Joe Law was annoyed with the umpire's strike zone.

His son, Derek, kept logging strikeout after strikeout against South Fay-ette -- he finished with 17 in Seton-La-Salle's 4-3 win -- but Joe wanted to let the umpire know he didn't appreciate the questionable ball calls.

After one particular comment, the umpire whipped toward the Rebels' bench and threatened to eject Joe, the team's first base and pitching coach, if he kept arguing the calls.

The threat was enough to keep the father quiet. But the threat of ejection only silenced him momentarily -- in the games since that day, Joe has continued to lobby on his son's behalf.

The Law family's situation is not unique this season. The Rebels have three father-son, coach-player duos: Shawn and Ty Trainor, Chris and Christopher Weigold, and the Laws.

All three players have helped spark the Rebels to a 16-0 overall record and the Section 6AA section title this year.

All three coaches have helped the players stay focused along the way.

The father-son dynamic works differently between each of the pairs. At times, the pairs embrace the familial relationship; other times they dread the car rides home.

"It's nice when they're doing good," head coach Shawn Trainor said. "But it's tough when they're doing bad. You make a comment, and he doesn't want to hear it."

Trainor considers his role as head coach and father both a blessing and a curse.

"I kind of enjoy it but I don't enjoy it because I'm hard on him," he said. "I'm not exactly a poster child for father-son coaching."

"I know that when he yells, he means well," Ty, an infielder, added after his father's comments.

Trainor said his son's performance this season -- a .406 batting average and 11 RBIs -- has eased his worries about potential claims of favoritism on his part.

"It took some pressure off me," he said. "There's some pressure on you (as a coach), especially when your son is a sophomore."

Christopher Weigold's legitimacy as a starter was never in question this season.

The senior catcher has a .440 batting average with two home runs and 14 RBIs. He was recently selected to the WPIAL Class AA all-star team.

His father never played baseball. He learned the game from reading books and working with experienced coaches like Law and Trainor.

The Weigold family dynamic works differently than that of the Trainor and Law families.

"Chris and his son are the same," Trainor said. "Joe and Derek have words. We have words."

"I try to stay mellow, stay calm; tell him what he's doing right and what he's doing wrong," said the elder Weigold.

Weigold has worked with his son at every age level. The two have a batting cage in their backyard where the father tosses 300 to 400 balls to the son every night during the season.

When Christopher leaves to play at either Lock Haven or Ohio Valley next season, everything changes.

"It'll be a big step when I'm not coaching him, just coming to games and watching him," said his dad.

"All this time I've been coaching him, and now it's time to do it, to do what you learned."

Somewhere in between the demeanors of the Weigolds and Trainors are the Laws.

Derek Law, a junior pitcher, has dominated the competition this spring. He is 5-0 with a 0.60 ERA and 68 strikeouts in 35 innings.

At the plate, he owns a .395 batting average and a team-leading 21 RBIs.

"It's a dream come true," Law said of his son's performance this season. "It's fun to watch him doing what he's doing with a front row seat because he's doing it so well."

As much as Law enjoys watching his son play, he can't resist providing his two cents when he sees some room for improvement.

"Wrong pitches -- we argue when I throw the wrong pitch," Derek said.

Law said Derek's biggest weakness is his demeanor.

"He needs to work on his ups and downs," he said.

"It's only with you," Derek fired back, shaking his head as he stared at the ground.

Law, a former pitcher in the Oakland A's farm system, hopes to help his son attract college attention.

He has even required Derek to follow his former pre-game day eating regimen -- carbo-loading with pasta.

"I try to take my routine and give it to him for when he leaves, hopefully at some college somewhere," he said.

Asked what it's like to play and coach on a team with two other father-son duos, the Laws both shrugged.

"It doesn't really seem like it happens..." the father started.

"Until something goes wrong," the two finished in unison.