Despite First-Inning Magic, Unicorns Gracefully Lose Season Opener

If the Unicorns of the Apocalypse were as magical as,
saaaay, this here burrito unicorn, Monday night
may have ended differently.

     It was probably one of VBC Softball’s most glorious innings in the last year and a half. 

     After having lost to That’s What She Said all three times in the first part of 2011 (3-12, 4-15, 5-11), the Unicorns fielded a two-hit, two-walk first inning that saw two runs cross the plate.  The Unicorns responded with a monster seven-hit, one-walk inning that saw seven cross the plate.  To put that in perspective, in only four out of fifteen games last season did the Unicorns score seven or more runs.  The Unicorns were ecstatic and continued playing well defensively, with Romeo Villanueva taking one knee to make a crucial catch in left-center and rookie Kevin Carpenter diving low to make his own web gem in left.

Game Preview for 8/15/11

Unicorns of the Apocalypse vs. That's What She Said

Princess Anne Athletic Complex Field Red #3

6:45-8:45pm

     The Unicorns will pick up right where they left off last season to face once again That's What She Said.  In the spring, the Unicorns batted .443/.473/.571 total versus their pitching, producing their second-best batting average against a single team of said season.  Players not known for their power--such as Mary Hasan, Joanna Niles, and Romeo Villanueva--thrived in games against them while some of their top producers--Ryan Cahill, Bobby Weaver, and Prucha--found it hard to produce their usual team-leading numbers despite Cahill and Weaver hitting a home run each off of their pitchers.  Unless they need to swing for the fences, maybe the best strategy will be to rely on infield singles and shallow drops in the outfield tomorrow night.
     Bobby Weaver will take the mound first for the season opener, followed by Kevin Carpenter in game two.

Breaking News: Kat Bolick has resigned onto VBC Softball to be a Unicorn.  Kat played RF with The Legion of Fistpumping Turtles last season.
Update: A message to the team sent by co-captain Bobby Weaver 11pm revealed that "Kat has sobered up and re-retired."  Apparently, festivities at this weekend's birthday party for Unicorns Romeo Villanueva and Matt Portner made her get a little too ambitious.  Bolick fans may be able to see her again either in the stands or in an as-needed sub situation later this season.

Unicorns Must Muster Mental Muscularity, Face Former Foes in Fall

Coach Greg Weaver prepares for the fall
season mentally by getting really close
to a live polar bear at the San Diego Zoo.
Only glass separated him from the 
man-and-carrot-eating beast.

            With less than a week away from the first game, officials finally released the Virginia Beach Coed Duffer League Softball schedule for the fall.

            The Unicorns will be facing seven different teams in doubleheaders this season as opposed to the spring, in which they faced five different teams three times.   “Makes the game different,” says coach Greg Weaver, “Instead of being able to get a feel for a team the first time with a doubleheader and having a month or more to plan a little for your next bout, you have to learn to get that feel in the first game.  If we lose our first game, our only chance at revenge is in the second; if we win our first game… well, we’ll take that win.”

            The game is indeed different.  In this league, the teams of VBC Softball have seen two types of schedules.  The first is the small-division type, where the team will face a different opponent each week until they have played everyone in the division.  Following that, the team rematches every team for one more game each.  That type was what the schedule was in the spring.  The second schedule type is adjusted for larger divisions, which is what the Unicorns face this fall.  The team will play each opponent in its division twice, both of the games falling in the same evening.

             The difference in the types calls for a different style of mental play.  Whereas the Unicorns may have thought that they would improve over the course of the season to win one later, they are barred from that way of thinking now.  Improving over the course of the season and locking in your team’s dominance over another team at the end is not an option.  Now, one may say that the second game—the last game each night—now determines who is the better team for the whole season.

Subs Galore

It was an odd night for the Unicorns as they faced off against their rival this season--the Wine O's--and That's What She Said.

At Red Mill Farms Park, an area known for its distance from all of the team members and its plague-like population of mosquitoes, the Unicorns took the field early at 6:40pm at the demand of the umpire despite not having a full team.  They knew they would be short, but the early start threw them for a loop as players were rushing to get out to Sandbridge after work.  "The Wine O's are our favorite team to play--they have great spirit.  That might explain Bobby [Weaver]'s feeling that they might have been going easy on us by not hitting the ball into right field since no one was there," skipper Greg Weaver recounts.

An all-time high of four Unicorn females were out of the lineup for evening.  Catcher Lanah Stafford was on personal leave, the recently re-enabled Alaina Coletti was hosting receptions at a work event, speedster Joanna Niles is finishing up her time in France, and veteran team sister Sarah Redfield's whereabouts were unknown.  Subs were on their way, but it was unclear as to how long they were going to take.

Game Previews for 6/20/11

Tomorrow night the Unicorns will play on a field that will be foreign to some players, but the opposing team members will certainly spark familiarity.

Game #1 vs. Wine O's (6:45pm at Red Mill Park Field #2)
When the Unicorns last saw the Wine O's, they posted their first (and only) win of the season, beating them 10-7.  Ryan Cahill and Bobby Weaver both hit home runs in the series against them, with Weaver racking in two.  Rianna Schweitzer had headed the Unicorns' best games defensively, having an average WHIP of 3.60 and allowing two of the lowest run totals in the season, 13 and 7.

After the game, the Unicorns and the Wine O's shared some quality time at local bar Finn McCool's, where the Wine O's purchased shots for everyone due to the Unicorns' victory.  They are eager to win again.

Two game AVG/OBP/SLG: .417/.440/.667 and .524/.643/1.095