Softball Today • June 2014
By Dave Utnik
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The bats are made with the world’s best fastpitch players in mind. But any player will benefit from swinging a DeMarini CF7. They are that good. “At DeMarini, we make our bats with the elite players in mind. That’s who we use for rigorous play testing and for constant feedback to ensure we’re meeting their needs better than the competition,” said Wilson Sporting Goods Promotional Director for Softball Sara Lawhead. “The CF7 is the latest in a line of products that we feel out-performs the competition from a performance standpoint." “We’ve pushed our engineers to create a line that consistently performs at the edge of allowable performance standards.” And that is where the Paradox Composite barrel comes into play. Introduced as a new feature on 2014 models, the enhanced barrel creates a larger, more responsive sweet spot that has already become a huge hit with National Pro Fastpitch and many of the nation’s top college teams. “We’re proud to put it in any player’s hands,” Lawhead said. “We’ve made stronger composite that is shaped to perform softer.” Hence the name: Paradox. “It’s exceptional in that it makes for a bigger, hotter, more responsive sweet spot than models in the past which helps players have
consistently more powerful swings,” Lawhead said. Several Women’s College World Series teams had DeMarini in the dugout this spring. NPF Pros and Team USA members such as Natasha Watley, Caitlin Lowe, Amanda Chidester and Lauren Gibson also swing the CF7. “We pride ourselves on our relationships with college and pro players,” Lawhead said. “The elite of the elite can’t be fooled and they know what they want.” The CF7 line also features the breakthrough DFusion technology, which reduces vibration and redirects energy back to the barrel. “D-Fusion is an innovation we’re extremely proud of,” Lawhead said. “It allows us to deliver all the benefits of a stiff handle, while simultaneously eliminating the negative effects of stiffness.” Meaning more power and less sting. “This give players the benefits of added pop, but it allows them the confidence to swing away without fear of sting, leading to faster, more confident swings,” Lawhead said. Sluggers will have confidence, too, with the CF7 Insane, an end-loaded bat line developed specifically to generate a home run swing. “It’s typically preferred by power hitters because they have the bat speed to get around on the ball,” Lawhead said. “The slight end load gives it a little more weight behind the barrel when making contact with the ball. “Power is created not only with bat speed, but also mass. When we’re working with the players,
often times we will suggest they try this bat if they have used a -10 for more than a year. If they have no problem getting around on the ball, it’s a great transition bat before moving to a -9.” There is a CF7 for younger players as well: The lightweight -11. “The CF7 -11 was developed because we pride ourselves on knowing the player and her needs better than anyone else,” Lawhead said. “We continued to see elite players developing at younger and younger ages. “We felt that the performance bats on the market weren’t meeting the younger players’ needs as well as they should.” The -11 delivers pop and performance but with a weight drop and balance suited for young players who are just beginning to reach their potential. “It’s a bat we’re very proud of,” Lawhead said. And the player response has been overwhelming. “The CF7 line is by far the most buzzed about launch ever,” Lawhead said. “Players are thrilled not only with the hot look, but the addition of the DFusion handle across the entire line. Prior to the creation of the D-Fusion handle players were forced to choose between bats that gave them good feel on the hands or a barrel that was as powerful and responsive as possible.” Now, they have both, in one DeMarini bat -limited vibrations and a barrel with an explosive sweet spot. “It’s innovation that is helping players redefine what to expect from a bat,” Lawhead said.
Softball Today • June 2014
Sizes: 28' inch/17 oz., 29' inch/18 oz., 30' inch/19 oz., 31' inch/20 oz., 32' inch/21 oz., 33' inch/22 oz.
2015 CF7 (-11)
Sizes: 31' inch/21 oz., 32' inch/22 oz., 33' inch/23 oz.
2015 CF7 (-10) Hope
Sizes: 30' inch/20 oz., 31' inch/21 oz., 32' inch/22 oz., 33' inch/23 oz., 34' inch/24 oz.
2015 CF7 (-10) (Balanced)
Sizes: 31' inch/21 oz., 32' inch/22 oz., 33' inch/23 oz., 34' inch/24 oz.
2015 CF7 (-10) INSANE (End Load)
Sizes: 32' inch/24 oz., 33' inch/24 oz., 34' inch/25 oz.
2015 CF 7 (-9)
Sizes: 33' inch/25 oz., 33.5' inch/25.5 oz., 34' inch/26 oz.
2015 CF7 (-8)
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Softball Today • June 2014
By Julia Whelan
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Lisa Fernandez is arguably the best pitcher in softball history. She won championships in high school in her freshman and senior years, the WCWS twice in college, played for the US National Team, and won three Olympic gold medals. She also won the Honda-Broderick Award her first three years in college, and won the Honda Cup her senior year. Starting during her college career, she lead Team USA to multiple championships. Fernandez was born on February 22, 1971, in Lakewood, California to Antonio and Emilia Fernandez. Because her parents both played slow-pitch, Lisa was exposed to the sport at an early age. “I was born into the game,” says
Fernandez. “I mean, my parents played slowpitch, so I would go to the park and, to me, it’s playing. I didn’t necessarily think it was playing a certain sport. It was just an opportunity to play. I loved to hit things, I loved to throw the ball up against the wall and catch and stuff like that, so it was just natural.” While most people, especially Lisa’s parents, encouraged her, some did not. However, Lisa’s persistent attitude pushed past their negativity. “I once was told my arms were too short and I’d never pitch, so being able to overcome limits that people put on you and realize that, through work and dedication, you can achieve what people may think you can’t,” Lisa says. “People used to say I was too slow, so I worked on my base running so I could be a great base runner. I worked on my instincts; I tried to see the
game, anticipate. ‘Oh, that ball could get away, so if it does, I’m going.’ So I could react. I’d be on the bases, and I’m like, “Oh, that ball’s coming in, and she’s going to drop it.” And the minute it bounced away, I’d go, because I had great instincts ‘cause I wanted to make up for my lack of speed. I always loved to prove people wrong. If someone said I couldn’t do it, you better believe I was going to.” Lisa played slow-pitch when she was seven until the coach for a fastpitch eight-and-under team called the Dirty Dozen asked her to play for them. They desperately needed a pitcher, and Lisa, who had never pitched before, quickly volunteered. Her first game went horribly wrong. She walked every batter, losing 20-0. Her parents encouraged her to practice and not give up, and Lisa started walking fewer batters each game. The next time they played that team, they lost 1-0.
