Tadpole Skills Competition

Baseball was the winner on Saturday as all the kids playing Tadpole 2 baseball gathered at Little Delair Park for the 2013 Tadpole 2 Skills Competition. The weather was great and the conditions were right for the boys and girls of the AAHA Tadpole division to show off their baseball skills for a large crowd of parents, grand-parents, uncles and aunts, friends and neighbours.  In the background there was music, a BBQ and all sorts of summer fun going on. On the field, the Tadpole players (most born in 2004) were putting on a show.

Each of the teams in the division was represented, and every kid in the division had a chance to compete in at least one of the events. The day started with two team events, the Base Running Relay and the Round the Horn Relay.  In the Base Running, the Green Giants took 1st with a split second victory over the Orioles. The O’s got even in the next event, taking 1st place in the Round the Horn throwing and catching relay.

The individual events followed. Three boys from each team were selected to compete, and all were excited to throw for a radar gun in the Fastest Pitch competition. Again the Green Giants and the Orioles dominated the medals, with 3rd going to Nolan Watrin of the Giants, 2nd to Jimmy Boulanger of the Orioles, and 1st to Lockhart MacGregor of the Green Giants.

The Golden Glove was a test of fielding and throwing skill. Three players from each team were entered. Players lined up at Short Stop and had to field ground balls and throw to 1st. To score points the play had to be made cleanly and accurately. Koban Bath of the Yellow Jackets took 3rd.  Ronan Sexton of the O’s took 2nd, narrowly falling short of the mark set by Reid Vermuelen who took 1st place for the Wild Cats.

The final event of the day was the Hitting Derby. Each team nominated three players to take turns at bat. The batter would get 10 swings to try and score as many points as possible, with 100 points for hitting a home run. Micah Barker of the Yellow Jackets took third (after and exciting sudden-death playoff against Sammy Friess of the O’s.)  Jake Davenport of the Orioles took first place.

A big thanks goes out to all the Parents who helped make the day possible. Thanks to the coaches who helped with setup and running events. Extra special thanks goes to the Hodgins family for taking charge of the BBQ and to all the parents who helped there. Special thanks also to Cam Friesen for providing and setting up the sound system. And thanks to all the boys and girls who put on such a great show of baseball skill!

For pictures and full results, check back soon.