Zack Funkhouser of the Senior Cardinals pitched the first no-hitter for the Fall 2009 season on Saturday, Oct. 31 at Fletcher C Field.

Zack retired the first 10 Mets batters before walking a batter, then an error put two on with one out. A line drive to center was caught and turned into a double play to complete the 10-0 win. The game was called after 4 innings because of the 10-run rule.

Zack struck out 7 and walked one. He also won two games in one day by pitching the first three innings of the second game as the Cardinals won 7-1.

The 10U girls softball team placed second in the Regionial tournament making them one of the best teams in the Southeastern United States. Congratulations to the girls, their parents and the coaches for an outstanding job. Everyone here at ABAA is proud of you.

10U Girls keep going and going and going

The 10U girls softball team is STILL playing ball. They are 4-1 in the Regional tournament with their only loss to the Oveido team that bested them in State. The two teams play today in the Regional final. Wish them luck. 

10U Girls Softball Rocks!!!! 

I am very proud to announce that our 10U softball all stars finished second in the State tournament and qualified to move on to the Regional Tournament in Virginia July 15-19! This is an incredible feat so please congratulate the players and coaches the next time you see them. Also, please be generous if possible in financially supporting the team as they must take more time off work and layout more expenses in their representation of our park. Please contact Brad Harris or Lisa Grupp with your donations.

All Stars 

The 10U girls softball team won their district championship and is headed to the State tournament in Ponte Vedra. The 8U rookies won their qualifier and are headed to the state tournament in Palm Beach. The 9A team finished second in their tournament but since Jax Beach won that tournament but has an automatic bid to State for winning last year, the second place team (us) goes to the State tournament as the defacto winner. The 10A team finished as runner up in their division. Congratulations on AB's success in the post season. Any financial support you can provide to the teams that are attending the State tournament is greatly appreciated as those teams must travel out of town to represent our park. Donations can go to the head coach or any Board member for distribution to the teams. 

The Atlantic Beach 9U team had a nice showing at the Fort Caroline Tournament finishing as the Runner-up, Coach Mike Bell reported. With wins over Arlington Little League, Fort Caroline, Northside and a 5-5 tie with Normandy, AB advanced to the Championship Game. AB jumped out early ahead of a very strong Jax Beach team before having a couple of tough innings that lead to the only loss.

In the San Jose Tournament AB had wins over MSA and the Julington Creek Tournament Champions, Orange Park. A loss to San Jose gave AB a 2-1 record and based on runs allowed AB finished as the number 5 seed out of 10 teams. Unfortunately, only the top 4 teams advanced.

The team is now preparing for the District Tournament at Jax Beach. First game is Jax Beach in the first round on June 25th at 6:30. With Jax Beach receiving an automatic bid to the State Tournament as last year’s State and Regional Champions, two teams from our district will advance to the State Tournament in Sanford.

The AB 10U Inferno won the 2009 Spring District 1 Rec-Ball Championship with a heart-stopping 3-2 victory on Sunday, May 17 over MSA 10U in Ponte Vedra, Coach Lisa Grupp reported.

Nicole Grupp ended up throwing all but 1 inning of the tournament. She pitched 14 innings, with 26 strikeouts, 5 walks, 2 no hitters, and 3rd game only gave up 1 hit.

"We were very proud to be able to represent Atlantic Beach and even prouder to have won the trophy for our great organization," Coach Grupp said.

The Inferno beat Lake Lucina 16-2 and Northside Athletic 7-0 on Saturday, with Nicole Grupp pitching the two no-hitters.

In other games, the 12u Rebels Black and the 16u Atlantic Beach team both lost their games Saturday. Rebels Black lost to The Creeks Bulldogs 13-5, while AB 16U lost to PV Thunder 9-6.

• See photo gallery from Championship Game
• See photo gallery from Game 2
• See photo gallery from Game 1

Several of the newly formed all star teams hosted games against Mandarin (MSA) Sunday and were able to bring home victories in the 10A, 9A and 12U match ups. The Mandarin faithful traveled to Jack Russell in strong numbers and were great guests. While the A field hosted all star competition, the B field hosted rookie all star tryouts. It was great to see the park filled to capacity all day long.

Rec ball competition also continues to be strong with the Atlantic Beach athletes providing quality play and close games that keep everyone on the edge of their seats. Our softball teams are representing well all over town and look like they will be tough to beat in tournament play. Thanks to all who support our park and as always, see you at the field.

All calendar orders received by 5/1 were placed this morning. Once received, those who ordered will be contacted for pick up and payment. 