.510. Lisa made First-Team All-American in each of her four years at UCLA. In her first three years at UCLA, she won the Honda-Broderick Award, which is given to the best athlete in each collegiate sport. In her senior year, she won the Honda Cup, which is given to the best female athlete. The only other softball Honda Cup winners are Natasha Watley (UCLA, 2003) and Keilani Ricketts (Oklahoma, 2013). Lisa excelled academically as well. “I was pretty good with my priorities. People thought I didn’t deserve to get into UCLA, they thought I would flunk out, so, of course, I’m going to show them, so I ended up being on honor-roll. I ended up being a great student and got a top-six award for postgraduate ‘cause of how solid I was academically. I was on the All-Academic Team. So I made it a priority. It’s time management. There’s an opportunity to do everything, you just can’t do it all at once, so I had to pick and choose,” says Lisa. So, due to her love of proving people wrong, Lisa made school a priority and graduated from UCLA with a degree in psychology. Lisa lead Team USA to many championships during and after college. Most players would be satisfied with such accomplishments, but Lisa wasn’t. “I tend to remember the losses more than I remember the wins, because those hurt more. That’s kind of my mentality. I like to improve on my game.” Then, in 1996, softball made its debut in the Olympics. Lisa made the team and took the mound in Atlanta, Georgia. She batted .348 and had an ERA of 0.33, along with 31 strikeouts. However, not all of her memories from this Olympics are good. In a game against the Australian National team, Lisa threw nine scoreless innings. Then in the tenth inning, Australian Joanne Brown rocketed a failed rise ball out of the park. This two-run home run (a runner was on second base due to the international tiebreaker rule) happened to be the only ball that left the infield. This game was the only time the U. S. team lost in that Olympics, with the final score being 2-1. It also ended Lisa’s perfect game. She had hoped to be the first softball pitcher to throw a perfect game in the Olympics–a feat that still has yet to be accomplished. (USA did win gold in that Olympics, though). In the 2000 ‘Central Park to Sydney tour,’ Lisa threw five consecutive perfect games, in one of which she struck out all 21 batters. At the 2000 Games, she threw 52 strikeouts with an ERA of 0.47. In the Athens Olympics, she batted .545, a record batting average in the Olympics. Lisa is one of four softball players in the world to have won three Olympic gold medals (the others are Laura Berg, Leah O’Brien Amico, and Lori Harrigan). In 2002, Lisa married Michael Lujan, a special education teacher, and they have two sons, Antonio (8) and Cruz (1).
Although she retired from softball several years ago, Lisa continues to participate in the game, no longer as a player, but as a coach. “I just have a passion for it,” Lisa said about softball. “I love it. I love looking at it. I love trying to teach kids how to play it. I love when the light goes off and they realize ‘Oh, that makes sense.’ That’s so rewarding, ‘cause you really feel like you’re making a difference for a kid.” “There’s a lot of life lessons that you learn through softball,” Lisa said. “You learn how to fail, how to succeed, you learn how to play as a team, you learn how to perform under pressure, you know how to hit timelines, you know how to think, you know how to prepare. These are all things that, in real life, are what you need. How to be a great teammate, how to build relationships, how to build aura, make things that are negative turn into a positive.” If you asked Lisa what she thinks the most important part of softball is, she wouldn’t say pitching or hitting. She would tell you that the mental part of softball has the most importance. “This day and age, everyone knows how to throw and catch. People now take hitting lessons, people now take fielding lessons, people now take pitching lessons. There’s tons of coaches that are more knowledgeable about the game, that are teaching the game. So what separates one from the other is really the mentality. When the going gets tough, who has the right mentality?...The pressure, those that can make good decisions and not let their emotions take over, that’s part of the mentality.” Lisa loves being a role model and teaching kids how to play softball better. She is now in her 16th season as an assistant coach at UCLA. “I love softball because it gives me the opportunity to play freely, to really challenge myself,” says Lisa. “It’s the one sport where it’s kinda you against them even though it’s a team sport. There’s a lot of individual aspects in it. And I love that. It gives me an opportunity to really test myself. And when you play the game, you have measurements." "You know, you can measure yourself; how fast you can react, you know how to react to a ground ball. When I’m playing third, it’s me against the batter; can she hit it by me? I love that. When I’m pitching, it’s me against the hitter; can I get her out? When I’m hitting, it’s me against them, can I beat them? To me, that’s what I love about this game. You know, in basketball, you don’t always get those one-on-one opportunities. You gotta hope your teammates make the right pick, you gotta hope your teammates run the play, where in softball, you get a little bit of that, but there’s a lot of individual challenges that you can do. And when you practice, you can measure yourself.”
Softball Today • June 2014
When Lisa was 11, she played on her first travel team, Gordon’s and after that year a team called the Gamblers. After leading both teams to championships, she switched to a 15-and-under team called the Pony Express. With the advice of her coach, Lisa signed up for pitching lessons. The pitching coach told her she would not be able to pitch because her arms were too short. Lisa was devastated. She played many position for the Pony Express, but she practiced pitching on her own. Eventually, the coach put her in to pitch, against the first-place team, the Panthers. They lost by one. After the game, Panthers coach Larry Mays asked Lisa to join the team the following season. She agreed and the next year she lead the team to a championship. Lisa played basketball and softball at St. Joseph High School. She lead the softball team to the championship her freshman and senior years. Her performance in a 1st round game in the playoffs her freshman year (she struck out 48 batters in the 29 inning game, beating Gahr 1-0) and a no hitter in the Championship game named her Athlete of the Year in the Lakewood Hall of Fame that year—the highest honor a Lakewood high athlete could achieve. Lisa’s success both at St. Joseph, where she became the first student-athlete to have their jersey retired (#16), and on Gordon’s Panthers did not go unnoticed. Many colleges wanted her to play on their softball teams. She chose UCLA. “I felt it gave me the best of both worlds. It was the top program academically, and it was the top program athletically,” Lisa says. “And I wanted to make sure that I took my athleticism as far as I could. And, to me, an education is something I could get with the help of athletics, so I wanted to make sure I got the best one possible and still be able to compete at a highest level. I could have gone to other schools, but to have the two, I knew I wouldn’t be happy if I wasn’t challenged athletically, and to have an opportunity to know that I’d go to the World Series every year was amazing.” The Bruins went to the World Series every year Lisa played for them. They won in 1990 and 1992, and took second in 1991 and 1993. Lisa had a nearly perfect career, with a win-loss record of 93-7. She set career records offensively for bases on balls (65), and pitching in wins (93), and no-hitters (11). She also broke the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) record of winning percentage with a .930 average. In her senior year, Lisa led the nation with the lowest earned-run average, at 0.23. Lisa was just as intimidating at the plate as she was on the mound. She had a career batting average of .382. She set career records for singles (225), runs scored (142), and hits (287). She also led the nation in batting average her senior year, hitting
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Softball Today • June 2014
By Dave Utnik
8
OREGON Mother Nature didn’t stand a chance against the Oregon softball team. Just imagine how opposing pitchers fared as the Ducks demolished everyone in their path en route to capturing a regional championship. The top-ranked team in the country lived up to its advance billing as Oregon advanced to the Super Regional's by outscoring teams 24-2 in three games. With a 6-0 victory over Wisconsin in the finale, the Ducks secured their 52nd win. Karissa Hovinga and Cheridan Hawkins were stellar in the circle, but it was the offense that left a mile-wide path of destruction in its wake. "I feel like it's rare for everyone on the team to be doing something; usually there's a couple people who aren't into it," junior Janie Takeda said. "But everyone on our team is so involved, and I feel like that's really special." Takeda was especially involved, hitting her first home run of the season and batting .545 with five RBI to earn regional MVP honors. A long rain delay prior to the final game did nothing to stall the Ducks’ run to the championship. They batted .369 as a team, posted an 0.74 ERA and combined for a .986 fielding percentage.
