SWAT Fastpitch Softball

06/15/2026

You will all have to excuse me for ONE post. You have never seen me brag about my kids exploits on social media. I just don't like to. It's unnecessary. There have been plenty of times where I could have but I feel this one deserves recognition. Her sisters will be pi**ed but oh well...

My little 9-year-old is playing waaay above her level right now meaning she SHOULD be playing rec ball. She loves to play! Even though she doesn't always understand, I chose to throw her into the deep end vs. uncertainty elsewhere. The results finally arrived over the weekend. She caught a pretty decent fly ball on Saturday and then followed it up by catching a legit line drive over her head playing center field on Sunday. This picture illustrates the same excitement she had as well as our parents.

Those same parents have watched me absolutely pelt her and ALL her teammates at 10U with hard throws every day we have practice. "Catch the ball", "quit backing away", "quit moving your body", "quit being a sissy la-la" are all phrases they hear out of my mouth. Not in a drill sergeant kinda' way, but a challenging, you can do this kinda' way.

There is ZERO chance she catches a line drive like that without repetitive tough love and expecting results. The number of times she said "you're going to kill me" and "ooooouch that one hurt" would take a while to count.

The kicker is, I have never had a parent say take it easy. Never got a text, never got a call...nothing. Those who see the big picture understand. Those who don't, well, they won't be playing much longer. The number one thing every girl playing softball needs to get over first is fear. After that, everything else is a lot easier.

All that said, she's not going to Texas tomorrow and she could miss the next 20 balls hit her way. For now, I hope she remembers the thrill of catching two balls after nearly five months of stinging hands and fearing for her life.

Keep working and loving to play little Allie. Pops couldn't be happier for you!

06/11/2026

Had a loyal S.W.A.T. Mom send me this. Loyalties are spread thin these days with multiple teams, etc. All I know is, if you're wearing blue and black, at least one mom has your back. 

06/11/2026

S.W.A.T. representin' at the Fightin' Phils game tonight. 10U/12U player Karlee Messner throwing out the first pitch.

06/09/2026

We're going to start featuring our players so everyone gets a chance to meet our team members. We're proud of all their efforts this season and look forward to having them back for the 2027 travel season.

Here is an OG member of the S.W.A.T. 12U team joining us from Kutztown. One of our resident southpaws, Ella has been with us since day 1. Things would not be the same if her smiling face was not a consistent presence at practice and tournaments. We would miss her quiet, little “meeeeee” call from the outfield when she takes charge of a fly ball.

If we were to pick a girl for the Most Improved Player since the fall, Ella is definitely in the conversation. Ella had her “pop” moment during our second game this season. She caught a fly ball and ever since then, a confident kid has been patrolling right field. As of now, if a fly ball is heading towards her, she’s got it! She is now transitioning to fielding balls on the ground and throwing on the run to second base along with tag-up situations. We would not be surprised if she threw out a girl trying to stretch out a double before the season is over.

At the plate, Ella is known to smack line drives to the left side of the field. Having just broke her bat two weeks ago, she’s now swinging a new bat and hitting harder than ever.

There is one, tiny bit of evil in Ella. She takes great pleasure hitting coaches with line drives when taking batting practice. EVIL!!! We’ll take it. Keep swinging!

Ella, as well as her family, are a true value to the team and organization. Thank you Friday family for your continued commitment and work ethic. She'll be back next year moving up to our 14U team. Keep working hard Ella!

06/08/2026

S.W.A.T. 12U Finishes 4th at the Beast of the East

For the second straight weekend, close games did not go our way. This time with the 12U team. As is always the case with close games, you can second guess a thousand things. We had girls playing legitimately injured. Not hurt, injured. We Scotch Taped things together and competed. Regardless of your situation, you have to do the basics and leave the excuses behind. We didn't and suffered for it this weekend. We went 0-3 with a -5 run differential which is nothing at this level.

One thing became very clear after the last game was over. The girls DO NOT like losing. These days, you cannot take it for granted kids care about winning. "Let's have fun" only goes so far for a competitor. We take pride in knowing it matters to them.

We're back at it again this coming weekend with the 10U team. Let's hope for some good bounces and a few wins this weekend.

Keep grinding you knuckleheads!

06/05/2026

Hook 'em!

YOUR TEXAS LONGHORNS ARE NATIONAL CHAMPIONS… AGAIN 🤘🏆

06/03/2026

Softball and Baseball Terminology

Most of our kids are never taught the vernacular associated with softball and baseball. Every now and then we'll talk about a new term. I'm sure a lot of parents aren't familiar with some of these terms either. Enjoy...

Line Drive or liner - a sharply hit ball that travels fast and straight

Frozen Rope - see line drive

Hiss Missile (clean version) - see frozen rope and line drive

In the Hole - most commonly referred to the area to the right of a shortstop resulting in a long throw to first. "In the hole" can also refer to the 2nd batter waiting to hit behind the current hitter. She hit a ball "in the hole" and beat the throw to first or "who's in the hole?"