Buy a Calendar to Support the League 

As a fundraiser, we will be selling calendars at the concession stand starting this week. Each player's photo was placed in the center of a 12 month, one page calendar that can be purchased with all proceeds going to ABAA. The calendars will be $6 each so please stop by and take a look and make a purchase. Those who would like to purchase additional calendars may do so by emailing your player's name and team to president@abbaseball.com no later than April 30, 2009 so we may place one order.

Bayley Colemer of the Major Cardinals pitched the first no-hitter of the Spring 2009 season on Monday, April 20 at Jack Russell Park, Coach Travis Wilkerson reported.

Bayley threw five strikeouts and walked just one batter as the Cardinals beat Ponte Vedra Red 10-0. Congratulations to Bayley for his pitching gem.

Found Sunday morning 3-1 while walking the dog.  I have a black Under Armour bag and contents. Tell me the type of bat or bats and type of glove in it and you are ready to play again.

Duncan Helmsworth
635-9663

A rare unassisted triple play play helped the Rookie Red Sox beat the Cubs on Tuesday, Feb. 24 at Jack Russell Park, coach Dick Kelley reported.

In the fifth inning with the bases loaded, Clay Bednarek caught a line drive for the first out and with players on base running he ran to first base for the second out and then to third to touch the base for the third out. This was the first unassisted triple play in a long time.

The Red Sox also received help from two inside-the-park home runs by Casey Hegan. The Red Sox won 9-4.

We are grateful to all who've registered to play at ABAA and wish that registration fees covered 100% of expenses but the simple fact is that they don't. Each season the League must raise thousands to cover the gap. We ask each coach to garner a minimum of $250 in sponsorship donations however, these folks are already donating their time and talents to teach our kids and shouldn't have to raise funds also. If you have a business and would like to reach the families of 400 kids for a small amount, a donation of $500 will land you a 4' x 6' sign on the outfied fence of one of our fields for two seasond. If you are an individual family that is capable of sponsoring a team, please consider letting your coach know that you will step in to help in that manner. Just print the sponsorship form off the link to the left and write a check to ABAA for whatever amount you wish. We are non profit organization so your donation is tax deductible. Thank you for all of your assistance in making ABAA the best place to be during a baseball season.

Hello everyone,

 My name is Bob Kraus and I have the privilege of serving as the President of ABAA for the next 2 years. I first want to thank John Moffitt and all those who helped him manage the league for the past 3 years. John has done a great job promoting the laid back family environment we all come to the park to enjoy and has increased the number of kids that come to ABAA to play ball. We have a first rate facility and it is a joy to see people come to the park just to hang out and watch baseball even if they don't have a game themselves that day.

I have coached 4 rookie teams, 3 minor teams and assisted on several all star teams over the past few years. The person in charge of baseball operations, Eric Prior, has coached teams from T-ball through majors including all star teams so I know he has things under control.  Brad Harris is now in charge of sofball operations and is a fixture at ABAA and will do an excellent job.

Each member of the Board and the management team is committed to making ABAA an incredible experience for your child. However, each time the league changes a management team, it comes at a loss of key volunteers who either will now spend their time at the senior field at Fletcher or graduate from ABAA altogether. It is crucial at this time we have new volunteers step in and join the team. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact me or anyone of the Board members so we may begin working together on behalf of the kids.

I am excited at the opportunities in front of us and already look forward to the season ahead.

 Bob 

The annual Max McCormick Fall Farewell on Friday, Nov 21 concluded the Fall 2008 season at Jack Russell Park.

Chris Sonnier of the Senior Giants won the home run derby with two homers. Several players hit one. Forty-three 12-year-olds were eligible for the Fall Farewell. Many other honors were handed out also.

Coaches, if you have not picked up your team medallions, they are available in the concession stand.

Zack Funkhouser pitched the first three innings and Zack Saraga pitched the last two. They allowed only three walks. This is seventh overall no-hitter by Senior League pitchers this season and the fourth combined no-hitter. Congratulations to Zack and Zack for the outstanding pitching performance.

Tommy Strapp struck out 17 batters and got the other out on a popup to pitcher as the Senior Red Sox shut out the Senior Yankees 7-0 in six innings. It was the fourth no-hitter Tommy has been involved in this season and the sixth overall no-hitter by AB pitchers.

Tommy walked two during the dominant performance. Tommy pitched a three-inning perfect game on Sept. 27 and combined with Aaron Pierce for two no-hitters -- on Sept. 20 and Oct. 11.

Zack Funkhouser of the Senior Cardinals threw the fourth no-hitter in the Senior League this season on Saturday, Oct. 4 at Fletcher C Field as the Cardinals beat the Senior Giants 8-1.

Zack pitched six innings, walked six, struck out nine and allowed one batter to reach on a error - a dropped fly ball, Coach Mark Blanchard reported. The lone run scored on an infield groundout following a walk.