LOUISIANA LAFAYETTE A fairy-tale season featured cleats rather than glass slippers for Louisiana Lafayette, but the Cajun softball team still found its happily-ever-after. Shelby Redfearn drove in seven runs, including a trio against Texas in a dominating 10-1 victory, as the Cajuns captured the 2014 NCAA Softball Lafayette Regional Championship and celebrated the program’s third consecutive trip to the Super Regional's. "It's 'Cinderella-like,' with the way that these kids believe and fight and the way this fan base believes in them. You just have to stop and enjoy it,” Cajuns coach Michael Lotief said. “We want these kids to soak this in, to realize what they have accomplished." Louisiana Lafayette has accomplished quite a bit on the softball diamond over the past several seasons. The victory over Texas in the finals was the Cajuns’ ninth straight in regional play and it clinched the first Super Regional home game in program history. "I love this team and the way they fight," Lotief said. "They have each other's backs” The Cajuns won all season with outstanding pitching like the performance that Christina Hamilton delivered against Texas -- a four-hit masterpiece that featured five strikeouts. They also benefited from clutch at-bats from every spot in the lineup. Redfearn collected three hits in the championship game, including a two-run homer. Lexie Elkins hit a pair of home
runs, while Kelsey Vincent blasted a three-run shot. “We came together as a group and started talking about how we don't have to be perfect,” Lotief said. “We just have to get out there and fight." KENTUCKY The Kentucky Wildcats put an extra-inning defeat behind them and focused on what was still possible. That, they believed, is the true mark of a champion. So, after getting held to just two hits in a disappointing 21 loss against DePaul senior Kirsten Verdun, Kentucky fought back to capture the 2014 NCAA Softball Lexington Regional championship by pounding the Blue Demons, 10-1. “I think our hitters decided to put the team on their backs and go out there and score runs,” Kentucky coach Rachel Lawson said. “I think the mindset of the team offensively was that we needed to get this done.” Sophomore Sylver Samuel hit an inside-the-park home run in the first inning to lead the Wildcats into a Super Regional showdown against UCLA. WASHINGTON Heather Tarr’s 400th career win coincided with another remarkable milestone with the Washington Huskies defeating Northwestern 9-0 to clinch their ninth regional softball championship in 10 seasons. Hooch Fagaly hit a grand slam in the finale and the Huskies advanced to the Super Regional's with three
BAYLOR The Baylor Bears were willing to play all day. All night, too, for that matter. They didn’t really care how long it took as long as they wound up winning the 2014 NCAA Softball Waco Regional championship. After losing to Tulsa on an 11th inning home run earlier in the day, Baylor came back to claim a 3-1 victory behind a spirited performance from senior pitcher Whitney Canion and earned its fifth berth into the Super Regional's. Canion threw 305 pitches in the two games -- spanning 17 ⅓ innings. She allowed two runs and struck out 19 overall. "I don't think I've ever seen a pitcher do what Whitney Canion did. I don't know how, but it was amazing. The team saw that and they rallied behind her. We got what we needed from her, but she gave more," said Baylor coach Glenn Moore. "I wanted her to go two or three more innings [in the second game]. I didn't want to start someone else and her get stiff. Whatever was left I wanted to use it. She just kept going like the Energizer bunny." Kaitlyn Thumann reached base for the 24th consecutive game and Sarah Smith drove in the game-winner with her first career regional tournament home run. OKLAHOMA This is the time of year when every at-bat truly counts. It’s the time of year that senior Destinee Martinez and her Oklahoma Sooner teammates love most of all. Martinez went 3 for 5 and drove in four runs, while junior Callie Parsons was 3 for 4 as the Sooners captured the 2014 NCAA Softball Norman Regional championship with an 11-6 win over Texas A&M. “With Destinee at the top, she’s doing a really good job of table setting. She always, since she’s been here, has been really, really effective in the postseason and Parsons is starting to become the same way,” Sooners coach Patty Gasso said. “Callie and Destinee had good seasons but not great and no one cares, they care about what they’re doing right now and it’s the only thing that matters.” Oklahoma clinched its fifth consecutive berth to the Super Regional's as juniors Lauren Chamberlain and Georgia Casey and senior Brittany Williams each hit home runs. ARIZONA The bats came around just in time for Arizona. After being shut down by LSU’s Baylee Corbello in a 5-1 loss, the Wildcats roared back to capture the 2014 NCAA Softball Tucson Regional championship with a 13-5 victory in the finale. Mo Mercado went 4 for 4, hit a two-run homer and drove in four runs in all as Arizona advanced to the Super Regional's. Leadoff batter and regional MVP Hallie Wilson went 3 for 3, scored three runs and drove in three to back winning pitcher Shelby Babcock.
Sahvanna Jaquish hit four home runs during the weekend regional for Arizona, while Courtney Rodriguez and Chelsea Suitos combined for nine hits and 10 runs overall. UCLA Bruin pitching dominated at the 2014 NCAA Softball Los Angeles Regional as UCLA used three shutout victories to clinch the championship. Junior Ally Carda and sophomore Paige McDuffee combined on a four-hitter and Jessica Hall drove in the game’s only run in a 1-0 victory over Notre Dame in the finale. Junior Stephany LaRosa set a school record by reaching base in 39 straight games when she singled in the first inning. GEORGIA Chelsea Wilkinson wasn’t necessarily thinking about making history. She just wanted her team to win the 2014 NCAA Softball Athens Regional championship. Throwing a no-hitter just happened to be the way she accomplished that feat. Wilkinson became the first Georgia pitcher to throw a complete-game no-hitter in postseason play and the Bulldogs advanced to Super Regional's with an 8-0 victory over N.C. State. It was Wilkinson's second no hitter of the season and third of her career. "I am so proud of our team for their relentless energy and their fight all day long," Georgia coach Lu Harris-Champer said. “It was just so much fun to look around and see everybody smiling and having a great time. It was just so fun to see everybody enjoy each other and embrace the opportunity to compete and to step up to the challenge. Wilkinson pitched five innings and walked just one batter and struck out four. Paige Wilson went 2-for-3 with an RBI and two stolen bases, and finished the weekend a combined 11-for-17 (.647) from the plate with six extra base hits. FLORIDA STATE Lacey Waldrop was nearly unhittable and that was all Florida State needed to capture a regional softball championship and advance to the NCAA Super Regional's. Waldrop set a single-season record for victories with her 36th in a 2-1 decision over South Florida in the regional finals. “I knew my defense had my back and I knew I just had to attack the zone,” Waldrop said. FLORIDA Lauren Haeger hit a two-run homer and Florida completed a dominating performance at the 2014 NCAA Softball Gainesville Regional's with a 7-0 victory over Central Florida. The Gators won three games by a combined 29-0 margin -- besting UCF, Florida A&M and Stetson. Haeger had three RBI and also earned her 10th victory with a five-strikeout performance in the circle. Kelsey Stewart was 2 for 5 with a double and run scored and Kirsti Merritt had two hits and two RBI, while. Briana Little and Justin McLean each scored twice.
