Opening night, ninth season
The parking lot behind Kneble’s Auto was already filling up by 6:45. Lawn chairs lined the edges of six courts, buckets of beer tucked underneath, and by 7 PM you could hear bags hitting boards from across the lot.
Week 1 of the Spring 2026 Mays Landing Cornhole League brought 21 of 23 registered teams out on a perfect late-March Thursday — clear skies, warm air, and the kind of night you sign up for when you register in January.
This is the league’s ninth season, and it might have the best collection of team names yet. Splash Bros., Department of Bagriculture, Natural Corn Killers, Mother Shuckers, Nuthin Butt Holes, We thought the sign said Corndogs, Back to Black, Corny Bastards, and The Tossin’ Turtles all showed up for their first night.
A few of the new team names have familiar faces behind them — Ginger ash tornado brings back Paul Ruppert under a new banner, and Baggin Dragons is a family story we’ll get to later.
They all joined returning squads like Born Fish, DEEZ NUTS, BagStreet Boys, These Effin’ Guys, and Your Hole is My Goal. The skill levels ranged from tournament-tested to “we just signed up last week and haven’t thrown a bag since the Fourth of July,” and that mix is exactly what makes this league what it is.
Who we missed
Hole Patrol and Shuck Your Cornhole couldn’t make it to opening night. Both pick up 0-4 records for the week — that’s how the league handles absences. We hope to see them next Thursday.
Top 3 Teams of the Week
1. Born Fish (4-0, 84 points, +74 differential) — The most dominant night of anyone in the field. Chas and Mary Vitale held opponents to 10 total points across four games. Their closest game was 21-5. Nobody touched them.
2. Splash Bros. (4-0, 84 points, +69 differential) — Charles and Dutty are brand new to the league and immediately dangerous. Won all four without any of them being competitive. Their tightest margin was 14 points. These two can throw.
3. DEEZ NUTS (4-0, 84 points, +60 differential) — Raymond and Brandon showed up in matching outfits and backed it up on the boards. Cruised through three rounds before the game of the night against Fairways in Round 4.
Week 1 match summaries
Of 42 games on opening night, 29 ended with margins of 15 points or more — that’s 69%. Nine shutouts. Only six games all night finished within five points.
The experience gap between returning teams and newcomers was obvious on the scoreboard, but that’s opening night with a lot of first-timers still learning the boards. It’s a long season. Here’s how it played out.
Born Fish saved the best for last. After three dominant wins, Chas and Mary closed the night by beating Spring 2025 co-champion Your Hole is My Goal 21-3.
Your Hole is My Goal had opened with three consecutive shutouts before running into Born Fish in Round 4 — still went 3-1 and sit comfortably in the top half.
Splash Bros. rolled through all four rounds without breaking a sweat. Their closest game was 21-7 against Air Mail in the final round. Air Mail started the night 2-0 with Ryan and Herold picking up wins over Barnyard Baggers (21-3) and Back to Black (21-0) before dropping their last two to These Effin’ Guys and Splash Bros.
DEEZ NUTS had the game of the night — a 21-19 finish against Fairways in Round 4. It was the tightest game on any court all night. Fairways split the night 2-2, with Ray and Gary blanking Corndoggs and Back to Black along the way, but that fourth-round loss to DEEZ NUTS was the kind of game that makes you realize you belong at this level.
These Effin’ Guys opened the season by knocking off BagStreet Boys 21-12 in Round 1, then shut out We thought the sign said Corndogs in Round 2. Bill held it down without Mike this week and still went 4-0. BagStreet Boys didn’t stay down long — Anthony rattled off three straight wins after that opener, capped by a 21-0 blanking of Corny Bastards.
Lucky Sacks lost their opener to Ginger ash tornado 22-17 — one of the few early upsets of the night — then Justin won three straight, finishing with a 21-0 shutout of Department of Bagriculture. Ginger ash tornado also beat Corny Bastards 24-19 in a back-and-forth Round 2 before Rachel and Paul dropped their last two games.
Department of Bagriculture opened their league career with a 23-4 win over The Tossin’ Turtles and finished 2-2. Back to Black grabbed a 21-18 win over We thought the sign said Corndogs — one of only six close games all night — and beat Nuthin Butt Holes to split the night.
