Northview Twirler Abbott Receives Multiple Awards, Bowl Game Invites
July 23, 2013
Kaitlyn Abbott, a featured twirler for the Northview High School Tribal Beat band, received several awards at a Marching Auxiliaries camp held at the University of South Alabama.
She was presented with the Superior Marching Auxiliaries Camp Award, the Outstanding Soloist Award, the All-Star Performer Award, the Marching Auxiliaries Honor Award, and received personal invitations to perform at the Capital One Bowl and the Cotton Bowl.
Earlier this summer, Abbott received the Best Majorette Bodywork Award during the Troy University Sound of the South Band Camp.
Wahoos Rained Out
July 23, 2013
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos’ contest with the Huntsville Stars scheduled for Monday night at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium has been postponed due to inclement weather. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader at some point during the series in Huntsville from August 18-22 at a time to be announced later.
Fans with tickets to tonight’s game can use their ticket for any 2013 regular season home game, subject to availability for a ticket of equal or lesser value. Exchanges must be made in person at the Blue Wahoos Ticket Office and cannot be processed via telephone, email or fax.
The Wahoos now hit the road for a five-game series with the Mississippi Braves starting on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. Shaun Ellis, Monday’s scheduled starter, will now get the call on Tuesday against Mississippi’s Aaron Northcraft (3-8, 4.17)
Molino’s Gindl Makes History With Walk-Off Homer For The Brewers (With Video)
July 22, 2013
Molino’s Caleb Gindl made history Sunday for the Milwaukee Brewers as he became the first in franchise history to hit a walk-off for his first MLB homer.
Gindl went 2-for-5 on Sunday, including a sweep-clinching home run in the 13th inning that gave the Brewers a 1-0 win over the Marlins at Miller Park.
It was Gindl’s first Major League home run, so he was not surprised to get the traditional cold shoulder. In this case, that meant his teammates hustling up the clubhouse tunnel rather than onto the field to offer high-fives. (Video at the bottom of the page.)
“I kind of knew that was going to happen,” Gindl said. “I saw [Jean Segura] at home plate, and I was like, ‘I guess the rest of them are in the tunnel.’ I was running up there to find them.
“That’s the highlight of my career.”
Gindl, a natural right fielder who is capable of playing all three spots, had endured some lowlights in a previous stint with the Brewers. He made costly errors in back-to-back games, including a June 27 drop that contributed to four unearned runs in a 7-2 Brewers loss, then was optioned back to Triple-A Nashville the next day after getting some encouraging words from manager Ron Roenicke.
“He told me he knows I can play the outfield, that the first time up here is always different — which it is,” Gindl said. “‘I think you play with a lot of nerves,’ he told me, ‘Hey, go back down there and do what you’re supposed to do, and you’ll be back.’”
Gindl responded by playing clean defense and batting .421 with seven extra-base hits in Nashville’s first 10 games in July. He brought that hot bat into Sunday’s start against Miami.
“He really squared up four baseballs,” Roenicke said. “Good at-bats all day, and we didn’t have a whole lot of those, so it was nice to see him swing well.”
He also played a mistake-free game in the outfield in place of Ryan Braun, who was used only as a pinch-hitter.
“When those things happen and you make one error, you think about it, like, ‘Oh my God, don’t let it happen again,’” Gindl said before Sunday’s game. “Then when it happens again, you go, ‘Oh, no,’ and it’s the kind of thing that sticks with you a little bit. That’s not me. I’m not used to making errors at all, especially in the outfield on popups. … It’s nice to get another opportunity. I’m not going to play so timid this time. I’m going to play wide-open.”
Gindl’s bat has been his best asset since the Brewers’ made him a fifth-round Draft pick in 2007. He is a .293 hitter with 81 home runs in seven Minor League seasons, but Sunday marked a first.
“Never in my life have I ever hit a walk-off homer,” Gindl said. “That was the first, and it was unreal running the base. It was pretty special.”
The homer ended the Majors’ longest scoreless game since Boston won, 1-0, in 16 innings at Tampa Bay on July 17, 2011, according to Stats, Inc.
Gindl never expected to be the one to do it.
“Not at all,” Gindl said. “Not a chance. I thought Braun or Rickie [Weeks] or somebody like that, but not me. Me and Jerry [Narron, the Brewers' bench coach] actually just talked about it, and he said, ‘Don’t try to hit a homer. Hit a double.’ That was my approach. When I hit it, I thought it had a chance, but I thought it was going to go foul, actually. It snuck in there for me.”