MINNESOTA Freshman Sam Macken is officially a postseason hero. Her three-run homer in the sixth inning against Auburn turned a two-run deficit into an eventual 8-6 win as the Minnesota Gophers captured an NCAA Regional Softball championship to continue its best season ever.. Junior Tyler Walker collected her 200th career hit for Minnesota, which advanced to the Super Regional's for the first time in school history TENNESSEE Lexi Overstreet put the strikeouts out of her mind and focused on what had to be accomplished. The Tennessee sophomore hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning to give the Vols a 2-0 victory over Lipscomb in the regional finals. “I had to refocus and get a pitch,” said Overstreet. The strategy worked as Overstreet hit her second homer of the tournament and finished 3 for 7 with five RBI. NEBRASKA They didn’t get much sleep and they didn’t much care. The Nebraska Huskers were having too much fun playing softball. After losing to Kansas in the opener of the 2014 NCAA Softball Columbia Regional, Nebraska won four games in less than 24 hours to clinch a berth in the Super Regional's. The Huskers defeated Missouri 8-1 to cap the winning streak. "We didn't focus on four games, we focused on one game at a time because we didn't want to go home," Nebraska coach Rhonda Revelle said. "I think what really helped us is that we weren't even thinking about how many games it was - it really was one game at a time.” Hailey Decker hit four two-run homers on the final day of play. Sophomore Kiki Stokes added a three-run homer. ALABAMA The Crimson Tide can take pride in being the only team in the country to reach the NCAA Super Regional's every year since the format was introduced in 2005. Alabama advanced with a 3-0 victory over South Alabama in the 2014 Tuscaloosa Regional Championship. Jaclyn Traina struck out 11 batters and gave up two hits to earn the win. Haylie McCleney’s second-inning triple extended her hitting streak to 16-games, while Jadyn Spencer collected nine hits during the regional tournament, including two home runs.
Softball Today • June 2014
shutout victories. They outscored opposing teams 26-0 and won all three games in mercy rule fashion. “The team did an awesome job with picking each other up,” Tarr said. “Offensively, we’re doing a lot of good things. What I like about what we are doing is that we swing at a lot of good pitches.”
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By Todd Brantley
Softball Today • June 2014
OREGON DUCK'S Alexa Peterson will never forget her final game at Oregon’s Howe Field. The memories created there with a 6-2 victory over Minnesota in the 2014 NCAA Softball Eugene Super Regional will last her a lifetime. But the Ducks’ senior isn’t ready to call it a career just yet. There are a few more memories to make first. “It’s a dream come true to finish my last game here at Howe Field with a win. Not many seniors can say that," Peterson said. “I'm just honored to be part of this program and to be able to continue to play with these girls one more week and hopefully get a championship out of it." The top-ranked team in the country and the tournament’s top seed is seeking its first World Series championship. The Ducks swept their best-of-series series against Minnesota, winning the opener 10-2, and closed it out with a pair of complete-game performances from sophomore lefty Cheridan Hawkins in the pitcher’s circle. “I just decided that it was time to bear down and go after it," said Hawkins. The offense went after it too, led by Janie Takeda, who had a two-run triple in the finale and scored three runs. “One thing we didn't want to do was limp out of that game, just kind of hanging on," Oregon coach Mike White said. "We wanted to go out making a statement."
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KENTUCKY WILDCATS The odds weren’t in Kentucky’s favor. History wasn’t necessarily siding with the Wildcats softball team, either. A game one loss in a best-of-three Super Regional series is difficult enough to overcome on its own. Throw in UCLA as the opposing team and, well, comebacks just aren’t supposed to happen. Only Kentucky has defied odds all season. “I’ve always thought we are a really tough team, and it’s shown throughout our season that we don’t give up, we’re always fighting back,” Wildcats senior Lauren Cumbess said. The storied Bruins will vouch for that. Knowing that another loss would end what has amounted to the best season in the program’s history, the Wildcats kept on fighting -- and winning. Kelsey Nunley allowed four runs in a span of 14 innings during the final two games and sophomore infielder Nikki Sagermann went 4 for 6 at the 2014 NCAA Softball Los Angeles Super Regional as Kentucky won 7-3 and 7-1 to earn its first berth into the Women’s College World Series.
“Playing a three-game series and losing on a Friday night and bouncing back to win Saturday night and Sunday is a huge help to us,” Cumbess said. “We’ve grown tougher during the regular season for the postseason.” Nunley established a new school record with her 29th win of the season and also surpassed 200 strikeouts for the year with two dominating performances against a program that has captured 11 national championships. Her teammates provided 14 runs of support with junior catcher Griffin Joiner going 3 for 6 with two RBI. S e n i o r infielder Krystal Smith was 2 for 5 with two doubles and four RBI, while Cumbess and senior Ginny Carroll also collected two RBI. Senior outfielder Emily Jolly went 2 for 6 with a run scored and a RBI. “This is a special day for us,” UK head coach Rachel Lawson said. “We’re going into a place that we’ve never been before, I feel really excited. It’s a dream come true for all the girls on our team and our staff, we’ve worked incredibly hard. This particular senior class, this is our third Super Regional, so we’ve been close enough to taste it, but for it to actually be a reality is very special. For it to happen on such a storied softball field, where college softball was pretty much invented. It feels pretty good that we’re advancing to Oklahoma City.” OKLAHOMA SOONERS The rain finally went away but the hits kept on falling. Oklahoma weathered six hours of rain delays during the first two days of the 2014 NCAA Softball Norman Super Regional and they welcomed the return of blue skies by launching five home runs into the stratosphere. Lauren Chamberlain hit a pair of long balls and the Sooners clinched their ninth trip to the Women’s College World Series with an 8-2 victory over Tennessee. "We saw this team come together and give it all they had freely and with determination. I’m very proud of the effort," said Oklahoma coach Patty Gasso. The five home runs tied a Sooners’ postseason record and sophomore pitcher Kelsey Stevens backed them up with another amazing performance. She struck out five in a three-hit outing that allowed her to tie a school record with her 38th win. Erin Miller, Callie Parsons and Javen Henson went a combined 6 for 10 for Oklahoma. LOUISIANA LAFAYETTE RAGIN’ CAJUNS Christina Hamilton kept pitching as if she was in some kind of hurry to get to Oklahoma City. Louisiana Lafayette’s ace needed only 89 pitches to dominate Arizona in a 7-1 NCAA Softball Lafayette Super
Regional victory that assured the Ragin’ Cajuns of a return trip to the Women’s College World Series. Shelbi Redfearn hit a bases-loaded double to spark a three-run first inning and Hamilton took care of the rest - winning her fifth postseason game by allowing one run on five hits. "This is crazy, everything this team has done," Cajuns coach Michael Lotief said. "They did it because they are not afraid to dream or pay the price and sacrifice. When they struggled and things didn't go their way they worked hard. The ones that hit the home runs and pitch the strikeouts are no more important than those who didn't play. This is an amazing story and these kids have taken us on a fabulous ride." Lexie Elkins hit her 21st and 22nd home runs of the season -- both solo blasts -- and Haley Hayden came through with a run-scoring double for Louisiana Lafayette. FLORIDA STATE For Courtney Senas it was a day-dream come true. The Florida State senior hit a dramatic two-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning to give the Seminoles a 4-2 victory over Michigan in the 2014 NCAA Softball Tallahassee Super Regional. “It's pretty cool that it was the home run to get us to the World Series," Senas said. “I've always dreamed about that moment ever since I was in high school. I always just dreamed of me being a hero for once. It felt so good to finally do something good for the team and come up in a big way.” Hits don’t come any bigger than the one Senas hit as the Seminoles clinched a berth into the Women’s College World Series for the first time since 2004. “I knew it was going over," she said. “I was like, 'If it's going to be my last softball game, I just want to make sure I'm happy.' I knew the only thing I was going to remember was my last game. I just wanted to make sure I went out the right way." BAYLOR BEARS Every time Linsey Hays gets a hit these days she sets some sort of career record. And, occasionally, she’ll drop a game-winner in the mix too. Hays hit her team-leading 13th homer of the season -- a two-run blast over the right-field wall -- and the Baylor Bears rallied for a 6-3 victory over Georgia in the 2014 NCAA Softball Athens Super Regional. Hays raised her RBI total to 48 -- the sixth highest total in school history -- and finished with her 18th multi-hit game of the season as the Bears advanced to the Women’s College
