Spirit Ad Wins Award!

A couple months back I asked for people's opinions on what to send into the Telly Awards, a distinguished video/film contest with over 14,000 entries a year.
Well........I DID IT! =D
I sent in the North Shore Spirit Championship Ad I made for LynnCAM in the "Commercial Sports" category,and took home a bronze Telly in that category. In order to qualify for the Bronze I had to recieve a rating off a 10-point system from a panel of judges that measures between 7.0-8.9. A Silver award would warrent a rating of 9.0 or higher.

So yeah.....I'm pretty excited that I won this thing-and I'm gonna opt to get the statuette & cetificate. Thought I'd share.....and for those of you wondering exactly which ad it was,here it is again:

Videos and Pics from the Last Game.

Warning, this will take a minute to load, lots of pictures.

:(

Jonathan's last post-game wrapup

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Prepare to be sick - the last out

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Chairs for some of our biggest fans :)

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Vic's final at bat

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Trezza's last at bat

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The end.

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Goodbyes in the parking lot

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One last Dominican Hop.

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Good night... and good luck

Shades of Yuri Sanchez. Trailing by 2 with 2 on and 2 out in the bottom of the franchise, Nilson Teilon hit a long drive to deep center-field that at first looked like it might have had the legs to get out for a walk-off home run. Sadly, it died in centerfield and the Nashua Pride walked away with a sweep in the 2007 CanAm Championship Series. It was a fitting end for the franchise which led the league in regular season wins over its 5 seasons, but never won the championship.

We were never able to overcome a 5-run 1st inning by the Nashua Pride off of Luis Arroyo, sparked by a 2-run Olmo Rosario homer. Hideki Nagasaka was brilliant in earning the victory. El Guapo got a shaky save in the 9th, giving up a run.

There were lots of tearful goodbyes at the ballyard tonight.

Tomorrow, I’ll post more videos and pictures than you can shake a stick at, including video of the last out.

Until then, I have to sleep… badly.

For the record: I had a lot of fun.

Need inspiration?

How many times have we seen the Spirit sweep a 3-game series at home?

(Hint: lots of times)

Need more inspiration?

From Joy of Sox:

"10.17.2004

One. One game. One win. That's all.

Not four, not three, not two.

One.

Tonight."

GAME FOUR




GAME FIVE




GAME SEVEN

See you tomorrow.

Game 3 at Fraser. It could be the last one. Let's hope not.

It might help out a little if we can get some f***in home field advantage tomorrow from the church patrons at St. Fraser. Did you hear Holman tonight? Those people are showing support for their dying franchise. Where's your spirit?

Game 2....

Lordy, this is a big one.

Matt Bishop vs. Joe Gannon

Second Game Of Championship Tonight

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Come one,come all was the theme last night-as the Pride sold tickets for only $1 and had creazy sales in their pro shop. Even though at the end of the night the Pride had a 1-0 series lead....it was a fun trip,and I wanna go again tonight--but can't because I have class from 4-6:30. ='[

Tonight is game two of the championship series pitting the Spirit against the Pride. Tonight Matt Bishop will face off against the Pride's Joe Gannon.
Let's take a look at both pitchers last playoff outings really quick,shall we?

Matt Bishop pitched against Atlantic City in Game 2 of the Semis. He went 6.1 innings. In that time he gave up 2 runs (both earned) on 10 hits while walking none and striking out 2. He walked away with a 1.50 ERA.

Joe Gannon faced off against New Jersey in the Semis in Game 4. He went 6 innings,giving up 3 runs (only one earned) on 5 hits giving him a 1.50 EAR,and the win. He also sturck out 6 while walking just 2.


I think we have a strong chance at winning tonight. While Matt's last outing wasn't the best,I think he'll pick things up this game and give us 5-6 strong innings. But the Spirit just need to remember two things.......stirke early,but also take baby steps (SEE: runs every now and then....no big amount unless REALLY needed)

To anyone goign up,have a great time! And if you see the Pride Booster Club members that were at Fraser go over and say hi,they are incredibly friendly people =]
To those of you listening on the radio.....I'll,most likely, join ya here in an in-game post around 7:30ish.