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Courtesy MLB/Milwaukee Brewers.
Pensacola Blue Wahoos Over Huntsville 7-5
July 22, 2013
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos overcame a late two-run deficit with four runs in the last of the seventh inning to knock off the Huntsville Stars 7-5 on Sunday afternoon at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium. The win snapped Pensacola’s three-game losing streak and seven-game home losing skid.
Trailing 5-3 entering the seventh inning, Corey Wimberly drew a leadoff walk in front of Mike Costanzo who launched his first homer in a Wahoos uniform this season to knot the game at five. Yorman Rodriguez followed with a walk before Donald Lutz tripled him home on a fly ball to center, giving Pensacola a 6-5 lead. Tucker Barnhart drove home Lutz with a sacrifice fly to left to give the Wahoos a two-run lead.
Jamie Walczak fired a 1-2-3 eighth to set up Trevor Bell, who notched his sixth save of the season with a scoreless ninth frame, picking up two strikeouts in the process.
Pensacola jumped out on top in the contest in the last of the first against Huntsville starter Ariel Pena. With two on and one out, Lutz singled to right to score Costanzo before Barnhart brought home Rodriguez with a groundout, pushing Pensacola out in front 2-0. Lutz had the lone multi-hit game for the Wahoos posting a 2-for-3 night with two RBI. Barnhart saw his eight-game hitting streak come to an end, but still managed to drive home two runs.
The two teams traded tallies in the fifth inning. In the top half of the frame, Chadwin Stang tripled and scored on Nick Shaw’s sacrifice fly to make it 2-1. Pensacola countered in the last of the inning by loading the bases with nobody out and scoring a run on a double play ball off the bat of Barnhart.
Wahoos starter Josh Smith then ran into trouble in the sixth inning as he yielded a leadoff homer to Jason Rogers, his fourth homer in the last two games. Mike Walker then doubled before a walk and a fielder’s choice forced Smith from the contest. Drew Hayes entered and promptly gave up a go-ahead three-run homer to Hector Gomez, giving the Stars a 5-3 lead.
Hayes battled back to pick up the win, improving to 3-2. The right-hander was charged with a run on two hits with three strikeouts. Smith took a no-decision while allowing four runs on five hits in 5.1 innings with seven strikeouts. Overall, the Wahoos struck out 14 Stars, setting a new season-high for a nine-inning game.
Arcenio Leon (1-6) took the loss for Huntsville as he gave up three of the four runs in the seventh inning. Pena lasted five frames for Huntsville, giving up three runs on five hits with six strikeouts and five walks.
The five-game series wraps up on Monday at 7 p.m. at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium. Shaun Ellis (3-1, 3.55) will get the ball for Pensacola against Huntsville’s Andy Moye (4-10, 4.37).
Hunstville Beats Wahoos 10-5
July 21, 2013
Jason Rogers smashed three home runs and drove home another run with a single as part of a six-RBI night in the Huntsville Stars’ 10-5 win over the Pensacola Blue Wahoos on Saturday night in front of the 21st capacity crowd of the season at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium.
Rogers started the scoring with a two-run homer in the top half of the fourth inning against Pensacola starter Tim Crabbe. It was part of a four-run frame for the Stars who got an RBI triple from Adam Weisenburger and an RBI single from Eric Patterson to build a 4-0 lead. Crabbe was taken out of the game after four frames. He allowed four runs on six hits with five strikeouts.
However, in the last of the fourth, the Wahoos countered with four runs of their own against Huntsville starter Taylor Jungmann. With runners on second and third and one out, Devin Lohman reached on an infield single to score a run while another run scored on a throwing error by the pitcher Jungmann to make it 4-2. Corey Wimberly doubled home Lohman two batters later to make 4-3 before Wimberly scored on an RBI single from Yorman Rodriguez, knotting the game at four. Rodriguez finished the night going 4-for-5 with a triple and an RBI. It was the first time this season a Wahoo has recorded four hits in a game.
Rogers broke the tie in the sixth inning with a solo homer and added an insurance tally with a two-out single in the seventh to give the Stars a 6-4 lead. Both hits came against Loek Van Mil who fell to 0-6 by allowing two runs on seven hits in three innings.