World Series for the third time since 2007. Kaitlyn Thumann reached base for the 26th consecutive game, while Ari Hawkins had her third consecutive multi-hit game. “I’ll just start by saying how proud I am of these girls. All year long, they’ve competed, worked hard for this moment. I really think our schedule prepared us for playing in an environment against a team like Georgia and facing a pitcher that was exceptionally good,” said Baylor coach Glenn Moore. Baylor’s pitching has been pretty exceptional, too. Whitney Canion made another miraculous start -throwing 169 pitches to earn her 31st victory. ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE Jaclyn Traina didn’t want the outcome to come down to another walk off hit. This time, she took Alabama’s fate into her own hands and delivered a pitching performance worthy of a trip to the Women’s College World Series. It took over four hours for the Crimson Tide to defeat Nebraska in the opener of the best of three at the 2014 NCAA
FLORIDA GATORS The lightning came first. And, then, thunder followed. After waiting out nearly six hours of rain delays in the deciding third game of the 2014 NCAA Softball Gainesville Super Regional, Kirsti Merritt provided the boom with a three-run fifth-inning homer that clinched an 8-0 victory for the Florida Gators. The home run was the 11th of the season for Merritt as the Gator defeated Washington to advance to their sixth Women’s College World Series. “The way I swing, yeah I guess I was trying to end it, but not in my head,” the 5foot-4 Merritt said. “I always swing pretty big for being such a small person.” Florida put together plenty of big swings to earn a pair of mercy rule wins over Washington. The Huskies forced a third game with a 4-3 victory. In between raindrops and lightning strikes, Gators’ senior Hannah Rogers pitched a one-hitter. “I just had to stay focused,” she said. “It’s exciting that I get to end my career at the College World Series.” Merritt made sure of that with one swing. Her three-run shot was the second of the game for Florida, which built a fourth-inning lead behind a blast from Kelsey Stewart that came just seconds after lightning lit up the outfield sky. “I didn’t see (the lightning) but I heard the oohs and aahs,” Stewart said.
Softball Today • June 2014
Softball Tuscaloosa Super Regional on freshman Peyton Grantham’s 12th-inning home run. But with a World Series berth at stake, Traina finished off the Huskies in the finale, 2-1. “We made a decision at the beginning of the year that we were going to get where we wanted to be,” Traina said. “Before the game we had a lot of emotions. I talked to some of the seniors and we were in the locker room saying … we are going to leave it all out there. It’s a really special time for us.” The senior class has captured three Super Region titles. Traina made sure of that with a three-hit, complete-game performance. “We knew that it was going to be a battle and it definitely was,” Alabama coach Patrick Murphy said. “I’m so proud of Jaclyn Traina because she gutted out so many performances over the year.” Molly Fichtner and Marisa Runyon drove in first-inning runs for Alabama.
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By Dave Utnik
Softball Today • June 2014
The rotation had worked all season. Florida softball coach Tim Walton wasn’t going to deviate from the plan -- no matter how tempting it might have been. Needing one more victory to achieve a goal that has been years in the making, Walton didn’t throw his ace pitcher against Alabama in game two of the 2014 Women’s College World Series. He gave Hannah Rogers a few well-deserved innings off and relied instead on the other arms who made up perhaps the nation’s best pitching staff -- Lauren Haeger and freshman Delanie Gourley. "Hannah was just on fire, and to take her out of this game and to throw the other two, I know was gutsy and I know it was bold," Walton said. "But we've talked all year long -- we don't have a superstar on our team. We have a bunch of players who do their job.” Rogers was the Gators’ best pitcher throughout the postseason -- dominating Washington in the Super Regionals and Alabama in game one of the finals. But in a best-of-three championship series, Walton counted on depth to pull his team through. Plus, he knew that whenever he veered away from the plan it usually backfired. “Any time we’ve gone with Hannah after a Hannah Rogers ‘W’ and come back the next day, we’ve lost every time,” Walton said. “We went into this three-game series knowing that, and we had Lauren to pitch, win or lose. We stuck with it.”
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Haeger took the ball and gave the Gators three solid innings -- allowing two runs. Gourley shut out the Tide for two innings and Rogers finished off a 6-3 victory that gave Florida its first national championship. “You go into a big game like that and you obviously feel a little bit of pressure,” Haeger said. “But it was a three game series and that is how we’ve been doing it all year. Hannah has been pitching great and I told my team and I told Hannah I was going to go as long and as hard as I can. I knew I had two pitchers behind me that were going to shut everyone down.” Rogers was named the tournament’s most outstanding player, but Walton’s decision paid off for the Gators, who finished as national runners-up in 2009 and 2011. This is a surreal moment,” Walton said. “To be up here with Hannah and all the other kids that really just bought into it this year. We had a really good offseason. We just felt good about our team. “We set a goal. Most teams set goals of winning every series, or win the SEC, but this team actually set a goal to win a national championship. This team, we felt like we had the parts and the pieces to do it.” Alabama liked its chances, too. The Crimson Tide upset the tournament’s No. 1 seed, Oregon, to reach the Women’s College World Series and the 2012 national champions had one of the country’s best hurlers, Jackie Traina in the circle. “I think it is much more difficult to get there the second time,” Alabama coach Patrick Murphy said. “To get back here and to get to a championship series… it’s a great
feeling for all of us.” The Gators understand that feeling. It took three trips to the finals before they finally earned their championship and they did it by beating Traina, who gave up five runs in just 1 ⅓ innings in game two. "We've seen her (Traina) a lot, and we think that was kind of beneficial to us," Walton said. "We got a lot of runs off of her after we faced her (in game one), and I think that could have been the same result if we started Hannah. Back-to-back days against good hitting teams that use video and have smart coaches -- they're going to make adjustments." Florida made adjustment’s the entire postseason. The Gators scored 81 runs and eight players had at least one hit in the clincher against Alabama. “We just never give up until there are three outs,” said Kelsey Stewart, who had eight hits in Oklahoma City. Florida batters combined for 45 hits and a .331 average in World Series play. Sophomore Kirsti Merritt had six hits with two home runs, seven runs scored and five RBI. Bailey Castro was 5 for 9 with four RBI, while Aubree Munro hit a home run in the series opening win over Alabama. Senior Stephanie Tofft drove in six runs and freshman Chelsea Herndon got the hit parade started by hitting a grand slam in her first Women’s College World Series at-bat. Alabama’s bats just couldn’t keep up. “We all want to end our career with a win,” Crimson Tide senior Kaila Hunt said. “But the biggest thing I'm going to take away from this is the relationships and the friendships that I've built over the past four years with these people, because it's not going to matter in 20 years whether I ended my career with a win or not." Alabama owns it share of Women’s College World Series history. Now, the Florida Gators know what it feels like to finish the season with a win. “I couldn’t have done it without my teammates,” Rogers said. “The defense behind me and the way offense has been going all weekend, all the hard work that we put in throughout the season… doing it with these girls is a great feeling.”