Three teams saved their nights in Round 4. Barnyard Baggers picked up a 21-2 win over Ginger ash tornado after three straight losses. Natural Corn Killers — Professor T found a 21-17 finish over Ginger ash tornado for the lone W. And Corndoggs beat Mother Shuckers 21-16 so opening night didn’t end empty-handed for Caitlyn.
For the new teams
A lot of first-time teams walked away Thursday feeling like they got smoked. A lot of them told us exactly that between rounds.
Here’s the thing — this league has people who play all the time and people who play occasionally with family and a few too many cocktails from Aunt Linda.
Both are why this league works. The scores were lopsided on opening night, but it’s a ten-week season. Do not get discouraged. It gets better.
If you don’t have your own bags, pick up a set online or check out Landi Pools and Games — a prior sponsor of ours and a good local spot for gear.
Bring a lawn chair.
Bring snacks for between rounds.
Get comfortable out here.
This is a parking lot league on a Thursday night. The goal is to get better and have a good time doing it.
Baggin Dragons
One team worth knowing about. Baggin Dragons went 3-1 in their debut — Jess Silipigni and her sister Kristen, playing together for the first time. If those names are familiar, they should be. Kristen played with her mom Rhonda on Baggin Blondes.
Jess played with her husband Ryan on Fairview Chiropractic. Rhonda passed away last October, and we miss her out here every Thursday. Ryan is off being super-dad this season.
So here are two sisters, out on the boards together, carrying it forward, and they went 3-1 on night one. That’s a good start.
Freddy J’s specials
Dollar wings and two-dollar Yuenglings every Thursday at Freddy J’s Bar and Kitchen. Buckets of High Noon and beer buckets are on the menu, too.
Games usually wrap up around 9, and Freddy J’s late-night happy hour kicks in right after — so if you’re not ready to go home, come inside, grab a seat at the bar, and talk about the standings.
Half the league ends up in there after games anyway.
Sponsors
Thanks to Freddy J’s Bar and Kitchen and Kneble’s Auto Service Center for their support this season.
T-shirts
League t-shirts from NJ Printwear go out next week at Week 2. If you registered and haven’t gotten yours, come find Grant.
Week 1 standings
| Rank | Team | W-L | Points | Diff | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Born Fish | 4-0 | 84 | +74 | — |
| 2 | Splash Bros. | 4-0 | 84 | +69 | — |
| 3 | DEEZ NUTS | 4-0 | 84 | +60 | — |
| 4 | These Effin’ Guys | 4-0 | 84 | +59 | — |
| 5 | Lucky Sacks | 3-1 | 80 | +47 | — |
| 6 | BagStreet Boys | 3-1 | 75 | +49 | — |
| 7 | Your Hole is My Goal | 3-1 | 66 | +41 | — |
| 8 | Baggin Dragons | 3-1 | 64 | +29 | — |
| 9 | Fairways | 2-2 | 65 | +23 | — |
| 10 | Ginger ash tornado | 2-2 | 65 | -13 | — |
| 11 | Air Mail | 2-2 | 55 | +10 | — |
| 12 | Department of Bagriculture | 2-2 | 47 | -1 | — |
| 13 | Back to Black | 2-2 | 42 | -33 | — |
| 14 | Corny Bastards | 1-3 | 46 | -30 | — |
| 15 | Natural Corn Killers | 1-3 | 34 | -46 | — |
| 16 | Barnyard Baggers | 1-3 | 31 | -34 | — |
| 17 | Corndoggs | 1-3 | 22 | -57 | — |
| 18 | Nuthin Butt Holes | 0-4 | 30 | -56 | — |
| 19 | Mother Shuckers | 0-4 | 25 | -59 | — |
| 20 | We thought the sign said Corndogs | 0-4 | 22 | -62 | — |
| 21 | The Tossin’ Turtles | 0-4 | 16 | -70 | — |
| 22 | Hole Patrol | 0-4 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 23 | Shuck Your Cornhole | 0-4 | 0 | 0 | — |
Week 1 photos
Looking ahead
Week 2 is Thursday, April 2 at 7 PM. T-shirts go out. Bring a lawn chair if you don’t have one yet. For those who can’t make it, have a great Holy Thursday. Nine weeks of regular season remain before the championship on May 28.