In the ninth, Rogers provided the exclamation point to his night with another two-run shot to left, capping a four-run frame for Huntsville and opening up a 10-4 cushion. Rogers went 4-for-5 with the three homers and six RBI, both career-highs. The three blasts were his first since May 27.
Pensacola scored a run in the last of the ninth inning when Tucker Barnhart singled home Donald Lutz to make it 10-5. Barnhart went 2-for-3 with an RBI to extend his hitting streak to eight games.
David Goforth picked up the win for Huntsville to improve to 4-1. In relief of Jungmann, Goforth fired three scoreless frames with two strikeouts. Jungmann didn’t last past the fourth inning for Huntsville, as he gave up four runs on seven hits and took a no-decision.
Pensacola will look to salvage the final two games of the series starting on Sunday at 4 p.m. Josh Smith (7-8, 3.72) will start for the Wahoos while Ariel Pena (5-7, 3.47) gets the call for the Stars.
story by Kevin Burke
Wahoos Fall Flat In Series Opener
July 19, 2013
The Huntsville Stars scored in their first at-bat, providing all the offense on the night in a 1-0 win over the Pensacola Blue Wahoos on Thursday night in front of the 19th sellout crowd of the season at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium.
Chadwin Stang started the game off with a double for the Stars and moved to third on a sac bunt by Nick Shaw. Two batters later, Brock Kjeldgaard lifted a sacrifice fly into foul territory in left field to score the game’s only run.
Pensacola had numerous opportunities in the contest, smacking eight base knocks, but couldn’t push across any runs. The Wahoos stranded 11 runners, including the bases loaded in the fourth inning. In the second inning, Pensacola had runners at second and third and one out but Chris Berset lined out sharply to second base before Daniel Renken grounded out. Renken batted with the bags packed and two outs in the fourth and struck out.
Despite the shutout, Travis Mattair continued his torrid pace with a 3-for-4 performance with two doubles. In his current seven-game hitting streak, Mattiar is 14-for-23, a .609 average.
Renken (3-7) took the tough luck loss despite tossing his fifth quality start in a row. The right-hander allowed a run on three hits with four strikeouts and four walks in six innings.
Drew Gagnon (2-5) snapped a five-game losing streak with his best start in Double-A. Gagnon shutout Pensacola over 6.2 innings, scattering eight hits with three strikeouts and two walks. Greg Holle picked up his ninth save of the year by pitching around a one-out walk in the ninth inning.
The series continues on Friday night at 7 p.m. Carlos Contreras will make his Double-A debut with Pensacola after being called up from High-A Bakersfield over the All-Star Break. Huntsville will counter with Brooks Hall (0-3, 6.31).
story by Kevin Burke
Storm 10U Majors Place 2nd In Global World Series
July 18, 2013
The Pensacola Storm 10U Majors baseball team placed second in the recent USSSA Global World Series Tournament in Orange Beach.
After two days of tournament action, the Pensacola Storm was 4-0 with a No 1. seed as one of the top eight teams in the 35-team tourney. The Storm beat the Texas Punishers 5-2 but then lost to the Arkansas Express Jaggers. They cam beack and battled hard for a 4-2 win over the Germantown Giants from Tennessee. After a lengthy rain delay, they went on to beat the Twin City Outlaws of Texas 11-5 and 14-1. The Pensacola Storm then lost the championship game to the Arkansas Express Jaggers.
The Pensacola Storm finished the season with a 48-15 overall USSSA record and an impressive eight first place and four second place standings out of 15 USSSA tournaments.
Pictured: (front, L-R) Jackson Penton, Tanner Rouchon, Aaron Noack, Josh Turner, Trenton Norton, Jordan Jarman, (back) Jordan Peacock, Jordan McCants, Hunter Pierson, Ian Ladieu, Damarius McGhee and Coleman Dorsett. Submitted photo for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
South Tops North 6-0 In Southern League All-Star Game
July 18, 2013
The North Division was held to just one hit in the South Division’s 6-0 win in the Southern League All-Star Game at Bragan Field at the Baseball Ground of Jacksonville on Wednesday night.
Blue Wahoos pitchers Tim Crabbe and Shaun Ellis both got in the game in successive innings. Crabbe worked a scoreless fifth allowing just a hit. Ellis shut out the North Division in the sixth inning with a strikeout and a walk.