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Softball Today • June 2014
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Softball Today • June 2014
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Softball Today • June 2014
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Owatonna, MN.,--- The 35th Annual Corky's Early Bird ASA Super Qualifier played to an expected finish as Long Haul/H Auto/Easton went an undefeated 5-0 and continued their domination tour of the United States slowpitch scene. Long Haul (aka Laservision) won their second ASA Super Qualifer (first was in Oklahoma) by defeating Xtreme/Miken 22-12 in the winner's bracket championship game Sunday morning and former Corky's champ Sonny's 32-22 in the final game on Sunday afternoon! The tournament began on Friday night with 149 total teams across 5 divisions and the tournament was played for the Owatonna Youth Sports Scholarship fund charity! In the Super Qualifier bracket there were 22 quality teams with just two teams starting out on Friday night – Line Drive Sportz, an 'A' team from Michigan and HMC/Easton from Minnesota. Line Drive was nearly upset as they
struggled by hitting into multiple double plays and squeaked out a 6-4 victory with the wind blowing in and a decent sized crowd on hand on the main field – Fairgrounds #1. The majority of teams started on Saturday morning when the tournament resumed. The temperatures were in the 40's and 50's all weekend and on Saturday the wind played havoc with the game scores as it blew in on the main field F1 and F4, but out on F2 and F3 at 10 to 18 mph. The rains did stay away. Besides Long Haul and 'A' favorites like Sonny's, Rip City, and Line Drive, the Corky's Super bracket featured the last 3 ASA 'B' National champions in Precision (2011), Xtreme/Miken (2012), and Heartland Investors (2013). In the final 4 of the winner's bracket Long Haul needed some late defense to keep T's 13 from pulling off a big upset to move to the finals. And late Saturday night in a shootout on the show field, Rip
City/Demarini battled Xtreme/Miken. The game went to overtime tied at 16-16 and Xtreme ended up winning 21-17 in the 8th inning to move on to Sundays winner's bracket championship game. In that winner's final, Long Haul jumped out to a 19-6 lead after 4 innings as Brandon Dillon who already had a grand slam in the bottom of the first inning, added to his day with 3 more singles. Mike Umschied hit two homers, and Kirby, Wegman, Filby, and Helmer were all 3-4. They finished off Xtreme by the run rule 22-12 in five innings. 4 hitter Dustin Palm was 3-3 with a homer and 4 RBI for Xtreme. Meanwhile Sonny's ran the loser's bracket beating Outpost and Team Stoop on Saturday night and T's 13, Rip City, and Xtreme on Sunday morning to make it to the championship. In the Xtreme game which was the loser's bracket championship, Sonny's had a 13 run inning and run ruled Xtreme. In the finals though Sonny's grounded into a couple of double plays against Long Haul early on and trailed 19-0 after two innings. Long Hauls lineup was on base 19 of their first 25 plate appearances with 6 homers including 3-3 with 2 homers and a double from leadoff man Bryson Baker. Sonny's would mount a 10 run inning in the 4th to extend the game but Long Haul won by the run rule. Final Standings: 1) Long Haul 2) Sonnys
3) Xtreme 4) Rip City
Softball Today • June 2014
By DW at SoftballCenter.com
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#1 Baugh Ford / Doerflinger / National Pawn / Klutch Brand / Easton - Alabama LF-Donovan Pokraka CF-Brian Zirkle RF-Jeff Payton 3B-JD Genter SS-Brad Reckart MI-Jeff Flood OF-Kyle Pearson 1B-Sean McDonald P-Billy Barrett C-Chris Larsen EH-Vince Bisbee Bench: P/Spons-Tommie Baugh OF-Brad Blankenship UT/Spons-Brett Brindley Manager-Rob Humphrey Sponsor-Ric Doerflinger Baugh Ford is off to a fast start in the Nationwide Conference USSSA league. They are currently the third ranked team in the nation ahead of some of the major teams and have a 23-10 record on the season with 7 wins vs the major division. Baugh is a veteran team led by the 2011 Long Haul Bomber champ Chris Larsen, catcher Vince Bisbee, former LineDrive pitcher Billy Barrett, shortstop Brad Reckart, and experience veterans Sean McDonald and Donovan Pokraka. They have a hustling center fielder and leadoff man in Team USA's Brian Zirkle, the steady on base of JD Genter, and up and coming players like Kyle Pearson, Jeff Flood, and Jeff Payton. This team is a merger between last year's GTL team and the player/pitcher/sponsor Tommie Baugh. Outlook: The team should be a regular threat to finish on Sundays at Conference events. The pitching rotation of Tommie Baugh and Billy Barrett should be a 50/50 split. The team needs to stay healthy but their aging team seems to be rejuvenated and rolling like no other team in the 'A' division right now! They are the only team to beat Laservision who is the #1 team in the nation this year. Players to watch: Brian Zirkle at lead off and JD Genter set the table at the top of the order for the league's leading RBI man Chris Larsen (120). If the pitching continues to get it done they should be the #1 seed going into the USSSA 'A' World Tournament.
#2 Team Albicocco/The Scene/Easton/Elite - New York LF-Jason Branch CF-Lee Payne RF-Ryan Harvey 3B Matt Crawford SS-Chente Grandos MI-Orlando Castillo 2B-Phillip White 1B-Terry Baggs P-Dan Sanchez C-Shannon Smith EH-Kyle Moyer Bench: P-Donald Plaisance OF-Eric Beattie Player/Manager Jason Kendrick Veteran major player Jason Kendrick takes the helm as manager/player on a team of handpicked future stars. The team is virtually all new from its 2013 roster with no real holes in the lineup offensively or defensively. Leadoff man Jason Branch is an offensive machine. Then they will give the young Orlando Castillo a shot at the two hole in front of first baseman Terry Baggs, and power hitter Kyle Moyer. Also the talented and speedy outfielder Lee Payne and the power hitting Ryan Harvey are two up and coming players. Outlook: This team was pre-season #1 but struggled some in their first two tournaments before winning the "Peach State Shootout" at the end of May. They will compete to finish top 5 overall and should be a threat at 'A' Worlds. They even have enough defense to beat some major teams. Players to watch: Can tall center fielder Lee Payne's game mature into one of the best. Can young power hitters Shannon Smith and Ryan Harvey take it to the next level?
