The parents from the other team must have thought we were nuts, while our NH Grizzlies 14U parents gave each other high-fives, yelling “dominos” as our boys defeated the Stratford, Conn. Braves in a playoff game Saturday night, June 21, 2008, sending them into a semi-final game Sunday in the 4th Annual Grant E. Stanis D1 Territory Championships baseball tournament in North Branford, Conn.

Yes, we were getting hungry, but it wasn’t for pizza!

For me, it all started last year. A few parents invited me to join them in the lobby of our hotel for a game, and soon after I was hooked, and can’t seem to shake the habit. I’m now a “Dominos man!”

We did order pizza from a local place late Saturday night, as we broke out the wine and Bloody Marys. Our son’s sat on one side of the hotel’s dining room playing cards and texting their friends back home, while the adults played Dominos.

The first time I played, we were at a baseball tournament on Long Island. I was a newbie and had to be coached. I’m still getting razzed for winning so many games that night. This weekend Jeff Hurley was the new man on the block.

My stroke of luck ended Saturday night, but not for the 14U Grizzlies team, who knocked out the Long Island Bulldogs Sunday afternoon, sending them into the championship game against the Norwalk, Conn. Babe Ruth baseball club.

The championship game was nothing less than fantastic. Norwalk took the lead first, but was silenced by my son, Brandon’s first AAU homerun off the side of the bluff outside the center field fence, giving the Grizzlies three runs and the lead. It was a shot!

But it wasn’t long until Norwalk answered with their own homer, and put a stamp on the game with a second. Playing on the bigger high school and college fields, this was the first game in two years of AAU ball that our Grizzlies, or the opponent has hit one out of the park. There have been in-the-park homeruns, but the fences have been long on most fields.

There wasn’t a comeback to this one, and the 14U NH Grizzlies took home a proud second place plaque for their efforts. The Grizzlies should hold their heads up high after this weekend. There was much improvement seen on the field, and they never gave up. Most of us lost our voices after that game.

We’ll be heading to St. Louis in a couple weeks for a week-long baseball tournament. Hopefully the boys will be on their game, and I will get my luck back with the Dominos.

-Bob Hammerstrom

Tags: dominos, Parents