5 O'Clockers (Black)
Last Fall season 5OC may have had the biggest moves of the season, including the singing of their franchise pitcher, Brent Wentworth. This season, they upped the ante and not only scooped up two of the biggest free agents on the market in Adam & Andrea Henry, but they also picked up the defunked Oh My friend group that looked an awful lot like a bunch of Panik Attack players.
Side Note: Oh My was a bunch of Panik Attack players.
Ball So Hard (Ice Grey)
Originally started as the transformation of Dirty Mike & the Boyz, it has now turned into the reincarnation of Dirty Mike & the Boyz. Lead by captain Brad Gault and former CT lady Mags Waldron, they have built a stable of Bar Buzz winning all-stars. With players like Amy Monteiro, Juan Cruz, Justin Waddles, Michael Bailey, Michael Peele, and the entire cast of the Mariner's Museum ladies (Serena D'Angelo, Jennifer Stoecker, Rachel Nelson, Kelly Malone). And that's not even mentioning both the past and present Bar Buzz writers, Marilee Columbus and Fagel Baer. Frankly, just now realizing all those names are currently all on the same team, they could give Rumspringa a run for their money every week. Only time will tell I guess.
Ballsagna (Charcoal)
The first new team on this preview. Although, you will recognize plenty of veteran players on this squad. George Kiriazidis and his acolytes include Brandon Accordino, Mark Thompson, Karen Savell, Michael Harvey, Tim Paetz, Jon & Holly Lenard, Brian Neal, John Vrooman, Irene Mitchell, Stephen McGrew along with All-Peninsula Players in Nicole Plesha and Lorraine Adkins. GK added a couple new names to WAKA, but mostly he has started a team that looks like they can jump right in there and start mixing things up.
Battlestar (Lime Green)
They may be castrated (they dropped "Ballsacks" from their name), and they may have lost some of their players to another team with Balls(agna), but they still kept a strong shell of their former self. Michael Machie is still one of the best players in the game, and shows his loyalty to his friends by staying put. Add a last minute addition of former CT catcher Taylor Wilson to the remaining Battlestars, sprinkle in a hefty serving of new players, and that's a recipe for the Battlestars to remain one of the closest and fun teams in Peninsula.
SN: Battlestars isn't nearly as fun as saying Ballsacks.
Boom! (White)
Boom! looks an awful lot like That Just Happened from the Spring. In fact, other than losing one of their captains, they virtually are the same team by retaining 90% of their players and adding notables Michael Via and Ryan Schmid from Moose Knuckles. And even though they lost two Jungle Gym people, they gained three more in Lucas Feller, Suzanne Luckman, and Elizabeth Beebe. Look for Boom! to be just as athletic as last season and making these top teams sweat when they get to them on the schedule.
Chaotic KILF's (Texas Orange)
First of all, we're assuming the K stands for Kickballers and not something weird. Second, Eric Shessel (The Formerly Bearded) and Chris Storar (the guy who kicked a homerun while smoking a cigarette last Winter) have left PBJT and took some of their friends, surrounded them with more friends, and plan on picking up where PBJT left of in the Spring.
Chubby Gangsters (Gangster Blue)
While most thought the Spring was going to be their last season, after their founder, Buster Patterson, shipped off to the West Coast. You can't keep the coolest team in all of WAKA away from each other that long though. They are reunited with their Misfit counterparts from last season, Rob Kroll and Kim Merritt and Keith Morehart (man he's good looking) and they brought with them Barbara Wezensky and Bill Coaty. CG's are also bringing back their one time teammates for a full fledged reunion tour, Nick and Jiselle Anderson and Geralyn Mitchell. To round out their off season moves they grabbed Jason Lantz and Anthony Leevy (formerly of Battlestar and NKotB respectively).
Foul Balls (Irish Green)
The Foulies are another team that lost their long time captain and many wondered what would happen to them. In the past, they have gone from a championship team, to the worst season in the history of VA Peninsula, then last season they almost seemed reborn with a competitive edge and a desire to (*gasp*) practice. They've added tough players like Jesse Rogers, Derek Patterson, Meaghan Dorsey and kept that speed and power that made them turn heads last year. It looks like they'll be staying closer to the top of the ladder than the bottom.