#3 Line Drive Sportz/R&M Metals/Easton - Michigan LF-Cory Large CF-Ryan Parfitt RF-Sal Formosa 3B-Cooper Vittitow SS-Chris Hansen MI-Steve Whaley 2B-Richard Salazar 1B-Keith Anderson P-Brendt Newbill P-Faron Miller C-Mike Dill EH-Cory Boothe Bench: P-Faron Miller IF-Joel Ramos OF-Jared Krasselt Manager-Manfred Budnarowski Sponsor-Tarz Lanzon Line Drive makes a push to the top of the 'A' division again with some great young pickups in third baseman Cooper Vittitow from Texas, power hitter Cory Boothe who won 'A' Worlds with Nordkap last year, and second baseman Richard Salazar who comes over from GTL. The team returns one of the best outfields in the game in Cory Large, Ryan Parfitt, and Sal Formosa. Manager Fred Budnarowski has a great lineup and adds a veteran pitcher Brendt Newbill who has pitched at the major level to go with young knuckle baller Faron Miller. Outlook: Line Drive has a chance to finish as high as 4th overall and will get a top seed for 'A' Worlds where anything less than a championship will be a disappointment. Line Drive won the 64 team Houston Major in early April but their chemistry fell off after that and they have struggled ever since to regain it. Players to watch: Center fielder Ryan Parfitt is an offensive machine with great power and speed. Cory Large will be recruited by all the major teams in the off season.
Softball Today • June 2014
#4 Red's Astros/Louisville Slugger - Indiana
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LF-Wally Maybrier CF-Andrew Collins RF-Buddy Wolf 3B-Scott Zaciewski SS-Travis Dale MI-Troy Krider P-Ryan Joiner C-Chad Mullins EH-Tim Cocco Bench: IF-Rob Roop IF-Justin Aldora OF-Josh Bowen C-Brad Tabler Bench: IF-Josh Riley IF-John Sullivan Manager-Red Moore Manager/Sponsor-Herb Price Red's Astros return to the Conference for the 3rd season in a row and this is their best team ever. They add major power hitter Tim Cocco from Backman/Shoppe, power hitting catcher Brad Tabler from 3rd Street, and the 2013 'A' World championship experience of third baseman Scott Zaciewski and outfielder Andrew Collins. The additional power will help at the Worlds in Kissimmee, Florida in August. Red's always has great chemistry and return a core of players that finished 2nd at the 'A' Worlds in 2013. Outlook: Red's is right there with the top of the 'A' division. They got off to a terrible start at the Hall of Fame Classic and the Columbus, Ohio Major. The team will re-focus in the second half of the regular season but they have quite a hole to dig out of as they are 30th in the point standings coming into June. Players to watch: Can Andrew Collins hustle and Tim Cocco's leadership pick up this team in the second half of the season? And can 'A' World MVP Scott Zaciewski who has diabetes recover from a setback? These are the guys to watch on Red's.
#5 SlatteryLogistics/BWW/Buzini/Miken - Mississippi LF-Brady Bascle CF-Justin Stewart RF-Colby Hughes 3B-Kyle Pearson SS-Jake Mays MI-Jason Williams 2B-Kenny Leach P-Chad Loudon C-Billy Maggard EH-Tim Bowser Bench: IF-Chris Smith 1B-Andrew Miller UT-Brent Lacy Slattery is a new sponsor but the team is basically the Buzini team that won the USSSSA 'B' Worlds in 2013. They add FBI power hitter Tim Bowser, Nightmare outfielder Colby Hughes who was a former Arena football player, and FBI infielder Kenny Leach who was All Conference in 2013. Outlook: Slattery will have some growing pains moving up to the 'A' division but veteran pitcher Chad Loudon has 'A' experience and the team has a ton of talent. Although they are a year away from being a high seed at the 'A' World they could make a Cinderella run at a Sunday finish. Players to watch: Billy Maggard is one of the best pure hitters in the game pound for pound. Colby Hughes has possibly the best throwing arm in the game. And third baseman Kyle Pearson is really coming into his own in 2014.
#6 Taylormade/TM Sports/Diamond & Ice/Mizuno - Virginia LF-Jackie Corn Jr CF-Brian Logan RF-John Zorich 3B-Rick Leith SS-Clif Williamson MI-Billy Moran 2B-Derrick Roland 1B-Blake King P-Brandon Jonas C-Brian Floyd EH-Stacy Mizelle Bench: UT-Stacy Bolton UT-Chris Calcutt UT-Travis Rawls Manager-Chyenne Brooks Sponsor-Travis Taylor Taylormade brings back Brandon Jonas to pitch. They have the best defensive center fielder in the game in Brian Logan who has learned to be a solid leadoff hitter as well. And they also return 19 year old hitting phenom Blake King at first base, and steady middle infielder Billy Moran. Outlook: Taylormade should just barely qualify for the Major World Series and will always be a tough out at the USSSA 'A' World. Players to watch: Jackie Corn Jr. is becoming one of the better young outfielders in the division, Logan in center is always fun to watch and makes some great diving catches.
#7 4 The Fallen/Miken/EVO9X - Arizona
#8 Dirty/Combat/Blockers - Washington LF-Joey Smith CF-Mark Bizzell RF-Adam Rockoff 3B-Dave Moore SS-Robert Hendren MI-Tony Mack 2B-Dave Garcia 1B Landon Helm P-Shawn Jones C-Dan Dillingham EH-Franck Henry Bench: UT-Pat Paschal UT-Nate Holcomb UT-Chris Hoshaw This team is a mix of former Combat Major and Combat 'A' players from past seasons put together with a Florida contingent. They have plenty of power but questionable defense on the corners. The pitching should be fine with veteran Shawn Jones formerly of DeMarini/Dirty. Outlook: This team could struggle to make the Major World Series and has added defensive standout Tony Mack to the roster for the second half. They didn't play well in Seattle the first week of June. Players to watch: Center fielder Mark Bizzell is new to the upper level and is a tall energetic player that could help push the veterans. Dan Dillingham and Canadian Franck Henry will need to have big years as well as perennial power hitter Adam Rockoff.
Softball Today • June 2014
LF-Jim Kulovitz CF-Nick Sansone RF-Josh Carter 3B-Isaac Gonzalez SS-Kris Kelleher MI-Ryan McClanahan 2B-Greg Zayas 1B-Pilar Amaya P-Geno Buck C-Charles Cunningham EH-Denny Crine Bench: IF-Brandon Gooding UT-Len Anderson Manager-Jaime Fregozo 4 The Fallen makes some big changes in the first half of the season bringing in some young defensive specialists at shortstop and middle infield. And they rely heavily on former Laservision pitcher Geno Buck to lead them on both defense and offense. Outlook: The team can finish as high as 5th in the 'A' division with the right attitude and fire in the belly? Players to watch: Young power hitting third baseman Isaac Gonzales returns to the conference after a rookie year where he had over 100 RBI.