Of the four no-hitters, two were combined efforts by two pitchers and the other was a three-inning gem. Congratulations to Zack on his no-hitter.

On Sept. 20, he pitched one inning of a five-inning combined no-hitter with Aaron Pierce.

Tommy retired all nine batters he faced, with five strikeouts as the Red Sox won 13-0 at Fletcher C field, Coach Neil Brennan reported. There were no walks and no errors. The game was called because of the 12-run rule after three innings.

Four Senior League pitchers combined to throw back-to-back no-hitters on Saturday at Fletcher C Field.

Christian Gray and Cy Wysocki combined to throw the first no-hitter as the Senior Giants beat Jax Beach Blues 9-0. Christian and Cy each pitched three innings, and had 10 strikeouts, with only 3 walks and no errors, Coach Frank Fenno reported.

In the next game, Aaron Pierce and Tommy Strapp combined on a five-inning no-hitter as the Senior Red Sox beat the Senior Yankees 2-0. Aaron pitched four innings while Tommy pitched the final inning. They struck out 4 and walked only 2 with one batter hit by a pitch and no errors, Coach Neil Brennan reported.

Congratulations to all four pitchers for the no-hitters.

Christian Gray and Cy Wysocki combined to throw a no-hitter as the Senior Giants beat Jax Beach Blues 9-0 Saturday. Gray and Wysocki each pitched three innings, Coach Frank Fenno reported.

They had 10 strikeouts and only three walks with no errors. Jonny Dufresne went 2-3 with 3 runs scored. Cy was 3-3 with 2 runs scored and Kyle Hendershott had 2 RBIs.

Congratulations to Christian and Cy.

Rollin Layton of the Major Cardinals pitched a complete game no-hitter on Thursday against the Ponte Vedra Red at Davis Park. The Cardinals won 6-2.

Coach Betty Layton reported some good defensive plays contributed to the no-hitter. Rollin struck out 12 batters during the game. Coach Travis Wilkerson said the first three batters reached on errors and then Rollin shut down PV the rest of the way.

Congratulations to Rollin for the first no-hitter this season.

The Girls Softball 10U All-Stars finished fifth at the state tournament over the July 4th weekend in Gainesville. They opened with a loss to Sante Fe, then won two games before losing to Oveido. Creeks, the team they split with while finishing second in the district tournament, won the state tournament.  Congratulations to the girls and coaches for an outstanding season!

The first Atlantic Beach 14U-15U All-Stars Invitational concluded Sunday at Fletcher. Fort Caroline won the 14U division, beating Fernandina Beach 8-3. Northside won the 15U division, beating Fort Caroline 4-2.

Both AB teams lost their first elimination games Saturday, with 14U losing a heartbreaker 4-3 to Fernandina Beach, while 15U lost 5-0 to Northside. Both AB teams finished a respectable 1-2 in the tournament.

Thanks to everyone who volunteered their time.

Both 14U and 15U teams will play their district tournaments this week.

Both Atlantic Beach teams finished a respectable 1-2 in the first AB 14U-15U All-Stars invitational, with each losing in their first elimination games on Saturday.

The 14U All-Stars lost to Fernandina 10-0 Thursday, beat Jax Beach 10-7 Saturday morning, then lost a tight one to Fernandina 4-3 Saturday afternoon.

The 15U All-Stars beat Ponte Vedra 11-4 Thursday, lost to Northside 8-6 Friday, then lost again to Northside 5-0 Saturday.

The first Atlantic Beach 14U-15U All-Stars Invitational will kick off Tuesday night at Fletcher C field. AB 14U All-Stars will play the Jax Beach 13U All-Stars at 6:00 Tuesday. Eight teams in two divisions will compete for the tournament championships.

In the 14U division, AB, JB, Fort Caroline and Fernandina Beach will compete. In the 15U division, AB, Ponte Vedra, Fort Caroline and Northside will participate. Come out and support the senior league all-star teams!

Games will be Tuesday-Sunday at Fletcher. The 15U teams will play on Thursday and Friday at Seabreeze Elementary.

• See full schedule

Colton Mathis

Colton Mathis slugged a dramatic 3-run walkoff homerun in the bottom of the sixth inning Tuesday night to give Jacksonville Beach an 11-9 victory over Ponte Vedra for the Babe Ruth District 5 12U-B championship at Jack Russell Park.

Ponte Vedra beat Jacksonville Beach 13-7 Monday night in a home run derby to capture the 12U-A Babe Ruth District 5 championship at Jack Russell Park.

