IM Softball Opening Day 2013

After much hype was spread around during the IM softball pre-season, it was finally time for the Batten Ballers to show the league what they were made of.  On Opening Day 2013, the Ballers matched up against one of their division rivals, Naanstop.   While the Baller’s hearts were in the game, they ended up losing the season opener 9-5. 

The Ballers started out the game strong, answering Naanstop’s two runs in the bottom of the first.  Although Naanstop had some formidable gloves, they won the game with smart base running and some help from a few errors on the Ballers’ part.

The winning pitcher had some nasty movement on some of his pitches, but that didn’t stop the Ballers from racking up the hits.  Matt, Elena, Nalin, Robert, Pat, Maddie, Max, Michael, Kelly, and Aaron knocked the ball around the park.  While Elena, Nalin, Robert, and Pat shared some RBI’s, the Ballers were unable to string together enough hits to match the nine runs Naanstop posted.   After Matt W, one of the Baller’s rising stars, was pulled after the first inning, a number of relievers – Max, Kelly, and Michael – warmed their arms with some solid performances.

Despite a disappoint loss, the Ballers hit the road full of spirit, ready to seize their first victory next week.

– Post by Aaron Chafetz

1st Annual Batten Powder Puff Game

On a crisp, Friday afternoon four Batten cohorts united to play in the first ever Batten Powder Puff game.  While we had planned on a battle between the classes, we ended up dividing up between Accelerated and Post Grad students.  It was a mighty fight between the two teams. Both sides kept the fans involved with some great runs, some trick plays, and some stellar defense.   Although the Post Grads ended up winning 14-0, everyone out on the field did a great job.  A big thanks goes out to Scott and Byron who did a great job coaching  (and looking stylish while doing so), Kaitlin for designing some great shirts and helping put this event together, and all the fans who showed up to cheer on the women of Batten.

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Posted by Aaron Chafetz

Batten Ballers Go Down with a Fight

After ending the regular IM frisbee season 2-1, the Ballers headed into their first postseason game Tuesday night with guns blazing.  Missing some of their hometown heroes (Max, Mindy, Kaycie, Solomon, Luke, Gina, Evan, and Scott), the Baller knew they were going to be under pressure. That didn’t stop the small crew from slowing down.  They went to the Park ready for a fight.

Knowing the Ballers’ plan of attack, IM sports took precautionary measures: they called in the SWAT team.  Despite their two sharp shooters, the Ballers battled long and hard, even with the ominous sky.  Byron and Ismael played unbelievable defense with a number of D’s between them. They had a lot of flow coming from the stack with great cuts and catches by both Kelly’s, Michael, Katy and Kaitlin. Patrick, Ismael and Maddie stepped it up and played some awesome points as handlers.

Taking half 3-2, the Baller looked like they were going to be able to shoot their way out of the Park, to live another day.  However, the SWAT team took the break in play to regroup and amend their tactics.  The Baller, unprepared for this maneuver, took three straight points to the gut.  Within 15 minutes, the skies had opened up and lightning struck.  It was all over. The reigning IM champions fell to defeat.

The Batten Ballers have another shot at glory, however.  They will be playing in the first round of IM football playoffs tonight at the Park at 8pm.

-Post by Aaron Chafetz

IM Sports Recap: Week 2

The Batten Ballers have completed their second week of the regular season. Our football game on Sunday unfortunately did not go in our favor, as the other team had quite a bit of height and experience over us. We didn’t let that get us down though, because no team is a match for our enthusiasm and spirit! Scott had an incredible interception in the final moments of the game, returning it for 80-yard touchdown. We plan to carry that momentum into our next game and hopefully we’ll bring back a win!

Batten continued our legacy of frisbee dominance tonight despite the chilly autumn air with an 5-3 win.  Aaron and Max had some great handling, and Scott and Kelly made some stellar defensive plays. Patrick and Ismael scored close points down the line. We’d also like to mention all of the newcomers that came out to play this week, we couldn’t have done it without you! And a special shout out to Gina and Luke for representing the first year MPP classes!

– Post by Kaitlin Brennan

IM Sports: Week 1 Recap

After its first week back playing IM sports, the Batten Ballers started off the season right with a 1.000 batting average. Last Sunday, the Ballers played flag football against the rag tag RJ’s PLAYAS.  The Ballers won by forfeit since the PLAYAS lacked women, but Kaitlin and Kaycie help field their team so we could play a friendly game (which was lucky since the refs didn’t know any of the rules).  We had three all-star quarterbacks – Alex, Patrick, and Eva – and a great line of receivers.