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Softball Today • June 2014
By DW at SoftballCenter.com
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Powder Springs, GA., --- The annual "Peach State" Shootout was played May 24-25 in Powder Springs, Georgia at the Lost Mountain Softball Complex because the normal venue was being worked on. The tournament was played in perfect weather and featured some great extra innings games. The tournament began on Saturday morning with 34 teams from 13 different states. 14 of the teams were from the Nationwide Conference USSSA. In the early rounds most of the favorites advanced and in the round of 16 it was 2 'A' and 6 'B' Conference teams advancing with B&B Diamond & Ice coming from behind to beat fellow North Carolina rival Crossfit/RDU and ASPNation holding on against K&G 24-22. In the round of 8 Above All Landscaping a 'C' team out of New Jersey shocked ASP Nation 26-6, Albicocco used the 30 run rule after just 3 innings to crush Nightmare, Baugh Ford capitalized on some late Bad Draw mistakes to win 33-23, and OI Livingston dominated fellow 'B' peer B&B Diamond & Ice by 24 runs! In the final 4 of the winner's bracket Team Albicocco held off a feisty Above All Landscaping 3225, and Baugh Ford again came from behind and capitalized on OI Livingston mistakes to a 22-14 win. In the winner's finals on Saturday night #5 ranked Team Albicocco and #3 ranked Baugh Ford were both scoring at an equal clip until Albicocco broke it open in the 5th inning with a 3 run homer by Orlando Castillo and was given a 19-18 lead on a 3 run homer by Eric Beattie and beat Baugh 31-27.
On Sunday morning Above All Landscaping jumped out to a 12 run lead on OI Livingston but 5th inning homers by Robert Knoblauch, Tony Elrod, Matt McCraw, and Jonathan Scott closed the gap. They also turned a triple play on defense when middle infielder Aaron Tennyson scooped a grounder and tagged the runner going to third before stepping on the second base bag and throwing to first! The momentum had shifted! Above All who had led most of the way found themselves down going into the 7th inning when Chris Montenegro hit a game tying single and Patrick Riporti hit a go ahead double to the gap but could only manage a one run lead.
In the bottom of the 7th OI Livingston got a game tying double down the right field line by pitcher Tony Elrod as Robert Knoblauch scored all the way from first with a tremendous head first slide just ahead of the tag. But they went to extra innings when Above All second baseman William Aker caught a liner just off the ground and doubled off the runner at second. In extra innings Above All failed to score and with two outs Tyler Driskell hit a game winning double for OI Livingston to win 25-24. In the loser's bracket finals OI then beat Baugh Ford 28-23 as they led most of the way and went up by double figures going into the bottom of the 6th. Baugh made a comeback but fell short by 5 runs. In the championship a tired OI Livingston went down 27-7 early on as Team Albicocco used up all of their home runs in the first two innings. But OI Livingston found a second wind and by the end of the 6th inning, OI had cut the Albicocco lead to just 4. Albicocco would add 3 in the top of the 7th, and OI got 3 run homers out of Jonathan Scott and Jamie Hancock in the bottom of the 7th to close it to 1 but left the game tying run on 1st and lost 36-35! Atlanta Final Results: 1st Team Albicocco/The Scene/Easton (NY) 2nd OI Livingston/ (GA) 3rd Baugh Ford/Doerflinger/National Pawn/Klutch/Easton (AL) 4th Above All Landscaping (NJ)
Kent, WA., --- The Seattle Dual Major was a grueling 4 days of softball but was helped by the weather which was cool, dry, and had low humidity. Laservision/H Auto/Easton the #1 team in the nation ran their win streak to 33 games and won their 5th and 6th Nationwide Conference USSSA tournaments
By DW at SoftballCenter.com
Joliet, IL., --- The annual "Windy City" Major was won by Resmondo Specialty Tank/Worth who knocked off Backman/Shoppe/Louisville Slugger 49-26 in the second game of the championship. Resmondo's "Bubba" Mack was the tournament MVP as he hit a blazing .912 with 13 homers and 32 RBI. It was Resmondo's second tournament win of the season. Backman finished second after running through the loser's bracket after a local Illinois team Precision/Easton upset them by the run rule 42-24. Backman then beat Pure Romance 35-5 late on Saturday night, Laservision for the first time all year 31-16, got their revenge on Precision by knocking them off 36-33, and won the first game of the championship over Resmondo 30-10. It was Backman's best tournament of the season. Precision finished third after ending Laservisions 35 game winning streak 35-34 on Saturday afternoon. Precision did so by making a great diving catch in
center field by Bryan Porter and a nice stop on a hard ground ball by shortstop Tristan Reimolds in the bottom of the 7th. Precision then played Backman in the semi-finals and stunned them 42-24 to make it the winner's bracket championship against Resmondo where they lost 34-13. The tournament had great weather and the wind blew hard straight out to center field on the show field all day on Saturday and straight in from center all day on Sunday. There was a full contingent of top Conference umpires, bat testing was 100%, and the Conference Dudley ZN Conference M ball was used. The crowds on Friday and Saturday were fairly big.
the second event. There weren't many upsets in either tournament. In tournament #1 J&I/Elite beat OC Swats 21-20 for the only notable upset. In the second tournament Headcase beat Combat/Blockers 24-8 for the only real upset and Headcase is a very good 'B' team. There were a lot of pulled muscles and fatigue but the players for the most part were still giving it all after as many as 15 games! Seattle Dual #1 Results: 1st Laservision/H Auto/JJ's/Easton (NY) 2nd Team Combat/Softball.com (WA) 3rd Sonny's (WY) 4th OC Swats/Miken/Premier Athletics (CA)
Seattle Dual #2 Results: 1st Laservision/H Auto/JJ's/Easton (NY) 2nd Team Combat/Softball.com (WA) 3rd Sonny's (WY) 4th 4 The Fallen/Miken/Evo9X (AZ)
Chicago Major Results: 1st Resmondo Specialty-Tank Worth (FL) 2nd Backman/Shoppe/Louisville Slugger (IN) 3rd Precision/Easton (IL) 4th Laservision/H Auto/JJ's/Easton (NY)
Softball Today • June 2014
By DW at SoftballCenter.com
in a row by going 10-0. In both tournaments Laservision knocked off Team Combat/Softball.com in both the winner's finals and the finals by a combined four game score of 153-64. Laservision was only challenged once late in a game and that was a threat from 4 The Fallen/Miken/Evo9X who was beating them by 2 going into the top of the 7th in the second tournament. Laservision promptly scored 10 runs and held on to win 28-24. Sonny's from Wyoming was the highest nonconference team as they placed 3rd in both tournaments with an impressive 11-4 record, losing only to the Major teams. OC Swats out of California was 4th in the first tournament, and 4 The Fallen/Miken scored their first top 4 of the season in
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