Vikings Juniors - Weekend "Round Up"(26 Nov)

In an exciting game, the u7s drew with the Bears 13-13. The Bears were short a few players so two Vikings (Bentley & Hamish) showed good sportsmanship volunteering to play with the other team to even things out. There were some big hits, and whilst some of the fielding didn't quite get there, in terms of execution Coach Jeremy was pleased with the efforts to get the ball where it needed to be. Playing for the opposition, Hamish had a great game and was awarded the 'player of the week' award.

The u9s chalked up a 5 run win over the Rebels. Coach Gordon was pleased to see the good running between the bases with the highlight of the game being the great batting performance of the players. The teams 'Spirit of the Game Award' this week went to Noah Schitskg - well done Noah.

 The u11s let the first couple of innings get away from them and with a batting performance not as consistent as in previous weeks , the team was on the wrong side of a 9-4 score line. On the positive side, Coach Mac and Coach Simon were really impressed with the fielding in the last couple of innings. The team has been practicing hard for the for the changeover from machine to player pitch.

 u13s played well and came away with a 14-1 win over Bears Red. Good pitching by Toby & Hector was backed up with some great team hitting highlighted by Khayne's triple and home run.

u15s found a way to get over the top of the Bears. Down 4-6 at the start of the bottom of the last inning with 2 out, the team produced some good hitting and great baserunning to fight back and record there third win of the season - a 7-6 walk off win!!!

Well done on the season so far to all the Vikings Juniors teams. With three games until the mid season break I thought a bit of information on hitting might be helpful.....

A good swing in baseball doesn’t need to be a powerful swing, especially when a player is new to the game. Getting a player to rotate their hips properly is the key to driving the ball, not the power of the swing. Have players start out in there batting stance and go through their hip rotation in slow motion — sometimes without even a bat in hand — before building up to full speed. Then move to the feet, making sure players pivot their back foot properly and in conjunction with their hips, gradually increasing the tempo with each cut. Then focus on the front foot, encouraging the player to land on the ball of his instep before dropping their heel as the hips begin to rotate through the ball. Focusing just on the footwork of a swing can help eliminate a bad habit many young players acquire: stepping away from home plate. (adopted from “A good swing doesn’t need to be a powerful swing”, David Wilson Bullpen Baseball Academy Lake Elsinore, Calif, GameChanger)

Erni, Club Coach

Teams for 25/26/27 Nov 2016

Team Lists for this weekend 18/19/20 November 2016

Seniors Standings after 6 Weeks

1st GRADE

Seniors Standings after 6 Weeks

2nd GRADE

3rd GRADE

4th GRADE

5th GRADE

Vikings Juniors - Weekend "Round Up"(12 Nov)

A great weekend for Vikings with four of our five Junior teams getting a win!!! (and five of our six senior teams scoring wins over the Bears)

Now for the “Junior Wrap”, this week we start with our u9’s who had an impressive win on the weekend 28-16 against the Bear Black side. The team continues to improve each week in both batting and fielding to record consecutive wins. A special thanks to Sam H, Hamish and Bentley for backing up from their U7’s game and helping out. They did their U7 coach proud. The spirit award went to Aiden Smith who took his first catch for the season, caught the ball well at first base and continues to improve with his batting.

The u11’s had a great day out winning 9-7. Coach Mac and Coach Simon were impressed by the teams batting & fielding and are pleased that the hard work being put into practice is starting to pay off on game day. The team has a number of first time players and its great to see the level of improvement from the beginning of the season.

U13s won 23-4 off the back of some good pitching from Hector. All players did really well at the plate and everyone had a hit or a walk. Well done to Ethan who received the game ball for his efforts of 4 hits from 4 appearances at the plate – his first bunch of 4 hits.

U15s had a tough day on the diamond to record a 21-0 loss to the Bears. A promising start by Jeye Turner on the mound despite best efforts, wasn’t backed up in the field. What could have been a 1-0 score after two innings turned into the team being behind12-0. The lesson learned this week was that you have to back up your pitchers by playing catch well otherwise the down side is you don’t get a lot of at bats. The team will regroup at practice and prepare to take on the Rebels on Wednesday. Player of the day went to Flynn O'Connor for his diligent backing up and relay throws throughout the game and his quality at bat. First season player Ryan Jones continue to improve in his infield play and catchers Corey Foley and Aaron Kon worked hard and did good jobs behind the dish. 

The u7's continue to play better each week and scored plenty of runs to win on Saturday. Coach Jeremy is enjoying coaching the kids and is loving the enthusiasm being shown by his players and parents.

Have a great week!

Erni, Club Coach

Vikings Teams

Teams 11/12/13 Nov 2016

Vikings Juniors - Weekend "Round Up"(5 Nov)

Vikings Juniors - Weekend "Round Up"(5 Nov)

Hi, I thought it might be good to start to share on the Club Blog how are junior teams went on the weekend and include any team based messages for the week ahead. I'm hoping to make this a regular thing.

 First up, thanks to Cathy, Sharon and the Committee for distributing the 'replacement' junior playing tops. Our Vikings teams all looked the part in a not as bright but much more Vikings Red top. For anyone waiting for a hat, the latest order has arrived and will be available from the Canteen at Home games. If coaches know a player is waiting on a hat, please email the club (vikingsbaseballtuggeranong@gmail.com) and we'll try and organise to have it at either your next practice or at the game on Saturday. Now for the "weekend wrap":

 #  u7s had a good game against the Indians on Saturday scoring lots of runs and having fun on the field. Jeremy asked me to mention that the team has training on Wednesday at VP from 5.30 till 6.15; 

#  u9s played well to score a 26-18 win over Indians. Coach Gordon and Coach Joe are seeing big improvements each week and are encouraging the players to keep working on catching & throwing and learning the rules as the team prepared to move from the T to machine pitch. Team training is on Wednesday;

#  u13s played solidly for most of the game but got chased down in the final inning for a 1 run loss. You have a midweek game on Wednesday - good luck. As you learnt on the weekend you only need to be in front by one to win.....

#  u15s played its best game of the season in a much improved 6-4 loss to Eagles. The team played good catch, pitchers threw first pitch strikes and the batters made consistent contact at the plate. That gave the team the chance to run the bases and put pressure on the opposition, which we did well nearly taking the win off the second placed side. Training this week Wed & Fri 4.45 till 6.15.

#  u11s had a close 11-8 loss to Rebels White. The team is getting close to switching from machine pitch to player pitch. They are practising hard getting ready for the switch. Coach Mac & Coach Simon are getting back to me on about your game. I'll add your "wrap" as soon as its in.

 I also wanted to mention that the Club was invited to participate in a "Sports Gala" at Bonython Primary School last Friday (4Nov). We had over 100 K - Yr 6 kids participate and try their hand at baseball. They tried hitting, throwing and learnt about the equipment used to play the game. A big thank you to Karen Gill for inviting Vikings to be part of the day and Zac Rauter for his help running the drill and games.

Erni, Club Coach

Senior Teams 5/6 Nov

Senior Teams 5/6 Nov