The Dish - home plate. Who’s behind “the dish” this game?

The mound or the rubber - pitching area. So and so is on "the rubber" tomorrow.

Hurler - a pitcher

Rundown (no it’s not a pickle grow up) - runner caught between two bases. She got caught in a "rundown."

On deck - the next batter waiting to hit.

Dinger - home run

Bomb - see dinger

Drilled - a hard hit ball. Could be a line drive or a hiss missile. That ball was "drilled!"

One hopper - a line drive that will reach the defensive player on “one hop."

Humpback line drive - Kind of a semi line drive. The ball has a clear “hump” to it’s flight path

Battery - the pitcher and the catcher.

Battery mate - Either the pitcher or the catcher. Who is Jess's "battery mate" today?

Crooked number - old school term. A crooked number would be 13 runs in an inning vs. 2 or 3. It looks odd or “crooked” on the scoreboard.

On the black - this refers to a pitch that is perfectly on the inside or outside of the plate.

Chin music - a pitch thrown up and in on a hitter under their chin.

K - a “K” is used in a traditional scorebook to register a strikeout. She had “12 K’s” her last game.

Backwards K - a backwards K is used in a traditional scorebook to register a strikeout where the batter did not swing at the third strike.

Caught looking - see backwards K. She got "caught looking" her last at bat.

Fuzz - a ball either hit or thrown that you can hear when it goes by you. “That ball had fuzz on it.” It could also hiss resulting in a “hiss missile.”

Heavy ball - certain players throw a “heavy ball” meaning when you catch it, the ball hits your glove harder than other players. Doesn’t mean it’s being thrown harder (MPH) necessarily. The ball simply seems to have more weight coming out of their hand for various reasons.

Seeing eye single - a ball that is weakly hit that somehow manages to result in a hit.

Blooper - a ball hit in the air weakly that barely makes it over an infielders head and in front of an outfielder.

Worm burner - a hard hit ball ground ball unlike a seeing eye single.

Remembered a couple more...

Shoestring catch - a ball caught very low just before it hits the ground in close proximity to a players cleats hence a "shoestring catch."

Bang-bang play - a play at any base where the ball and the runner arrive at nearly the same time. The ball hits the glove and the runners foot hits the base a split second later. That was a "bang-bang play" at first.

What are we missing???

06/01/2026

S.W.A.T. 10U Finishes 5th in the Sliding Into Summer Tournament.

Over the weekend, the S.W.A.T. 10U team competed against local rec tournament teams in Douglasville. To say this weekend was both rewarding and frustrating is completely accurate.

Our group as a whole are young, inexperienced and TINY compared to our competition. To say we were an underdog in every game so far this season is an understatement. That being said, with a few breaks here and there, we could have just as easily been 4-0 instead of 0-2-2. We were -2 in runs scored and yet still didn't come away with a win. We're still staring at too many 3rd strikes unfortunately.

All that aside, this post is going to serve as the Jaida Tanis appreciation post. Her pitching was a HUGE reason we were competitive in each game. This poor kid, who gives it her all for this organization, had a gut-wrenching inning on Sunday I don't care to see again.

Unfortunately, Jaida hit a girl while pitching causing the batter to end up in tears. The ball hit a bad spot on her knee which is painful. Jaida felt horrible and also ended up in tears. She has a huge heart! A mere minutes later, she took a line drive right off the left shoulder causing screams of pain no one ever wants to hear at a game. The hit was an absolute rocket! It happened so fast. So in the span of minutes, she had two completely emotional situations to deal with. Totally undeserved and luckily resulted in no fractures.

Jaida, and her family, have deserved appreciation for a while now. They exemplify what sports is supposed to be like. Jaida, even on crutches, shows up to practice and tournaments. Even when not getting as much playing time at 12U, she never complains and cheers for her team. Jaida never seems to have a bad day even through two leg/foot injuries and now a bullet to her shoulder this spring. You cannot break her spirit.

Too often in all sports, parents think they're kids are entitled to playing time. Playing time and positions should just be given to a kid. That's what rec is for. Are you performing well enough to warrant where you want to play? In most cases, no. Marc and Onya Tanis have instilled this set of values in Jaida that will serve her long beyond her playing days. They expect her to work for it. They see the bigger picture.

If some of you still wonder what travel is about, read this again. It's about battling, accepting your role and COMPETING on a team. Those who do not want to battle end up leaving. Those who stay, will gain a lot more long-term by taking a chance and competing against better and more focused players.

Thank you Tanis family for setting an example since day 1 wearing a S.W.A.T. uniform. See you back at the field with your big smile soon Jaida!

05/28/2026

The circle of trust!

05/27/2026

There are dozens of videos like this out there but this one made me laugh. Maybe it's the southern accent? I tell the girls they cry sometimes because they care. Moms chirp because they care. Just keep the phone out of your bra if you could please. 😁