GO SPIRIT!

In-game post: Game 1

CAN AM LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES - GAME ONE

Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 3 3 2 3 0 0 0 1 3 0 0 X 7 8 1

Game One TONIGHT!

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Tonight is game one of the Can-Am Championship series! Tonight at historic "come-in-for-a-buck" Holman Stadium Ryan Bicondoa & the Spirit will face off against The Nashua Pride,led by A-Ok.

I'll be heading up with Sparky......so I'll have some pics and,maybe, a video or two in a day or two (classes will make things hectic).

So,everyone enjoy the game live on the radio and internet at 7 and....
GO SPIRIT!

Game 1 (or not)

Bic is scheduled to face A-OK tonight in Game 1 @ Nashua, but rain is making it look highly unlikely:

http://www.weather.com/weather/wxdetail/USNH0156?from=36hr_fcst_undeclared

Can-Am League Championship Playoff Ad

I threw together an ad after I knew who we would be facing in the championship.
so here it is,enjoy! ^_^



ALSO: The following is a video on Ryan Bicondoa made by his girlfriend back in Arizona. Enjoy it,as it chronicles Ryan's entire career. =]

Pride Vs Jackals: Game 5

This is it. Whoever wins this game goes to the championship to face YOUR North Shore Spirit.
It's game 5 of the Can-Am League Semi-finals: the Nashua Pride Vs The New Jersey Jackals!
I'll try to update the score every now and then......as this game is a game of interest.

I perosnally woud like to face Nashua.....and would also like to go up there for a playoff game on Wednesday (since I have school tuesday night)......


5:34 PM: In the bottom of the 2nd it's 2-0 Nashua.
GO PRIDE! ^_^
5:41 PM: Apparently the Jackals scraped together 3 hits in the 2nd,matching the Pride's output......but couldn't do anything with them! =] Still 2-0 Pride as they go to the 3rd.
6:21 PM: Bottom of the 4th.......The Pride added two more in the top of the 4th to make it 4-0 Pride! The Jackals have 2 hits while the Pride have 7.
6:43 PM: Still 4-0 Pride,heading into the 6th
7:17 PM: After 7 it's still 4-0 Pride. The Pride have 8 hit while the Jackals have half that. Neither team has pulled a Sussex (Error).
7:44 PM: It's still 4-0 Pride going into the Top of the 9th! GO PRIDE!!!! =]
7:57 PM: FINAL SCORE: PRIDE 4, JACKALS 0

Ok,the playoff fianls are now set!
It's the Nashua Pride Vs YOUR North Shore Spirit.

The fianls begin this Tuesday in Nashua where games 1 and 2 will be played.
Game 3 and any others,if needed,will be played here in Lynn at good ol' Fraser field starting Thursday!

LET'S GO SPIRIT!!!!

PS: We should definitly plan a road trip to Nashua....for Wednesday if possible ( cause i got classes Tuesday) :-p

BURY THEM

Game 4.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
	0	0	0	0	2	6	3	0	2	13	15	1
	1	4	0	0	0	1	1	0	0	7	9	4

SEE YOU AT FRASER FIELD!!!!! BRING ON THE FINALS!

Alive and kicking

Wow. Put this one up there with the Spirit's win in Quebec in 2004. This game had it all.

Tonight's starting pitchers, Gary Galvez and JC Huguet, cruised early on, and the game settled into a calm pattern. It was scoreless through 5. Then, the runs came fast and furious, and in the end the Spirit emerged with a 5-4 victory and a 2-1 series lead. WOOO!!

With the game tied at 4, Mike Torres smashed a home run off of Surf closer Matt Pike to decide the game. Derek Drage came in and set Keesee, Fischer, and Taylor down 1-2-3 to end the game.

The Spirit struck first in the 6th on Alex Trezza's solo home run, but the Surf came right back to chase Galvez with 3 of their own in the bottom of the frame.

In the top of the 7th, Mike Torres's RBI single and Alex Trezza's bases loaded sac fly tied the score again.

But once again, the Spirit bullpen could not hold it. With Lucas Taylor (who else?) on 3rd and 1 out, Anthony Granato grounded out against Carl Schaeffer to bring home the 4th Surf run.