Free Ballin' (Cardinal Red)
Free Ballin' was the 2nd place team in the Spring season and they have retained virtually everyone from that team. To not expect them to at least compete for repeat success would be ill advised. Mary Katherine will be the first to tell you she has done non-stop recruiting to add on to her already great cast of players to ensure they can duplicate that same success this season.
Just For Kicks (Haleconia Pink)
Bryan Freed always has his head in the cosmos that is the kickball universe. He has his loyal players that come back every season (no matter how hard people try and steal them). He has players like Sarah Crecelius & Matt Barcus, that may have been gone for a little while but come right back. Then there are the inevitable new players he seems to attract. Andrew Schlicte, Kelsey Whitlocke, Jennifer Gold, Sterling Wilcox, and Josh Joyner have landed in his web this season. Rounded out by his hand picked rookies, I would suspect JFK to be the team they've always been, just in a new shirt color.
Kick Ass (Forrest Green)
Fresh off their Spring Championship, Manny Anderson is looking to create shock and awe around the league with a strong handed title defense. Although this year he has to do it with quite a different looking team. He's added nomadic player like Justin Shauf and former Sitch player Curtis Faubion. He's also brought back the return of Daniel Reyes, James Salgado, and Jeff White. Adding that many established players may take a little time to gel, but when you thrown in the "out of town" players, it certainly still makes them a team to beat.
Kickin' Atoms (Maroon)
The long lost Jefferson Lab team that we were finally able to convince come play for us! It's exciting to not only see a team of brand new faces come into this league, but the enthusiasm I have seen from them so far has been pretty great. I wouldn't necessarily sleep on them either. I've done some talking and they're not just a bunch of greenhorns at adult kickball.
New Kickheads on the Block (Coral Silk)
I bet if you went back through all of the past NKotB rosters and looked at some of the players Amanda Hassel has brought into the league, you would be incredibly surprised at the who's who she has introduced us to. This season is no different as she has refilled her roster with some new names as well as old. Some of the experienced players she is adding to her team are Alex Childs (Who's Driving Home), Justin Carvelli (Misfits), and former Wentworth Trophy hoister Jason Williamson (Kick Ass).
Peanut Butter Jelly Time (Purple)
For anyone who thought that PBJT would be debilitated by the KILF's pilfering, highly underestimated Christina Obershaw's ability to spot talent and put the charm on to get them on their team. They added a couple relatively new players that have made a strong impression early in Jeremy Smithey, Nolin Morgan, Chase Feller and John Hagler. They've added some veteran players who no doubt add depth in Dom Guarry and Chris Tanner. It's obvious they are planning on bouncing back and being just as successful as they were last season.
Pop Pop (Orange)
Without any additions from their Spring team, Pop Pop would have already been a favorite for the Wentworth Trophy. Even though they may be losing Nick Schmidt (at least on the field, I'm sure he'll be on the sidelines), they're getting one of the absolute best offensive females back in Jenn Tull as well as her husband Hunter Tull. They followed that up by adding another dynamic couple in Emily Cook and Nathaniel Johnson. It's like Alex Noctor and Alex Jackson are building the Ark and leading prestigious kickball players on two-by-two. For good measure they decided to add a little depth with Andy Doye, Matt Garrett and David Griffin.
Rumspringa (Royal Blue)
As much as VA Peninsula changes, Rumspringa stays the same. They are such a tight knit group of already pre-established friends, it's hard to infiltrate their core. It seems however, as the league does keep changing, they have had to add pieces to grow with the competition. And while they have always been a competitive team, this roster has been honed and tweaked and now added missing pieces. Geoff Morehart, Lenora Harper, Brandon Silver, and Katie Litle vault these guys from struggling to stay competitive to down right in the mix.
The Ball and Chain Gang (Gold)
One of our other brand new teams this Fall. They do have a few players that have played before but their co-captain, Amelia Harveycutter, assures me this team is going to have fun and she will show these new players what WAKA Kickball is all about.
The Situation (Navy)
2 seasons of WAKA Kickball on the Peninsula and 2 championships to show for it. The proverbial favorite yet again this year I'm sure, you can rest assured they will be bringing back their stacked roster. This season though, they've added Gene & Courtney Efird (their VA Peninsula Sitch debut), Noelle Walsh, Jimmy Wilcox, and Jon LaNeave. There's really nothing else more to say other than you better catch them on a bad day.
I thought the Efirds were playing with 5 O'Clockers?
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ReplyDeleteThey bailed when we got all Paniky!
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