PEABODY — There were a lot of positives during Peabody’s U-12 Williamsport Little League Tournament. Despite being eliminated this past Friday, there were plenty of individual performances and highlights on top of great team sportsmanship across Peabody’s team.
“We started off against Swampscott, who had a powerhouse of a pitcher. It was a close game going into the last inning where we were only down by three runs,” Peabody coach Rob Ordway said. “The second game (against Pine Hill), our bats came alive and we put up 15 runs on the board. The kids were happy and that’s really the important thing.”
“In our third game we ended up losing a really close game against Saugus 8-6,” Ordway said. “It was back-and-forth. There were great defensive plays in that game but Saugus came out on top.”
Ordway has been coaching this group of kids since they were 8 years old.
“We played in the Swampscott 8-year-old tournament together. I coached them from 10, 11, and now 12 years old and they’re a great group of kids,” Ordway said. “Our 9-year-old season got cut off short due to COVID-19.”
One of the things Ordway likes about the team’s members is the togetherness and friendship they share.
“They are a really great group of friends. They’re with each other all the time,” Ordway said. “We have a lot of flag-football and soccer players on the team too. They’re not just strictly ball players, we have a great group of athletes.”
On top of the friendship, Ordway said there were some memorable moments throughout the tournament. From pitching to defense to timely hitting, Peabody flashed its potential over the three games.
“Luke Murphy pitched in relief in all three games and he was pretty much lights out,” Ordway said. “Watching Luke pitch and shut kids down was awesome to see.”
On defense, it was Kathryn “Kat” Ordway who was the team’s catcher and showed off her arm by picking off two baserunners in a key part of the game.
“She picked two kids off in the last inning to give us a chance to head into the bottom of the inning for a chance to win,” Ordway said. “Kat picked off the first kid going to third and the second kid she threw out at first. That was huge.”
The next memory that Ordway said will last with him came from the bat of Eli Reinoso.
“Reinoso had two giant doubles in the last game that really propelled us and got the team amped up,” Ordway said.
Other than on-field success, Ordway said he tries to instill team spirit and sportsmanship.
“After the tough loss against Swampscott, no one hung their head. They gave everyone on Swampscott a high-five and told them good luck. After practice, they help rake the fields because they know the field is where they play and it needs to be kept up nicely,” Ordway said.
Even after two hours of practice, Ordway said the kids don’t want to leave and want to continue to play.
“Everyone was always excited to be on the field,” Ordway said. “Fun is the number one reason we play baseball.”
