opposition to only 7 runs. In his first at-bat, Allen, batting eighth in the lineup, takes everyone by surprise (except maybe himself) and sends a shot off the left field fence for a double. In addition his other hits, a very fine game overall for Allen. Well done!

Hopefully next week we can all match Allen's outstanding play and pull back above .500.

Wednesday, May 16, 2001
On a foggy and wet opening day, John Knox busted out of the gate slugging their way to victory. The final score was 20-9, with the umpire declaring the "It's late, my feet are wet, and I want to go home" mercy rule after six innings.

John Knox played a very solid overall game, making very few physical errors and even fewer mental errors. And given the soggy field conditions, kudos to everyone on the team for not only playing overall stellar ball, but to not pulling a hamstring as well.

A special congratulations to Allen Pickett, the newcomer on the team this year. Allen keyed a couple of big innings with well-timed hits. Allen brings his years of softball experience and special pastoral care to our team. Welcome Allen!

Fortunately, our commish, Bill Nottelmann didn't break up the nucleus of the team following last year's dream season. Although he showed interest in various players on our team, don't call him Wayne Huizenga just yet, these aren't the '98 Florida Marlins. With almost all of the key players returning, John Knox looks to fight for the title again this year, despite being moved up a division. Good luck to everyone!