The Baller’s Frisbee team put up some big numbers last night for a big win.  With Tara (the birthday girl) and cheerleaders on the sideline, Batten was fired up even before the game started.  Scoring the first four points, our squad had a lot of momentum that followed through for the rest of the game.  Scott had some great hucks down field. Ismael had great catch for a score in the second half.  All the girls we had playing (Kelly C, Kelly A, Katy, Maddie, and Kaitlin) bossed out and were tearing up the field with their cuts, helping move the disc down field.  Evan had some awesome grabs. The crowd was roaring when Max skied the lanky guy on the other team for a massive score down field. Even when the other team came within a point of us to bring the score to 4-3, the Ballers stayed focused, leading to a 8-3 victory.

With a few days off for recovery, the Ballers will step it up into high gear when we play our football and Frisbee games next week. Will the Ballers win another IM championship? I think  its in cards, but we’ll keep you updated on how they play out.

–Post by Aaron Chafetz

IM Sports Update: Batten Goes Ultimate

For good reason, the name “Batten Ballers” weakens the knees and strikes fear into the hearts of any intramural opponent.  The corec ultimate frisbee team is 3-0 after the regular season.  After winning every game by at least 4 points, spirits are almost as high as expectations entering the playoffs.

Although the team is brimming with talent and boasts a very impressive resume of former and current ultimate frisbee players, the team’s success is mostly attributable to its heart, not its skill level.  Our team lays-out and dives more than any other intramural frisbee team that I have ever seen.  We out-work teams, and our strong defense has defined us.

It is important to note that the team is not anchored in the precise handler play of Aaron Chafetz ,Sanjay Choudhuury, and Max West,  in the quickness of Matt Kragie and Drew Pyrak, or in the defensive intensity of Rob Panos and Dave Cates.  Instead, the team is anchored by the women, who are affectionately referred to as the lovely lady ballers.

Don’t let their name fool you.  Colleen McEnearney (whose passion for the game sometimes manifests itself in the form of colorful profanity), Kaitlin Brennan (whose defensive intensity is second to none), Sarah Williamson (who is terrifyingly awesome), Mindy Adnot (whose frisbee experience is invaluable), Maddie Bergner (whose game-face is almost fierce as her spike), and Kelly Anderson (who put the fast in “holy moley she’s fast”) compose the spirit of the team.

The lovely lady ballers and the rest of the boys are thirsting for the 30-team ultimate frisbee playoff bracket, which will undoubtedly bring stronger and more experienced competition.

Post by Nathan Schelble (Acc. ’12)

IM Teams Make Playoff Push, Fall in Final Rounds

The fall intramural sports season came to a close last week as the Batten School’s basketball and soccer squads were knocked off late in the playoffs. The Batten Ballers, led by team captain Nathan Schelble (Acc. ’12), were 4-2 on the season and boasted impressive playoff wins down the stretch. They put up a strong showing but fell by four points in a gritty Elite Eight match-up Tuesday night. Batten FC and team captain Daniel Sater (Acc. ’12) finished 4-2-1 overall, pulling out a number of key victories off of penalty kicks. Their run ended Wednesday in the quarterfinal round. Both teams look forward to improving on the successes of the season.

“The IM basketball season was a success; our fiery and hard-working team exceeded expectations, beat talented teams, and improved every game.  We lost in the quarterfinals, but we were good enough to beat any team in the league.”

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– Nathan Schelble, IM Basketball Captain

“Batten FC had a great season for outdoor soccer. We made it to the quarterfinals of the playoffs, eliminating three teams in very dramatic fashion. The biggest surprise was how well all three Batten classes came together to play as a team.”

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– Daniel Sater, IM Soccer Captain

Post by Rob Panos

Batten IM Sports Off to a Strong Start

The Batten School’s co-rec intramural basketball team, the Batten Ballers, are off to a fantastic 2-0 start. The team took its second win 57-50 on Tuesday against its toughest opponent thus far. The game was close through much of the first half, with both teams sinking baskets. However, the Batten Ballers began pulling away with eight minutes left in the first half with the help of the outside sharp shooting of Imran Khan (Grad ’13). The team went into half time with a 10-point lead.

Down the stretch, the Batten Ballers held onto the lead with support from big man Nathan Swedberg (Acc. ’12), the sneaky dribbling of Rob Panos (Acc. ’12), the streaky shooting of Matt Kragie (Acc. ’12), and the fearless guard-play of Kellie Huynh. The opposing team cut the lead to seven with two minutes left on the clock with an aggressive full-court press, but the disciplined Batten Ballers sunk critical free throws and ran down the remaining time for an important victory. Always the public service minded team, it should be noted that Colleen McEnearney (Acc. ’12) and Mary Drach (Acc. ’12) helped out the IM staff with game scoring when not ballin’ it up on the court. Many thanks to the rest of the squad for a strong performance throughout.

The team will play its last regular season game next Tuesday at 7:00 pm at the Slaughter Gymnasium. They face their toughest challenge of the season yet, with an opponent consisting of several club basketball players.

The Batten School’s IM soccer team will be playing its third game this Sunday evening at 6:00 pm at the North Grounds Park, following one win and one tie.

Post by Nathan Schelble (Acc. ’12)