The Spirit, however, did not give up. Vic Davilla came through with a clutch RBI single in the top of the 8th, scoring Gary Roche and tying the game before Torres's winning blast an inning later.

ONWARD!

Let's play ball.

Game 3, folks.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
	0	0	0	0	0	1	2	1	1	5	7	4
	0	0	0	0	0	3	1	0	0	4	7	1

IT'S OVER!! SPIRIT WIN 5-4 AND TAKE A 2-1 SERIES LEAD!!
W) Baker
L) Pike
SV) Drage

HR) Trezza, Torres

Let's keep it going.

Game 3.

Gary Galvez vs. JC Huguet.

To steal/modify a rallying cry from my favorite Red Sox blog, we've just got to win one game tonight. Not win two games, not win five games, not save the franchise... just win one game. Tonight.

Semi-interesting albeit unimportant tidbit:

The Spirit are 3-2 all-time in 'game threes'.

2003: Spirit defeat Quebec in the semifinals to sweep
2003: Rox sweep the Spirit in the finals
2004: Spirit win game 3 in Quebec in the infamous 'turn out the lights game'
2004: Jackals start their comeback at Fraser
2006: Spirit take a 2-1 series lead in Quebec

On the road, the Spirit are 6-4 in the playoffs all-time.

2003: 1-0 @ Quebec, 0-1 @ Brockton
2004: 2-1 @ Quebec, 2-0 @ New Jersey
2006: 1-2 @ Quebec

For now, we've still got tomorrow.

Note: Yes, I am aware of the news. And I will have plenty to say about the departure of the Spirit once the season is over. But for now, I have precious few chances to do what I love the most - talk about the games played by my favorite baseball team. So that's what we'll do.



It was definitely not the best of nights at Fraser Field. All night, the Spirit tried to scratch and claw their way back from an early 2 run deficit. From the 1st thru 7th innings, the Spirit stranded 9 baserunners and wasted many chances to get back in it. Finally, in the 8th, they broke through, when Mike Torres's broken bat bloop single over the shortstop's head scored Nilson Teilon and tied the game at 2.

Unfortunately, as if Spirit fans needed another kick in the balls tonight, the Surf got the win by fighting back to put a run on the board in the 9th off of Jamie Baker. Lucas Taylor hit a go-ahead RBI single up the middle with 2 outs to give Atlantic City a 3-2 win and even the best-of-5 series at 1 as the scene shifts to scenic (not) New Jersey for the remainder of the series.

Jamie Baker got the loss for the Spirit. Jamie Tricoglou earned the win, giving up the 1 run in the 8th over 3 innings of relief work. Each starter got a no decision - Matt Bishop, who gave up two runs in 6.1, and Ben Thurmond, who yielded 1 run in 6 innings of work.

Bishop pitched quite well in the game overall, but put the Spirit behind the 8-ball by giving up a pair of runs in each of the first two innings. In the first, Will Quintana's RBI groundout scored Taylor to make it 1-0. Atlantic City added one in the 2nd. Clyde Williams led off the inning with a double and was brought home by a Wally Rosa RBI single.

The Spirit halved the lead in the 4th on a sacrifice fly to center by Mike Torres which scored Teilon, but they blew a chance to do more damage. North Shore had runners on 2nd & 3rd with 1 out but could only bring in the one run as Josue Lopez grounded out to end the inning.

North Shore had baserunners in each of the next three innings, but failed to score in each before ultimately breaking through in the 8th.

When forced to rally in the 9th, however, they fell short, when Vic Davilla grounded out weakly to first to end the ballgame, and perhaps an era.

Game 2

Matt Bishop vs. Ben Thurmond

If you're a Surf fan, you can't be feeling very good about your team's chances in a short series in which Brian Rodaway has already lost. Nonetheless, as we saw in last year's playoffs, it's quite possible to win the first game of a 5-game series and lose, so let's keep the foot on the accelerator, eh?

As good as the Spirit have been on the road this year, I'd feel a lot more comfortable only having to win 1 out of 3 down there.

