First Scrimmage!

Hawks,

Thanks to those who made it to practice on Saturday--after a few ominous clouds, the sky cleared and we had a beautiful morning on the Mall.

We're a GO for our scrimmage against the Forest Service team this Thursday, May 13! Our tentative location is 17th & Constitution. If anyone is available to snag the field let me know, but otherwise we'll plan to meet there between 5:45 and 6:00 so we can warm up a bit before we start playing.

Please let me know if you can make the scrimmage!

I know we're being encouraged to telework on Thursday. I'll plan to come to the office late afternoon to pick up the equipment and cooler. Please let me know if you'll be leaving from the office, so I know whether I'll have help rolling everything downtown--I'll plan to head out around 5:15. There is also a chance of rain but we'll just have to play it by ear.

On that note, if you have not yet filled out the team survey, please do so ASAP--we are inputting everyone's cell phone numbers into an automated system so we can send mass text updates on game statuses, locations, etc. The survey is here: http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dDd5VzJEWENRQ3VpSF9Da2ozaVFmQXc6MQ

Thanks, and Go Hawks!

Coach Crazytoe

First Game Scheduled!

We’ve scheduled our first game! It will be Tuesday, May 25 against IRI. Please mark your calendars, and keep in mind our practice on Saturday, May 8 and our scrimmage on Thursday, May 13.

For those who ordered shirts—I’ve placed the order, and it ended up only being $10.50 per person! I was skeptical but customer service has assured me that’s correct. So when you have a chance please swing by and drop off the money. If you want to round up to $11 that’s fine by me, I’ll put any extra money toward our dues. And speaking of dues, if you have not paid them, please add $10 to your shirt payment and you’ll be all set.

2010 Schedule Released

On Wednesday, 9 April 2010, the destiny of the Screaming Hawks was determined after it's division was plucked from a hat (alright, a box). We are in the Greenback Division! It promises to be an exciting year, folks.

Click here for the complete schedule.

Think Tank League Rules Modified

The D.C. Think Tank League (DCTTSL) will follow standard Amateur Softball Association of America (ASA) rules, except as indicated in the special rules, which were agreed upon during Wednesday's Coaches Meeting.

Lest ye ever doubt your coaches dedication, just remember that they voluntarily spent a perfectly good weeknight arguing with other nerds about softball rules.

First Winning Season on The Books!

Coach Crazytoe:

All,

USIP's softball team, the Screaming Hawks, completed its first-ever winning season last night in a dramatic and pretty fantastic game (til the very end, that is) against Detica, which we lost 18-19.

In its first season in the Think Tank League, USIP established itself as a serious contender in the Whig Division and as a fun-spirited team known for playfully, and perhaps unconventionally, trash-talking each other instead of the opposing team. The Hawks final record for the season was 7-6, only one win shy of qualifying for the playoffs.

As the coach of the Screaming Hawks, I'd like to give a huge thank you to assistant coaches Nick Howenstein, Anil Vargehese and Chris Neu for their logistical, strategic, and philosophical support during the season. I'd also like to thank our official team transporters, Deon Nelson and Craig Jones, who made sure our equipment, coolers, and players made it to the field every week. Last but not least, I'd like to thank ALL the players and fans who joined us during the season. This year we had the highest sustained participation in history, and I don't think it's a coincidence that we also had the best record. Such great turnout made each and every game more fun.

In fact, we're having so much fun that we're not ready to quit just yet! Some of the other teams in the league are organizing a "Tournament of Not-Champions" in these dog days of summer, and USIP plans to participate. So if you are new to USIP, or you've wanted to make it out to our games but haven't been able to, you have one more chance to get involved! We'll play a few more games in August and perhaps into September, and we would love to have new people join us. If you would like to be added to the softball email list, please let me know.

On a side note, we were undefeated in all 4 games that we played at 23rd and Constitution, directly across from the new USIP building. In the hope that this bodes well for the future of USIP softball, we'll make every effort to attain a permit for that lucky field next season.

Thanks again to the 2009 Screaming Hawks players for making this season such a great one!

Coach Crazytoe

_________________________

2009 Screaming Hawks Team

(in no particular order)

Harald Fuller-Bennett

Russ Burns

Chuck Call

Scott Carlson

Christine Mosher

Jonas Claes

Pat Shaplan

Deon Nelson

Jeff Krentel

Daniel Noon

Janene Sawers

Shira Lowinger

Craig Jones

Anne-Marie Engelstad

Theo Dolan

Mike Johnson

Kate Eyerman

Rebecca Kullman

Andy Levin

Greg Maly

Liz Panarelli

Dearrin Mickles

Zach McKinney

Chris Neu

Elizabeth Murray

Manal Omar

Megan Chabalowski

Eduardo Abreu

Brian Rose

Hesham Sallam

Sarah Bessell

Stephanie Schwartz

Anil Varghese

Jon Temin

Maureen Sullivan

Leslie Thompson

Doug Smith

Johanna Benjamin

Anand Varghese

Matt Pierson

Sara Thrall

Terry Modglin

Carrie Lee

Nick Howenstein

Kelly Campbell

Hawks Winning Streak Continues, Now Tied for 1st Place

From Coach Crazytoe:

Hawks,

Thanks to everyone who came out last night for an exciting game against Lawyers. We won 17-14 in a game that featured strong hitting by both sides. Kudos to outfielders Russ, Greg, Jeff, Deon, and Pat for solid defensive playing throughout the game. Thanks also to pitchers Sarah Bessell and Janene Sawers (and to Pitching Specialist Anil Varghese); Janene sustained an injury early on and Sarah stepped in to pitch a great game. Finally, the play of the game award goes to 2nd basewoman Kate Eyerman, 1st baseman Daniel Noon, and catcher Anne-Marie Engelstad for an awesome 4-3-2 double play.

I've pasted the standings from the end of last week below to show you the degree to which we are kicking butt this year. We are now 7-3, and the Lawyers 7-4. Even if CNAS wins this week, we'll still be tied for first place. You guys are playing outstanding softball, and I hope you're all having as much fun playing as Nick and I are coaching.

Our next game is next Tuesday, July 28 against Mathematica. After that we have only 2 more games--against CNAS (Wednesday, August 5) and the rescheduled game against Detica (TBD). All 3 of these teams are (along with Lawyers) our main competitors in the conference, so let's keep up the momentum as we finish the regular season!

Go Hawks! Coach Crazytoe

State Department Historian's Office -- One for the record books!

Hawks,

Thanks to everyone who came out last night and helped to soundly defeat the State-HO team for the second time this season, 16-9. Our hitting was fantastic, and our defense was pretty dang solid as well. We're now 6-3, which should mean we're still tied for first in our subdivision (with those sneaky CNAS folks).

Special thanks to short-fielder Scott Carlson for turning 2 double plays and catching so many balls that someone on the other team referred to him as their "worst nightmare." Also thanks to pitcher Christine Mosher, who was hit with the ball and still had the presence of mind to throw it home.

We have a big game coming up this Monday against the Lawyers--as of last Friday they were 7-2 and the leaders in our division. This is our one chance at them during regular season play. We'll be back at field #11, where we were last night at 23rd and Constitution.

Please let me know if you can make it on Monday, and be sure to pack your softball stuff on Sunday night! Go Hawks!