New Song Nicaragua Sports Ministry: October and November 2015 Update

The month of October was the last month for scrimmage/preseason games and November featured a special game. All the teams played their final games for the year and we had some great ones. The kids and the communities are excited and anxiously anticipating the upcoming league in January when each team will be playing on a weekly basis. However, if the league started today we would have a pretty good idea on which teams are the best, due to the results from the preseason games. In the oldest division of 12-13 year olds Candelaria dominated by going undefeated with a 6-0 record. Nuevo Amanacer was a close second with plenty of talented players. They went 3-3 in the scrimmage games, and although they never beat the Candelarian team, there is reason for optimism because due to so many players the Candelarian team will be split into two different teams when the league rolls around. Santa Matilde brought up the rear, but with athletic kids who just lack practice the hope is that this team will be much improved than their preseason 1-5 record. The MVP of this division for the preseason would have to be Luiz Manuel Santana from Candelaria. His name around these parts is Luisito, which would translate to little Luiz, but his game is anything but little. With a 12-6 curveball that would make a grown man’s knees buckle and the ability to play shortstop at a high level makes him a highly versatile player and an easy choice for the MVP of the preseason.

Luiz about to throw his devastating curveball!

There is a similar story in the 10-11 year old division as far as team rankings, but there is a twist. Candelaria ended the preseason with an unblemished 6-0 record. Yet, the twist is that the team from Nuevo Amanacer only played in the last weekend of games. Nuevo Amanacer gave Candelaria all they wanted and more in what was the best game of the preseason but, Candelaria escaped with a dramatic 2-1 victory. Nuevo Amanacer were 1-1 in the only weekend they played but they surely will make plenty of noise in the league. Santa Matilde struggled and were not able to find a win going 0-6. Without some improvement it might be tough for Santa Matilde to win games come January. Also, this division will get a surprise once the league starts as a team from a neighboring community who won the city league of Chichigalpa this past year will join this division. We are excited to be able to make this contact with this community because the coach is well respected and knows a lot about baseball. But most importantly, it offers us a chance to reach and minister to a neighboring community that New Song does not yet have a presence. The community is called Quitanca and is in close proximity to Nuevo Amanacer, which has a dynamic pastor and is building a new church building. We are excited with the possibilities and potential this relationship presents. Going back to the teams that participated in the scrimmages, instead of an MVP I want to give out a most improved to a young boy and girl. Jose and Mariana have been practicing since March. They both can get attitudes and are difficult/frustrating to coach at points. Yet, they have been faithful since the beginning and although those attitudes can pop up every now and then, they are much more respectful and receptive to coaching. Jose always had the ability and was quite a good player from the beginning. The biggest hurdle was to get him to use two hands when catching the baseball. You would of thought it was like asking him to put his hands into a fire. He would not do it and subsequently he dropped a lot of balls. He finally began to realize that when he did use two hands the ball never came out of his glove. During the classic game between Nuevo Amanacer, he was playing first base and made some Sportscenter worthy catches all while using two hands. On the other hand, little Mariana has been a project. She came in with no ability and has improved in all phases of the game. Although she would bat well during practices, she would not swing at all during the games because she was afraid of the ball. Finally, in the last game against Santa Matilde she got the bat off her shoulders and swung. She ended up getting a couple of hits and more than anything proved to herself that she can indeed hit the ball during the games just as good as she can in practice.

Jose and Mariana back in March forming their friendship!

As for the youngest division of 7-9 year olds the pattern continues. Candelaria was the top team, having only one loss at 5-1. Once again Nuevo Amanacer, which might be the most improved out of any team, was the second best team. Having bounced back from early losses, they finished with a 2-4 record. Santa Matilde started off winning their first two games but nose dived from there and lost their last 4 games. Like the eldest division, Candelaria will have two different teams in this division come January, which will make things more interesting. For this division I would like to highlight what one could call the “Coach of the Preseason”. That is the coach of the Candelarian team, Rosita Vega. This young girl works six mornings a week from 6-9, has high school classes from 12-5 and still manages to give three practices a week. She has such a passion to teach the young ones about Jesus and the game of baseball. The youngest group is by far the hardest group to coach and to control, but Rosita does an exceptional job. Her team plays really well and it is awesome to see how she interacts with the kids and parents.

Rosita with her stud muffins!

Like I said at the beginning, November featured a special game. The pastors, church leaders, and the coaches got together to play a softball double header. For the past year I have heard different pastors tell me of their glory days and how they still could go out there and play at a high level. Well they got their chance and while one can tell that father time has crept up on them, some can still play well. It was a great time of fellowship and a way to bless these men who work hard and give their lives to their communities. It was also great to see the potential of how we can utilize the fields that we have not only for league purposes but ways to bless and minister to the communities with games such as these. It was a great two months with plenty of joy and laughter. We are blessed to see things start to shape up and we are excited to see what God has in store. Please keep this ministry in your prayers and God bless!