I don't even want to THINK about the possibility of this being the last game ever at Fraser Field -- gahh -- and a win tonight makes that scary possibility far less likely. So this is a big one.

Spirit hang on for the win in game 1

ATC 0 0 1 / 0 1 0 / 2 0 0 -- 4
NSS 2 1 0 / 1 1 0 / 0 0 X -- 5

Well, it wound up being a nailbiter (of course)! The Spirit hung on to defeat the Atlantic City Surf 5-4 in game 1 of the semifinals in front of a tiny crowd at Fraser Field.

The Spirit held a 5-2 lead in the 7th, but the Surf clawed back with a 2 out rally off of Spirit starter Ryan Bicondoa. David Keesee hit an RBI double to make it 5-3. Then, Lucas Taylor knocked an RBI single in to left field to cut the lead to 5-4. Bicondoa escaped the jam by getting Anthony Granato to strike out looking with the go-ahead run on base.

In the 8th, Bicondoa worked his way into a jam, but Donny Langdon and Derek Drage worked their way out of it ---- barely.

With 2 men on and 1 out, Bicondoa was lifted for Langdon, who came in to face the left hander Clyde Williams. He whiffed Williams for the 2nd out of the inning and was quickly lifted for closer Derek Drage, who was called upon to get four outs.

He got off to a shaky start, giving up an infield single to Rob Fischer to load the bases. Alex Trezza then made what may well have been a game-saving play. After a pitch to Wally Rosa, Trezza caught Fischer sleeping at first and rifled a snap-throw to the 1st baseman. Fischer was tagged out to end the inning and the threat was defused.

There was more drama to come in the 9th for Drage. Wally Rosa popped out to start the inning, but David Keesee walked to give the surf a chance. With Lucas Taylor up, Drage threw a wild pitch to move Keesee into scoring position. Drage then whiffed Taylor for a huge 2nd out.

That brought up Anthony Granato, who flew out to center field to end the ball game and give the Spirit the 1-0 series lead.

Bicondoa got the win, and Surf ace Brian Rodaway got the loss after giving up 3 early runs in the first 2 innings. He ultimately gave up 5 runs in 7 innings of work.

The Spirit struck first in the home half of the first inning with a 2-out rally. Vic Davilla singled and Luis Lopez walked to bring up Nilson Teilon. Teilon singled up the middle to score the first Spirit run. Then, the throw home was wild, allowing Lopez to score and making it 2-0.

A scorched Jerson Perez homer to left field increased the lead to 3-0 for Bicondoa.

The Spirit put up single runs in the 4th and 5th to cap off their offense for the night. In the 4th, Trezza launched a leadoff double and was brought home by a bloop RBI single by Gary Roche. One inning later, Josue Lopez picked up an RBI to make it 5-2.

Atlantic City would add two to their total, but the Spirit hung on, and are now two wins away from the finals.

Onward...

Playoff baseball...

I absolutely love the days when you wake up in the morning and already have a knot in your stomach in anticipation of a big game. Those days are rare, but when they come, it's very exciting.

Today's classes can't go by quickly enough! See you all tonight!


Pitching Probables

Wednesday September 5:
New Jersey (John Kelly, 7-3) at Nashua (Hideki Nagasaka, 10-1) 6:35 PM
Atlantic City (Brian Rodaway, 15-3) at North Shore (Ryan Bicondoa, 10-2) 7:05 PM

Thursday September 6:
New Jersey (Joel Bennett, 3-2) at Nashua (Akira Okamoto, 9-2) 6:35 PM
Atlantic City (Ben Thurmond, 10-5) at North Shore (Luis Arroyo, 1-0 or Matt Bishop, 9-5)
7:05 PM

Friday September 7:
Nashua (TBA) at New Jersey (Ryan Pacyna, 6-2) 7:05 PM
North Shore (Gary Galvez, 7-9) at Atlantic City (JC Huguet, 9-5) 7:05 PM

Saturday September 8:
Nashua at New Jersey* 7:05 PM
North Shore at Atlantic City* 7:05 PM

Sunday September 9:
Nashua at New Jersey* 5:05 PM
North Shore at Atlantic City* 7:05 PM