“The most notable was this past summer when we entered the Federal Way Knights Tournament. As an 8U team, we entered the 9U division and won the championship. We beat one of the premier select teams in the PNW. We also won every tournament we entered this past summer.” He continues, explaining, “[The team has] had the privilege of traveling around Western Washington for larger scale games and competing against top-tier teams.” For an age group this young, holding these titles may appear to carry a lot of pressure. However, the team’s adult leadership heavily reiterates that the purpose of playing a sport is not to always win, but to try one’s hardest and grow from their past mistakes. “We try to win, but to be honest winning isn’t our number one priority,” assistant coach Pete Orgill explains. “And even though it’s not our top priority, the boys pretty much win every game. They work hard and they learn a lot... [baseball is] a good confidence builder too.” As an elementary school physical education instructor, he points out that extracurricular activities are of high value, and being part of a team helps develop skills in children that can’t necessarily be taught through conventional learning styles. His eight-year-old son, Nash, agrees with this. He communicates, “My favorite thing about playing baseball is probably playing with my friends and helping them out.” The development of this mindset at this incredibly early age acts as a major indicator of the uplifting spirit of this baseball team and the way that not only their skill on the field but also their respect towards one another off the field truly hit it out of the park! Another one of the assistant coaches, Tim Whitaker, highlights the importance of the community knowing about the boys’ successes. “One of the things we most like about the Newcastle Pony League is that it’s kind of like a community within a community. Since we have games on Saturday mornings, we found ourselves going in the morning for a game, and then sometimes staying to watch other games or watch friends play.” Similarly, he is very proud of the team’s ability to form both avid sports skills and foundational emotional connections, which he describes: “A big part of it is knowing you’re a part of something bigger than just yourself. I think we saw that with the weekend tournaments, we did. One kid may not have the best first game, but at some point, everyone contributes something to the team.” Whitaker’s son, Felix, also eagerly contributes. “In that championship game in that last tournament, I think I pitched three or four innings, and I held them to enough runs so that we could catch back up and win eventually.” His understanding of how his actions within the game benefit not only himself, but the success of the team, provides insight into both the skills he is taught and how his application of them, along with his teammates, helps lead the team to victory. Greet Newcastle & Newport Hills 21
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