• 12U-A bracket (Final, updated with 6/16 game)
• 12U-B bracket (Final, updated with 6/17 game)

ABAA Minors 10U All-Stars went 1-2 in the Cal Ripken District 5 tournament. Here are the results: 

• 6/12 Loss vs. Jax Beach, 12-1
• 6/13 Win vs. Fernandina Beach, 17-2
• 6/14 Loss vs. Jax Beach, 14-11

Earlier, in the Julington Creek tournament the 10U All-Stars lost in their first elimination game on Saturday, 6/7, to Julington Creek 6-4. Previously, they lost to Jax Beach 18-1 and Ponte Vedra 9-4, but turned in an outstanding performance in beating MSA 9-0.

In the MSA win, Andrew Long threw a 6 inning shutout on less than 70 pitches. No runner reached third base. The one guy that tried was thrown out stealing. 10U made every single defensive play that came to us. All 9 runs were earned with nothing more than a single.

The Phillies scored the winning run Saturday in the bottom of the fifth inning to win the deciding game 3-2 against the Angels in the Majors Championship series. The Angels put the potential tying run on third in the top of the sixth, but he was thrown out trying to score on a wild pitch. The Phillies won the series 2 games to 1. Congratulations to the Phillies.

(See Game 3 photo gallery.)

A revised Picture Day schedule for Saturday, March 8, is now posted on our site. Coaches, please make ...

Friday, February 29
Team Concession schedule posted

Each team that plays at Jack Russell Park is required to provide support for the concession stand this season. ...

Monday, February 25
Questions about site access?

Most areas of this site are accessible to everyone. The only two areas where a login/password are required ...

Sunday, February 17
T-Ball Jamboree kicks off season

Kids practiced skills at T-Ball Jamboree
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The T-Ball Jamboree on Saturday, Feb. 16, kicked off the Spring 2008 season for the Atlantic Beach Athletic Association at Jack Russell Park. Check out the images as the youngsters learned baseball skills. Thanks to Ken Ibold for photos.

Beginning this season, Babe Ruth/Cal Ripken Leagues are requiring all rostered coaches to be certified. See ...

Tuesday, January 15
Registration forms can be downloaded

The registration forms for Spring 2008 are now available for download if you can't complete the online registration process. ...

Tuesday, November 20
Jaxson Deville visits Fall Farewell

Jaxson Deville honors players at Fall Farewell.
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See lots of photos of ABAA players meeting Jaxson Deville at the 2007 Fall Farewell. Click here for photo galleries and a video from the ceremonies.

Saturday, November 17
Spring 2008 schedule released

Here is ...

Thursday, August 9
14U girls softball team wins 2 at state

The ABAA 14U softball team headed to state July 7-8 with the best draw possible starting with a ...

Monday, June 25
14U girls win district championship
The ABAA 14U girls softball team won the district championship this past weekend. AB had to beat Ponte Vedra twice ...

Monday, June 25
Seniors place second in PV tourney
The Atlantic Beach 14U Senior All-Stars finished second in the Ponte Vedra Invitational.

AB beat Ponte Vedra (15-5) on Friday and Jacksonville Beach (20-6) on Saturday to advance to Sunday's championship game with a 2-1 record. They lost Saturday to Mandarin (MSA) 11-0. Mandarin again proved to be a tough team by winning the championship 12-1.

Special congratulations to Taylor Baker who hit two long over-the-fence homeruns during the Jacksonville Beach game.

Sunday, June 17
Ponte Vedra wins 12U district tournament
An impressive Ponte Vedra team shut out Fernandina Beach 13-0 to claim the championship of the Babe Ruth 12U District ...

Thursday, June 14
AB finishes second in rookie tournament
The Atlantic Beach Rookie All-Stars made it to the Championship Game against Ortega, but lost 8-1 in the Atlantic ...

Tuesday, May 22
All-star teams selected
The 2007 ABAA all-star baseball teams have been selected by the coaches at each level. Here are the all-star t...

Saturday, May 19
Rookies: Bees snag title
The 2nd-seeded Bees won the 2007 ABAA rookies championship on Friday night with a 13-2 victory over the 6th-seeded ...

Friday, May 18
Minors: Mets are champs
The Mets beat the Owlz 4-3 in an exciting game Thursday night to win the 2007 ABAA Minors championship.

The ...

Wednesday, May 16
Seniors: Mets are champions
The Mets won the 2007 ABAA Senior League title by virtue of the best regular season record. The Mets, coached by ...

Wednesday, May 16
Majors: Dodgers win championship
The Dodgers won the second game in the Majors championship series Wednesday night to capture the 2007 ABAA Majors ...

Fall schedule announced

The ABAA board has released the fall schedule. Please make note of these important dates for the 2007 fall ...