Jackson’s James Jones had the only hit for the North Division, a double in the fifth. Offensively, the game belonged to the South. The Wahoos’ division blasted 11 hits resulting in six runs. Mobile’s Mike Freeman was one of three South squaders with a pair of hits. He also scored a pair of runs. Montgomery’s Cameron Seitzer, who was the home run derby champ earlier in the evening, delivered a pair of hits and a run batted in. Mississippi’s Jaime Pedroza had the other dual-hit game for the South squad.
The BayBears’ Justin Greene was awarded MVP for his RBI triple to get the scoring started in the bottom of the first. With the one-hit shutout thrown by the South Division, that run proved to be the game-winner.
This is the second straight All-Star Game win for the South. David Holmberg, also from Mobile, earned the win. He started and worked a perfect first inning with a strikeout.
The Blue Wahoos will return to action on Thursday night at home as they open up a series against the Huntsville Stars at 7 p.m. Daniel Renken (3-6, 3.91) is the scheduled starter for the Wahoos while Huntsville has not yet named a starter.
by Kevin Burke
Gaetz, Others Urge FWC To Back Deer Importation Ban
July 17, 2013
Senate President Don Gaetz and two other Panhandle lawmakers this week urged the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to approve a ban on importing deer from out of state, amid concerns about the spread of a disease that can be fatal to the animals.
Last month, Gaetz, his son, Rep. Matt Gaetz, and Sen. Greg Evers asked the commission to wait for more evidence of the impact of Chronic Wasting Disease. The panel postponed a decision on a ban until its September meeting.
But now the lawmakers say the risk is too great.
“Please accept this letter as acknowledgement that the scientific case for closing the border is stronger than we had originally understood,” they wrote Monday to FWC Chairman Kenneth Wright. “We now believe that moving forward with (the ban) is the prudent course of action.”
Chronic Wasting Disease is similar to Mad Cow Disease and is fatal to deer. If a deer is found with the disease, the entire population — fee-ranging or farmed — must be eradicated to prevent it from spreading.
Marion Hammer of the National Rifle Association, which backs the ban, says the disease could wipe out all the state’s deer.
“Some folks say it’s manageable. It’s not manageable,” Hammer said. “Why should you wait to try to manage something when you can take action to prevent getting it in the first place?”
But opponents of the ban said the move is unnecessary.
“I think it’s a shame,” said Chris Winsey, president of the Southeast Trophy Deer Association. “We’re just being prejudiced toward the deer versus any other animal that’s being moved in our state.”
“They don’t have enough data to close the border,” said Mike Vizcaino, a deer farmer in the St. Augustine area. “If these guys were really afraid of CWD, they would be promoting a statewide testing requirement rather than closing the borders.”
Vizcaino said the ban had been pushed by importers who are stocking up on deer now “so they can set the prices” once the ban goes into effect. “This is all about money.”
Currently, to reduce chances of the disease entering Florida, the state bans deer from being imported from those states and Canadian provinces where infected deer have been found. The ban also prohibits deer killed in those areas from being brought into Florida unless they have first been deboned or treated and mounted by taxidermists outside the state.
The state also requires that imported deer come from herds that have been certified disease-free for five years. Opponents of the ban have recommended the state consider doubling that time frame.
At last month’s commission meeting, deer farmers and game ranchers said closing the border would increase the risk of the disease turning up in Florida. They predicted an increase in smuggling to keep up with the demand for deer available for hunting.
“I believe this decision is probably going to cripple the (deer) industry in Florida,” Winsey said. “It’s a shame how we continue to discriminate against people in agriculture.”
But Hammer said the disease is so deadly that if it spread to Florida, deer hunting would become too dangerous to continue.
“If we got Chronic Wasting Disease in the state of Florida, I’d never eat another piece of venison,” she said. “The risk is too great. So we need to take the steps that are best to prevent ever getting the disease to begin with.”
The disease is not known to affect people.
Backers of the ban include not only the NRA but the Florida Wildlife Federation, United Sportsmen of Florida, Florida Deer Association, Florida Zoo Association and the Humane Society.
Hammer wants the commission to schedule an emergency meeting to hasten the start of the ban, but FWC spokesman Tony Young said Tuesday that wasn’t necessary.
By The News Service of Florida
NHS QB Club Hosting Softball Tournament
July 15, 2013
The Northview High School Quarterback Club will host a coed softball tournament on August 2 and 3.
The entry fee is $150 per team. To register a team and support the Class 1A state football champions in their upcoming season, call Bodie Tullis at (850) 390-3945.
Editor’s note: The above represents a lower registration fee and a date change from a previous announcement.